A very special collection of short biographies offers insightful sketches of the lives and accomplishments of 150 of history's most influential and brilliant women, including Clara Barton, the legendary Trung Sisters of medieval Vietnam, and many others.
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Book Description
Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com Review
Did you know that Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart had an older sister who was another musical genius? Musicologists even speculate that some compositions attributed to Mozart were actually the work of his sister. Nannerl Mozart is just one example of how women and their accomplishments have been ignored or erased entirely from world history. This important book seeks to amend that gaping absence in history books and popular culture by acknowledging the countless women whose contributions have made a difference to modern society. Arranged chronologically, Herstory offers compelling biographies of 120 women from "The Dawn" (prehistory to 1750) to "Revolution to Revolution" (1750-1850) to "The Global Community" (1890 to the present). The famous, not-so-famous, and infamous are here, including Cleopatra, Sacajawea, Qui Jin, and Golda Meir. Showcasing women's achievements in the arts, politics, science, and medicine--and with an inspiring forward by Gloria Steinem--this book serves up a healthy portion of education, enlightenment, and enjoyment, and should be an essential reference for young women and young men alike. (Ages 11 and older) --Brangien Davis
From Publishers Weekly
Ranging from an ancient Egyptian ruler (Queen Hatshepsut) to a contemporary athlete (Billie Jean King), these highly readable thumbnail sketches cover areas from literature to politics, fashion to aviation, music to science. The 120 entries offer concise overviews of specific women's lives and accomplishments, with a thoughtful blend of professional and personal details. In addition to often-profiled figures (Susan B. Anthony, Eleanor Roosevelt), the collection also includes less well known but influential women like the seventh-century Chinese ruler Wu Chao and Vietnamese activist Nguyen Thi Binh. The team of nine women authors (including Ashby and Ohrn) employs a conversational tone that encourages leisurely browsing. Many selections are prefaced with a revealing excerpt from the subject's writings, and each is accompanied by a photograph or artistic likeness. Ages 10-up.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.
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10 of 10 people found the following review helpful
By StarGymnast
Format:Hardcover
Here's one of the few great books that focus on women and their accomplishments only instead of men. This book featured 120 biographal sketches of women such as Cleopatra VII, Queen Victoria, Anna Pavlova, Gabrielle "Coco" Channel, Harriet Tubmanm, Elizabeth Blackwell, Queen Elizabeth I, and much, much more. These biographies are all wonderful, easy to read, and clearly say what these women have done and accomplished. This is the perfect book for anyone who wants to read about women who have done amazing things. After all, women are capable of accomplishing and doing anything, and this book clearly shows that!
12 of 13 people found the following review helpful
By A Customer
Format:Hardcover
What a gem! I have many history books about women because I want to share women's history with my children. I was of the generation where women were left out of the history class and I feel that women are still in large left out of much of the classes in today's schools. This book does a great job of including many women from different eras, genres and ethnicities. There are photos and great summaries that are short enough to interest children, but in-depth enough to give the reader a knowledgeable understanding. I highly recommend this book to anyone, at any level!
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
By Theseus
Format:Hardcover
A big, bright, attractive young adult-friendly but not dumbed-down reference. I'm particularly impressed by the balance achieved here between individual personalities and larger historical trends. Brava.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Illustrations:
Each woman has some sort of illustration to accompany her biography. Some are photos, others are illustrations. The book contains several diagrams and charts. All illustrations are black and white.
Layout of type:
The type is organized in a single column, as a novel would traditionally be formatted. Each biography is preceded by large, bold fonts, which contains the subject of the biography. A quote from the woman introduces each entry and is set in italics. Illustrations contain captions in italics. There are several text boxes and sidebars throughout the book presenting information on topics related to the subject of the biography.
Chapters:
Seeking out the invisible woman by Gloria Steinem
Preface by Ruth Ashby
The dawn: Prehistory to 1750
From revolution to revolution: 1750-1850
The global community: 1890 to present
Features:
The introduction is written by Gloria Steinem. There are biographies for women of many nationalities and ethnicities, beginning with Queen Hatshepsut and ending with Rigoberta Menchu. The chronological organization allows readers to understand these women in the context of the time period in which each lived. There is a lengthy bibliography covering 4 pages. There is a list of contributors and acknowledgments. The index is organized geographically, alphabetically, and occupationally.
Assessment:
As a resource, this is a reliable reference. The bibliography shows the extent to which the author went to conduct her research. The book contains biographies for 120 richly varied and diverse women.
Each woman has some sort of illustration to accompany her biography. Some are photos, others are illustrations. The book contains several diagrams and charts. All illustrations are black and white.
Layout of type:
The type is organized in a single column, as a novel would traditionally be formatted. Each biography is preceded by large, bold fonts, which contains the subject of the biography. A quote from the woman introduces each entry and is set in italics. Illustrations contain captions in italics. There are several text boxes and sidebars throughout the book presenting information on topics related to the subject of the biography.
Chapters:
Seeking out the invisible woman by Gloria Steinem
Preface by Ruth Ashby
The dawn: Prehistory to 1750
From revolution to revolution: 1750-1850
The global community: 1890 to present
Features:
The introduction is written by Gloria Steinem. There are biographies for women of many nationalities and ethnicities, beginning with Queen Hatshepsut and ending with Rigoberta Menchu. The chronological organization allows readers to understand these women in the context of the time period in which each lived. There is a lengthy bibliography covering 4 pages. There is a list of contributors and acknowledgments. The index is organized geographically, alphabetically, and occupationally.
Assessment:
As a resource, this is a reliable reference. The bibliography shows the extent to which the author went to conduct her research. The book contains biographies for 120 richly varied and diverse women.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
By JKV
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
This is a great series of short biographies. I was looking for something to supplement my children's all-male history course, and this is perfect. It has a wide variety of women from all parts of the world and is written in a kid friendly way. The only thing I would improve is to have the dates, what they were famous for, and the country they come from in the Table of Contents for easier reference.
11 of 15 people found the following review helpful
By A Customer
Format:Hardcover
This is the best book! Are you tired or reading about history through the eyes of a man? Before this history was documented by wars and treatys but this book is totally different. You learn about history as well as her-story, I learned about more than a hundred other women who changed the movement of the world. Some created inventions, others opened schools, they fighted for wemens rights and protested their weekness by working twice as hard as any man. This was a great book I really injoyed reading it, I hope you do too.
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