Lori Kenschaft is an American historian with a special interest in the history of social change. She has taught at Boston University and is currently teaching at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. She earned her Ph.D in American Studies at Boston University.

A 2004 New York Public Library Books For the Teen Age selection!

"This addition to the Oxford Portraits series introduces a woman who is little know but immensely interesting....Kenschaft's well-written text, helped by black-and-white photographs and pictures and cartoons of the period, may entice students to read on; it captures both a woman and her times." -- Booklist

"Lydia Maria Child's life and accomplishments are outlined in this dense text....[Child's} literary achievements, rocky marriage, and bots with depression are portrayed honestly....Excerpts from Child's work and black-and-white reproductions will engage those who perservere." --The Horn Book Guide

"When people think of women writers leading the struggle for equality, most think of Harriet Beecher Stowe. But they should also think of Lydia Maria Child. A popular author of domestic handbooks, she made the decision in 1883 to write a 'scathing indictment of slavery'.... Lori Kenschaft tells the life story of America's first professional woman writer to speak out for Black slaves, American Indians, women, and the poor." -- NEA Today