Book Review: Tear This Down by Barbara Dee

Publisher’s description

From Barbara Dee, the critically acclaimed author of Maybe He Just Likes You, comes a middle grade novel about a girl who makes the choice to speak out against a problematic historical hometown figure no matter the cost—perfect for readers of Dress Coded.

For as long as Freya can remember, she has loved living in her cozy hometown of Wellstone. Not only is the town itself named for local and historical hero Benjamin Wellstone but everything in it: schools, beaches, and stores. There’s even a giant statue of him to remind everyone of the good things he did.

But while doing research for a big school project, Freya discovers that Benjamin isn’t the big hero everyone has been taught to believe. He had some redeeming qualities, but he also held incredibly problematic views towards women, believing they shouldn’t have the right to vote—or even to exist outside of the home. Disappointed by her revelation, Freya wonders if she could figure out a way to not only show what the hometown hero was really like but replace his statue with one of an unsung hero: local suffragette Octavia Padgett.

Though Freya knows not everyone will agree with her, she is shocked when her efforts cause even bigger issues than she could have imagined. Even her own parents seem uneasy with Freya’s cause. With the help of her beloved Nan, friends new and old, and the coolest librarian she’s ever met, can Freya stand firm and tear down outdated views?

Amanda’s thoughts

Barbara Dee is one of my very favorite authors. So much so, actually, that I bumped her book to the top of my pile the second it arrived, instead of continuing to read in order of publication date as I usually do. I made a good choice.

Seventh grade Freya is a big fan of asking questions. And generally speaking, her questions come from a place of having an opinion about something. She’s constantly noticing the endless sexism all around her and while she asks a lot of questions about it all, she rarely feels she gets satisfying answers. Her most recent question is this: why is her town named after Benjamin Wellstone, why is everything in her town named after Benjamin Wellstone, when he apparently held an awful lot of offensive and sexist beliefs? The answers she gets, mostly reminding her it was a different time and he also did a lot of good, are not satisfying. As Freya begins to learn more about local suffragists, and about the erasure and silencing of women in history, she decides something must be done. Thus begins Freya’s crusade to make some big changes in her small town.

I don’t know if it’s because I see so much of my younger self in Freya, or because of the current political apocalypse we’re living in, or what, but I kept feeling emotional while reading this. One of the very best things about Dee is you can feel just how much she respects her young readers. She knows they are engaged and aware, that the big issues we ponder as adults they ponder too, that they can be activists and changemakers. Freya sticks to her mission in the face of her friends worrying she’s not even trying to fit in or be less annoyingly argumentative, in the face of opinions from her family, her teacher, the librarian, and even the mayor. She’s making her voice heard, taking a stand… and feels like she isn’t taken seriously simply because she’s a young girl.

Freya is a dynamic character. While she certainly does stick to her mission, she also (a little begrudgingly at first, maybe) learns to find the flaws and biases in her own thinking and learns to adapt her plans when what she’s doing isn’t working. There are consequences for her actions, because there often are when you have the bravery to stand up to those in charge and question the status quo, but she learns from them and continues to pursue the change she knows is necessary.

Full of grown-ups who both support Freya and help guide her (even if being grounded and getting lectures don’t feel like guiding), this look at community, protest, art, and feminism is an excellent read that will leave readers cheering for Freya’s determination to create change.

Review copy courtesy of the publisher

ISBN-13: 9781665917674
Publisher: Aladdin
Publication date: 02/25/2025
Age Range: 9 – 13 Years

Filed under: Book Reviews