What Every American Should Know about Women History: 200 Events That Shaped Our Destiny [Paperback]

Christine Lunardini (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 1996

While women have made dramatic progress in their struggle for equality in American society, the key episodes and personalities of this historic movement have too often gone unrecognized or faded into obscurity. What Every American Should Know About Women's History features 200 landmark events, including:

The decision by female mill workers in Lowell, Massachusetts, to strike in response to a pay cut
Jane Addam's selection as a Nobel Prize laureate for her work on world peace The formation of the National Organization for Women Geraldine Ferraro's nomination as a candidate for the vice presidency

Whether the issue is work, family life, social reform, or the struggle for equal rights, these stories offer compelling insights into the lives of the women who have shaped our destiny.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Many books designed to pack your head with a few nuggets of wisdom are more annoying than interesting, but this one is very good. The usual standouts in American women's history appear--Harriet Tubman, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Eleanor Roosevelt--but so do many lesser-known women. The book is organized largely around political and popular events driven by women or that affected women's lives. Stretching from 1607 through the early 1990s, it comprises preventing childbirth deaths; Victoria Woodhulls's run for president (in 1872); Dolores Huerta's efforts to help form the United Farm Worker's Union; and Maya Angelou's poem at President Bill Clinton's 1993 inauguration.

From Library Journal

The readability of the 200 vignettes in this current book from Lunardini (From Equal Suffrage to Equal Rights: Alice Paul and the National Women's Party, 1912-1928, LJ 8/86) belies the quality of scholarship supporting them. Each vignette reflects current historical interpretation over a broad range of American political, social, and economic history. Covering the earliest Colonial period to the present, the short essays (ranging from one to three pages) capture the essential famous women from Anne Hutchinson and Emily Dickinson to Betty Friedan and Geraldine Ferraro. More fun are entries for women like Annie Oakley, Fannie Farmer, and Marilyn Monroe, and perhaps most interesting are essays on women of the Grange, the first typewriters, the Kinsey Report, etc., along with the author's insightful summaries of how such organizations and events affected women. All in all, this is a wonderful little book well suited for public and school libraries.
Linda V. Carlisle, Southern Illinois Univ., Edwardsville
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 393 pages
• Publisher: Adams Media Corporation; 1st edition (November 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 155850687X
• ISBN-13: 978-1558506879
• Product Dimensions: 6.3 x 5.5 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,609,401 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant!, February 12, 2000

By 

Melody A. Blaney - See all my reviews

This review is from: What Every American Should Know about Women's History: 200 Events That Shaped Our Destiny (Hardcover)

In easy to read and understand capsule bites - this book gives the basics of women's history in a fascinating progression from 1607/The first European women to arrive at the Jamestown colony to 1993/Maya Angelou reads an original poem at President Clinton's inauguration. It's an enjoyable read and a wonderful reference book.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A Solid Introduction, July 15, 2004

By 

doc peterson (Portland, Oregon USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   

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This review is from: What Every American Should Know about Women History: 200 Events That Shaped Our Destiny (Paperback)

_What Every American Should Know About Women's History_ is an excellent place to start learning about Women in American history. The book is very comprehensive (from the first arrival of European women in the British colonies to the inaguration of Clinton), and discusses a wide variety of subjects in which women played a major role.

The primary short-coming of the book, however, is in its berevity. While admittedly the author had to make some tough decisions about what events to include (testament to the richness of womens' history), the information that is provided is cursory: the event itself is the focus, without much historical context or background. Still, a great book, and the recommended place to begin to learn about American Women's History.

5.0 out of 5 stars Efficient, event driven narrative of American history, November 25, 2009

By 

Donato - See all my reviews

This review is from: What Every American Should Know about Women's History: 200 Events That Shaped Our Destiny (Hardcover)

This event driven narrative of American History is highly recommended for anyone trying to fill the gaps in their education. Dr. Alan Axelrod and Charles Phillips, provide a thoughtful progression of events both large and small, which have shaped of our nation. Schools of thought, artistic expression, even televised entertainment, mix in with wars, treaties established and abandoned, and technological advances, to tell the story of what forces brought us to where we are today.

Following a time-line spanning A.D. 1000 to 1991 (Leif Ericson's establishing the first European colony in North America to the end of the Cold War), one gets a brief introduction to a broad variety of events which have shaped the history of the United States. While the book is not designed as a deep reference on any one topic, it shines as an introduction to the unfolding of history. The 200 events chosen by the authors reflect an understanding that while history has its momentous events (invention of the automobile), events bringing less fanfare (the invention of barbed wire), have also shaped our nation. Although the authors' voices, (and occasionally their convictions) come through, their take is objective enough to provide basic understanding of American history.

With its extremely accessible writing style and format, this book is easily picked up by adults with just a few minutes of daily reading time to spare. Perhaps because it is not bogged down in academic language, it's also a great starting point to get the wheels turning for younger (12+) history students.