The History Book Club discussion

This topic is for the discussion of women's history.

Women's history is the study of the role that women have played in history, together with the methods needed to study women. It includes the study of the history of the growth of woman's rights throughout recorded history, the examination of individual women of historical significance, and the effect that historical events have had on women.

(Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Women%27...)

More Sources:

http://www.fordham.edu/Halsall/women/...
http://www.h-net.org/~women/
http://womenshistorymonth.gov/

by Georges Duby

by Geneviève Fraisse (no photo)

by Françoise Thébaud (no photo)

A Call to Action

by Jimmy Carter

Synopsis

President Carter was encouraged to write this book by a wide coalition of leaders of all faiths. His urgent report covers a system of discrimination that extends to every nation. Women are deprived of equal opportunity in wealthier nations and “owned” by men in others, forced to suffer servitude, child marriage, and genital cutting. The most vulnerable, along with their children, are trapped in war and violence.

A Call to Action addresses the suffering inflicted upon women by a false interpretation of carefully selected religious texts and a growing tolerance of violence and warfare. Key verses are often omitted or quoted out of context by male religious leaders to exalt the status of men and exclude women. And in nations that accept or even glorify violence, this perceived inequality becomes the basis for abuse. President Carter and his wife, Rosalynn, have visited 145 countries, and The Carter Center has had active projects in more than half of them. Around the world, they have seen inequality rising rapidly with each passing decade. This is true in both rich and poor countries, and among the citizens within them.

Carter draws upon his own experiences and the testimony of courageous women from all regions and all major religions to demonstrate that women around the world, more than half of all human beings, are being denied equal rights. This is an informed and passionate charge about a devastating effect on economic prosperity and unconscionable human suffering. It affects us all.

Thank you Bryan.

Who Cooked the Last Supper?: The Women's History of the World

by Rosalind Miles

Synopsis:

Men dominate history because they write it. Women’s vital part in the shaping of the world has been consistently undervalued or ignored. Rosalind Miles now offers a fundamental reappraisal that sets the record straight. Stunning in its scope and originality, The Women’s History of the World challenges all previous world histories and shatters cherished illusions on every page.

Starting with women in pre-history the author looks beyond the myth of ‘Man the Hunter’ to reveal women’s central role in the survival and evolution of the human race. She follows their progress from the days when God was a woman through to the triumphs of the Amazons and Assyrian war queens: she looks at the rise of organised religion and the growing oppression of women: she charts the long slow struggle for women’s rights culminating in the twentieth century women’s movements: and finally she presents a vision of women breaking free.

This brilliant and absorbing book turns the spotlight on the hidden side of history to present a fascinating new view of the world, overturning our preconceptions to restore women to their rightful place at the centre of the worldwide story of revolution, empire, war and peace.

Spiced with tales of individual women who have shaped history, celebrating the work and lives of the unsung female millions, distinguished by a wealth of research, The Women’s History of the World redefines the concept of historical reality.

The story of one of the great labor leaders of the mid-19th century...with a forward by Clarence Darrow.

Autobiography of Mother Jones

by Mother Jones

Synopsis:

Among the most stirring pieces of labor history ever written, this autobiography of Mother Jones (née Mary Harris) chronicles the life of a woman who was considered a saint by many, and by others as "the most dangerous woman in America." Widowed at the age of 30 when her husband and four young children died during an epidemic, Jones threw herself into the social and labor upheavals of the mid-19th century, speaking tirelessly and effectively for the rights of workers and unionists.

Thanks Jill for the add

Agente

by Douglas Boyd - 2 stars

Anyone who follows my reading knows I absolutely ADORE the women of SOE and their role in WWII. So, when Netgalley offered me an advance copy of Agente, which promised to look at not only their activities, but others women's roles in espionage over a wide range of conflicts I was immediately interested. Then, the introduction promised, "this book explores why female agents from all social backgrounds and many different countries volunteered over the centuries for this dangerous life, how effective they were and what training, if any, they were given," I was really excited about that since in my study of history it seems that women are more heavily represented for Russia even though it was well known that their careers were often ended by execution and from Jewish backgrounds (and the book seemed to validate that assumption). The opportunity to understand the WHY of those decisions really intrigued me. Unfortunately, I was underwhelmed by the work.

First, and foremost, the book failed to fulfill the promise of "exploring" the enumerated topics listed above. From an historical work exploring connotes analysis. The author sometimes, but not always, simply stated a reason - such as avenging a loved ones death. If information was given on training it was a simple statement of what areas they were trained in. The author did a better job of showing the number of countries and conflicts women represented with a few resoundingly effective accomplishments.

Second, the book lacked focused. The title and introduction says it will focus on those in the secret service. However, only about half of the women in the book were spies. The remaining were collaborators, part of resistance movements, provided comfort to those considered enemies, or were forced to endure torture as a result of being a resident in occupied territory with a very odd and disjointed paragraph on Aubrey Hepburn that certainly didn't fit. All of these are meaningful and gut-wrenching topics, but it caused huge deviations from the premise and the space dedicated here may have better served the author to flesh out the aspects that did tie into the premise. Finally, there was a frustratingly lack of detail behind positions put forth. For instance, in the chapter Women Against Hitler the author states, "While willing to risk their lives on courier missions, all four women refused on principle to carry out sabotage." What principle? Why? Exploring items like this would give the reader a much better understanding into the mind of these women.

There was a great deal of promise within the book, however. The chapter on the women of SOE, while not without flaws, brought to life the things these women endured, and I'm pretty protective of their memory. The flaws were not enough to elicit any ire from me. So, that's a really good thing. The chapter entitled Heroine or Liar did a good job of presenting both sides of the argument, I was utterly fascinated by Dvorah in The Pearl in the Lebanese Oyster, and I learned a few interesting tidbits, such as Women's History Month is directly tied to Betty McIntosh and I found some women I want to study further.
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A better premise may have been looking at the bravery of women during wartime. It is also an important topic for study. So, I would recommend this book for anyone interested in women's experience in wars throughout history or someone looking for a very high level over the topic.

Regina thank you.

These are books by women who lived through and wrote about their lives during revolutions and civil unrest.

, Azar Nafisi

, Etty Hillesum

, Leymah Gbowee


, Marjane Satrapi


, Jean Debelle Lamensdorf


, Leonard Shlain

Azar Nafisi and Marjane Satrapi both lived through the Islamic Revolution in Iran. Etty Hillesum was a Jewish young adult in the Netherlands during the Holocaust and kept a diary of her experiences. Leymah Gbowee is one of the 2011 recipients of the Nobel Peace Prize and her book chronicles her role in helping to end the Second Liberian Civil War. Jean Lamensdorf was actually my neighbor growing up and she was an Australian nurse in Vietnam during the Vietnam War.

The last by Leanord Shlain is a very interesting retelling of the history of civilization looking specifically at the correlation between the rise of literacy and the decline in the role of women in society. I would be especially interested in to know what history lovers think of this one.

Scolvi - the book cover, the author's photo and the author's link needs to be added.

You did a great job with the book covers. If you could edit and fix the citations that will be great - I will circle back and help you.

Illuminating Women in the Medieval World

by Christine Sciacca (no photo)

Synopsis:

When one thinks of women in the Middle Ages, the images that often come to mind are those of damsels in distress, mystics in convents, female laborers in the field, and even women of ill repute. In reality, however, medieval conceptions of womanhood were multifaceted, and women’s roles were varied and nuanced. Female stereotypes existed in the medieval world, but so too did women of power and influence. The pages of illuminated manuscripts reveal to us the many facets of medieval womanhood and slices of medieval life—from preoccupations with biblical heroines and saints to courtship, childbirth, and motherhood. While men dominated artistic production, this volume demonstrates the ways in which female artists, authors, and patrons were instrumental in the creation of illuminated manuscripts.

Featuring over one hundred illuminations depicting medieval women from England to Ethiopia, this book provides a lively and accessible introduction to the lives of women in the medieval world.

Her Own Hero: The Origins of the Women's Self-Defense Movement

by Wendy Rouse (no photo)

Synopsis:
The surprising roots of the self-defense movement and the history of women's empowerment.

At the turn of the twentieth century, women famously organized to demand greater social and political freedoms like gaining the right to vote. However, few realize that the Progressive Era also witnessed the birth of the women's self-defense movement.

It is nearly impossible in today's day and age to imagine a world without the concept of women's self defense. Some women were inspired to take up boxing and jiu-jitsu for very personal reasons that ranged from protecting themselves from attacks by strangers on the street to rejecting gendered notions about feminine weakness and empowering themselves as their own protectors. Women's training in self defense was both a reflection of and a response to the broader cultural issues of the time, including the women's rights movement and the campaign for the vote.
Perhaps more importantly, the discussion surrounding women's self-defense revealed powerful myths about the source of violence against women and opened up conversations about the less visible violence that many women faced in their own homes. Through self-defense training, women debunked patriarchal myths about inherent feminine weakness, creating a new image of women as powerful and self-reliant. Whether or not women consciously pursued self-defense for these reasons, their actions embodied feminist politics. Although their individual motivations may have varied, their collective action echoed through the twentieth century, demanding emancipation from the constrictions that prevented women from exercising their full rights as citizens and human beings. This book is a fascinating and comprehensive introduction to one of the most important women's issues of all time.

Thank you Luci

Wyatt thank you for your add - but all folders are alphabetical and there is focus area map available as well. Additionally when books and authors are noted we require proper citations. Since you post appears to be more suited for the Medieval threads - I will move it there and also add the mandatory citations - the mechanics of the board thread in the Help Desk folder will help you further with citations. Many thanks for your post.

Here are some books about female history that I want to read. I'll add them here in case anyone else wants to read about womens history.

A history of the wife

by Marilyn Yalom

Synopsis:

A History of the Wife weaves a complex tapestry as it outlines the roles, customs, and cultural position of women in Western marriage. The work is engaging, filled with interesting anecdotes and stories, and is an incredibly lively read on a thoroughly interesting subject much in need of a closer look. In breadth, the book ranges from biblical times to the present, and in sheer scale it attempts to present a unified series of
images of the Western wife over the course of some 2,000 years. In doing so, Professor Yalom has presented us an interesting grid, well conceived and wonderfully written, with which we can begin to examine this cultural phenomenon.

One of the main strengths of the work is its
method: Yalom draws heavily on diaries, newspapers, journals, and personal letters, and she interweaves these with citations from the laws, general customs of the times, religious rites, and civic procedure. By moving in a very fluid way from the abstract to the particular, what we see emerging, in each era, is a lively picture of how the general affected the individual. The book makes it real, makes us wonder, and helps to recover for us so many of the lost voices of women over the centuries, silenced by the overshadowing "great men" approach to history. These are not so much the stories of "great women" as they are the telling of everyday life. In reading them we get a fuller sense of what the time and place may have been like for the women whose voices we are listening to. It is the dignity of these everyday voices that holds us, intrigues us, and invites us to read further. A History of the Wife links the ancient, the medieval, the Victorian, and the modern, and makes a strong historical and narrative case for its subject.

Along the way, we are treated to many interesting insights, observations, and historical facts: Nero was officially married five times -- three times to women, twice to boys; until the Middle Ages, marriages in Catholic Europe often did not involve any ceremony at all, and "church weddings" do not appear on the scene until well into the evolution of Christian Europe. The role of women changes slowly in the West, and the role of
religion, from the biblical period through early Christianity to the changes brought by the Reformation and the voyages to the New World, are mapped for us in a sweeping overview.

A particularly strong section of the book is the documentation of the last 50 years of the cultural institution of marriage, and the vast changes brought by World War II and the cultural ferment of the '60s. This is made more impressive because of the compelling histories that the work recounts for us in the 2,000 years before our own era.

An old adage maintained that "everyone needs a wife"; this lively book tells us who followed that adage, why and how they did so, and how we got to where we are now.

Bachelor girl: The secret history of single women in the twentieth century

by Betsy Israel

Synopsis:

In this lively and colorful book of popular history, journalist Betsy Israel shines a light on the old stereotypes that have stigmatized single women for years and celebrates their resourceful sense of spirit, enterprise, and unlimited success in a world where it is no longer unusual or unlikely to be unwed.

Drawing extensively on primary sources, including private journals, newspaper stories, magazine articles, advertisements, films, and other materials from popular media, Israel paints remarkably vivid portraits of single women -- and the way they were perceived -- throughout the decades. From the nineteenth-century spinsters, of New England to the Bowery girls of New York City, from the 1920s flappers to the 1940s working women of the war years and the career girls of the 1950s and 1960s, single women have fought to find and feel comfortable in that room of their own. One need only look at Bridget Jones and the Sex and the City gang to see that single women still maintain an uneasy relationship with the rest of society -- and yet they radiate an aura of glamour and mystery in popular culture.

As witty as it is well researched, as thoughtful as it is lively, Bachelor Girl is a must-read for women everywhere.

Bentley wrote: "Could you separate them and you can add them at the bottom here separately and then I will delete my edits."

Done :-)

Great Lina!!!!

I Am Malala: The Girl Who Stood Up For Education And Was Shot By The Taliban



Synopsis:

When the Taliban took control of the Swat Valley in Pakistan, one girl spoke out. Malala Yousafzai refused to be silenced and fought for her right to an education.

On Tuesday, October 9, 2012, when she was fifteen, she almost paid the ultimate price. She was shot in the head at point-blank range while riding the bus home from school, and few expected her to survive.

Instead, Malala's miraculous recovery has taken her on an extraordinary journey from a remote valley in northern Pakistan to the halls of the United Nations in New York. At sixteen, she has become a global symbol of peaceful protest and the youngest nominee ever for the Nobel Peace Prize.

I AM MALALA is the remarkable tale of a family uprooted by global terrorism, of the fight for girls' education, of a father who, himself a school owner, championed and encouraged his daughter to write and attend school, and of brave parents who have a fierce love for their daughter in a society that prizes sons.

I AM MALALA will make you believe in the power of one person's voice to inspire change in the world

Bentley wrote: "I Am Malala: The Girl Who Stood Up For Education And Was Shot By The Taliban

This is great story and an easy read (easy in length and style, not exactly in subject matter). Great look into a misunderstood region and religion. Malala still loves her home country and given creed, facts hard to believe after the cruelty suffered by this remarkable young lady.

Very true Jeff - thank you very much for your comments, etc. Please keep them coming.

Alice: Alice Roosevelt Longworth, from White House Princess to Washington Power Broker

by Stacy A. Cordery [no photo]

Synopsis:

I first read of Alice Roosevelt in David McCullough's Mornings on Horseback and again in biographies of William Howard Taft, Warren Harding, and Calvin Coolidge. I suspect I will see her name from time to time as I continue my chronological tour of the American chiefs.

Alice's story is compelling literally from day one, as she is the first-born child of one of America's most beloved presidents, Theodore Roosevelt. Her infant life is immediately struck by tragedy, and significant absence soon follows. She becomes a famous woman in her own right through circumstance, self-determination, as well as her genes.

The defiant young woman comes of age in the White House, and reaches adulthood just ahead of women's suffrage, prohibition, and the rising popularity of such technological developments as radio and automobiles. She began her life in Washington when presidential children were not off-limits to the public eye as they mostly are today, and with a father who was not likely to shield her by today's standards. The Rough Rider couldn't have kept attention away from her if he had wanted to do so: He once famously said, "I can run the country or I can control Alice, but I cannot possibly do both."

She became a Washington heavyweight in her later years, meeting and interacting with most presidents and their families during her 96 years. She turned heads everywhere she went, from race tracks to poker games to diplomatic events.

She is not for everybody. One Goodreads reviewer said they gave up around page 180 because they couldn't stand her anymore. At that point, she is still a spoiled young girl (but spoiled with wealth and fame, not love) with the woe-is-me mentality. Another said that Cordery never explains how Alice became such a force in Washington politics, but such and explanation is unnecessary if you understand people, politicians, and fame. Her last name got her recognized, and her rebellious nature and immunity to the opinion of others made her a favorite guest in the capital city.

I highly recommend this. I had to admit to my wife that I fell in love with Alice, as many Americans (and people around the world) did while she was alive. If you can get past her seemingly bratty youth, I am confident you will do the same.

. . .

Also mentioned...

by David McCullough
by Henry F. Pringle [no photo]
by Robert K. Murray [no photo] (not recommended)
by Donald R. McCoy [no photo]

Great job for the adds Jeff - thank you. The only thing missing from the way the mods do it is the word Synopsis: above your review or impressions of the book. It sounds like a wonderful book.

Here is Alice at 90:




Here she is as a proud young woman

Jeff, thank you very much for your comments, etc. Please keep them coming.

Bentley wrote: "Here is Alice at 90..."

I had not seen that photo! I love that she is sitting beneath herself in a similar signature hat, though it belies vanity.

That may be the painting she sat for after Bobby Kennedy was killed, when the artist, knowing her fondness for the Kennedys, asked if she still wanted to pose on schedule. Alice, annoyed with people's need to grieve celebrity, and herself unphased by death after a century of personal loss, replied, "Well, yes, what's wrong with you?" That made me laugh.

Hello Jeff,

That is a funny story. You know the photographer might have asked her to pose and sit there. I wouldn't be surprised. I have seen a lot of shots where they ask Presidents, First Ladies, and a daughter of a president to sit and pose in front of the painting.

Or it could should vanity (lol) - who knows?