Arm in Arm: The Grimké Sisters' Fight for Abolition and Women's Rights

Sisters Sarah and Angelina Grimké grew up in wealth and privilege in early nineteenth century Charleston, South Carolina. Following the standards of the time, they should have known nothing but prosperity, high social status, and Southern gentility for all their lives. But neither could look away from the inhumanity, violence, and cruelty of the enslavement they saw everywhere, even in their own home. Shaped by their religious beliefs and a fierce sense of compassion, the sisters moved north to begin a fight that would change America forever.

Historian and author Angelica Shirley Carpenter tells the remarkable true story of the sisters' lives as they cut a swath across the northeastern United States, speaking out against slavery even while facing violence from pro-slavery mobs. When women were expected to stay at home and be quiet, they spoke up, too, for women's rights, becoming pioneer advocates for that civil liberties movement. Sarah and Angelina's activism played an important role in the early 1800s, and their actions have had lasting effects--influencing figures such as Ruth Bader Ginsberg--that have set the stage for present-day crusades for equality.

Author: Angelica Shirley Carpenter
Binding Type: Paperback
Publisher: Zest Books (Tm)
Published: 09/09/2025
Pages: 296
ISBN: 9798765627433


Review Citation(s):
School Library Journal 08/01/2025 pg. 91
Kirkus Reviews 08/15/2025

About the Author
Carpenter, Angelica Shirley: - Angelica Shirley Carpenter's recent titles include a young adult biography, Born Criminal: Matilda Joslyn Gage, Radical Suffragist, and two picture books, The Voice of Liberty and The Secret Gardens of Frances Hodgson Burnett. Her 2025 young adult biography is Arm in Arm: The Grimké Sisters Fight for Abolition and Women's Rights. Curator emerita of the Arne Nixon Center for the Study of Children's Literature at California State University, Fresno, she is a past president of the International Wizard of Oz Club. She has master's degrees in education and library science. Visit her at angelicacarpenter.com.