Stearman, Kaye 1951–

PERSONAL: Born April 9, 1951, in Sydney, Australia; daughter of Roy (an engineer) and Mary (a homemaker) Stearman. Ethnicity: "White." Education: University of Sydney, B.Econ. (honors), 1973; London School of Oriental and African Studies, London, M.A., 1979. Politics: "Left-wing."

ADDRESSES: Home—Flat 2, 26 Upper Tollington Park, London, N4 3EL, England. E-mail—kayemuse@hotmail.com.

CAREER: Teacher of young people and adults, London, England, 1975–79; worked in London-area non-governmental organizations related to human rights and development activities, 1981–87, including Amnesty International, 1987–88, Minority Rights Group, 1988–92, Healthlink Worldwide, 1993–99, CARE International, 1999–2003, and Consumers International, 2003–.

WRITINGS:

(With Keith D. Suter) Aboriginal Australians, revised edition, Minority Rights Group (London, England), 1988.

(With Rachel Warner) Homeland, Wayland (Hove, England), 1993.

(With Cheryl Law) Justice, Wayland (Hove, England), 1993.

Freedom of Expression, Wayland (Hove, England), 1993.

(With Nikki van der Gaag) Gender Issues, Wayland (Hove, England), 1995, Raintree Steck-Vaughn (Austin, TX), 1997.

Homelessness, Wayland (Hove, England), 1998, Rain-tree Steck-Vaughn (Austin, TX), 1999.

Women's Rights: Changing Attitudes, 1900–2000, Rain-tree Steck-Vaughn (Austin, TX), 1999.

Slavery Today, Raintree Steck-Vaughn (Austin, TX), 1999.

Why Do People Live on the Streets?, Wayland (Hove, England), 2000, Raintree Steck-Vaughn (Austin, TX), 2001.

Why Do People Gamble?, Wayland (Hove, England), 2000, Raintree Steck-Vaughn (Austin, TX), 2001.

Poverty, Smart Apple Media (North Mankato, MN), 2002.

Feminism, Hodder Wayland (Hove, England), 2003, Raintree (Chicago, IL), 2004.

Child Labour, Heinemann (Oxford, England), 2003, published as Face the Facts Child Labor, Raintree (Chicago, IL), 2004.

SIDELIGHTS: Kaye Stearman writes books for young adults on human rights and global issues. These works introduce young people to serious social problems confronting humanity, including homelessness, slavery, gender inequality, freedom of expression, and child labor. They have garnered positive critical attention for clearly presenting complex social problems and for providing a variety of viewpoints on possible solutions, pertinent statistics, and outstanding quotes. Sarah Mears, reviewing Freedom of Expression for School Librarian, describing it as "very up to date." The book covers the variety of ways people speak out about injustice, the use and misuse of the media, and the importance of having the freedom to express differences of opinion. Stearman's effort was judged to be lacking in bias and respectful of its subject. The book is part of "an important and challenging new series," Mears concluded.

In Gender Issues, Stearman and coauthor Nikki van der Gaag cover topics such as equal opportunity in employment and education, women's rights under the law, and how gender roles are changing worldwide. All the while, the duo take into consideration cultural differences, sexual orientation, the availability of such resources as family planning, childcare, and other relevant social structures. Though Books for Keeps reviewer Steve Rosson expressed some dissatisfaction with the prose style, he called it "very worthy, immensely detailed and thoroughly researched." Voice of Youth Advocates reviewer Sandra Lee commented: "The authors succeed in presenting facts and personal stories from people around the world without loading the book with opinion or lessons." Lee added that the style of presentation encourages student discussion, further investigation, and activism. Women's Rights: Changing Attitudes, 1900–2000 and Feminism also provide introductions to the issues surrounding gender-based activism, from historical, political, and social perspectives. The subject matter transcends national boundaries in considering topics that touch on women's place in the world, including child labor, sweatshops, and foreign cultures that devalue women, both legally and socially.

The topic of forced labor is also addressed in Stearman's book Slavery Today. The author defines a variety of international and historical practices that fall within her definition of slavery, from servitude in repayment of debt, to prostitution, child labor, and migrant labor. She also discusses current individual and institutional efforts to halt the exploitation of human beings around the world.

In Homelessness, Stearman again takes a global approach to a social problem, looking at homelessness in the United States, India, and South Africa. A similar book, Why Do People Live on the Streets?, describes causes of homelessness that can uproot families through no fault of their own and invites the reader to imagine what it might actually be like to have no home. She also describes some of the assistance programs available to the homeless and considers ways to reduce the size of the homeless population.

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Booklist, September 1, 1999, Hazel Rochman, review of Homelessness, p. 77.

Books for Keeps, May, 1996, Steve Rosson, review of Gender Issues, p. 23.

School Librarian, May, 1994, Sarah Mears, review of Freedom of Expression, p. 77; August, 1996, p. 126.

School Library Journal, April, 2000, Linda W. Tilden, review of Women's Rights: Changing Attitudes, 1900–2000, p. 149; May, 2000, Eunice Weech, review of Slavery Today, p. 187; July, 2001, Elizabeth Maggio, review of Why Do People Live on the Streets?, p. 132; July, 2004, Courtney Lewis, review of Homelessness, p. 122.

Voice of Youth Advocates, June, 1997, Sandra Lee, review of Gender Issues, p. 138.