What Women Want: A Journey to Personal and Political Power [Paperback]

Patricia Ireland (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1, 1997

In an articulate, inspiring, and convincing testament, the outspoken president of the National Organization for Women describes her own path to power, the struggle for feminist progress, and her vision for the future. "The perfect gift for the young woman . . . who does not yet realize what Patricia Ireland . . . (has) won for her, and at what peril".--"New York Times Book Review".

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Patricia Ireland got her start as a women's rights activist in the 1960s while serving as a flight attendant for Pan American Airlines. Her husband, a student, needed dental work and Ireland discovered that her medical coverage did not cover her spouse, though male employees were given coverage for their spouses. Her complaint made its way to the U.S. Labor Department and she won a victory. She continued her activism as a lawyer who did free legal work for the National Organization for Women (NOW), a protester who suffered arrest and harassment and, finally, president of NOW. She tells her inspired story in this book and offers a series of lessons for activists and others curious about the struggle for women's rights. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Publishers Weekly

NOW president Ireland here traces her own progress from demure stewardess to successful corporate attorney and national political leader to demonstrate that when women pursue goals-both personally and professionally-they not only attain a vital sense of empowerment but help engender progressive social change. Ireland's sensitivity to the evolution of sex-role expectations reveals the great strides women have made toward equality and the setbacks they continue to face. While her own activist efforts have focused largely on abortion rights and on getting more women elected to public office, she does not insist that all feminists should be concerned most with these issues. Rather, she calls for a feminist politics capable of promoting the various interests, aspirations and beliefs of all women. This eminently readable autobiography, with its account of Ireland's life in the political trenches, will inspire and enlighten activists of all stripes. QPB selection; translation rights: Dutton Signet.
Copyright 1996 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: 288 pages
• Publisher: Plume (June 1, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0452272491
• ISBN-13: 978-0452272491
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5.3 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,119,339 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars What i want? Nobody asked me..., December 24, 2003

By 

Manola Sommerfeld (California) - See all my reviews

This review is from: What Women Want (Hardcover)

I thought i'd find out what it was i wanted, so i decided to read this book. I must confess the title annoyed me somewhat for starters (not a good thing), but as i read along, i warmed up to the author. Her tone is quite even and matter-of-fact, even at times when she had the right to be outraged. She brought up the fact that it wasn't that long ago that women were blatantly discriminated in the workplace. Her episode with PanAm and dental coverage for her husband happened not even 30 years ago!

Like all memoirs, it is virtually impossible not to toot your own horn a bit, but Ireland keeps her horn subtlety muted, with only occasional shining references to her achievements.

Once she became president of NOW, she had to move from FL to DC. As it happens so often, dislocation is bad for relationships, and Ireland, married, soon became involved with someone else. This episode also proved to me that people can fool themselves into believing whatever is convenient, and that intelligence has nothing to do with it. How could she possibly have two intimate relationships and justify the validity of both? Can you imagine a man coming up with the same logic? He would be chastised by women all over the globe! Patricia Ireland as a de-facto bigamist disappointed me.

4 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An eye-opener for anyone under 25, April 5, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: What Women Want: A Journey to Personal and Political Power (Paperback)

I read this book and was continually astounded by the recent history the author talks about from personal experience. It was amazing to read about what politicians said and did just 20 years ago. I knew the women's movement had made great gains in the last 40 years but I didn't realise to what extent women were discriminated against (and still are) and mistreated UNDER THE LAW. It was a very educational and enjoyable read. Everyone born after the mid-70's should read it so they'll really appreciate the gains of women and minorities in the last 30 years and will be energized to fight for real equality.

I did find it interesting that the author talked so little about her husband and sometimes I'd start wondering if she was still married. But she states that she wanted her personal life to remain personal and that made her think twice about becoming president of NOW and discouraged her from running for public office, so it would only follow that her book wouldn't be full of details about her personal life. As to her sexuality, apart from it being personal, she doesn't like women to be defined in the public eye by their sexuality, so why should she promote that by discussing it with the readers of her book. The book is about her activism and work for women's rights, and it doesn't matter what else she does with her life.

2 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A good book with some flaws, March 24, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: What Women Want: A Journey to Personal and Political Power (Paperback)

I had to read this book for a history class, and I have to admit that it was more interesting than I thought it would be. Ireland's account of (some of) her life is actually rather interesting, as is the history of the burgeoning feminist movement (particularly NOW).

The tone she writes in is very even-there is no ranting or raving about hot-button issues-making it easier to read even for people who may disagree with much of feminist ideology. The text itself is concise and to the point, without unnecessary filler to bog down the reader. It's too bad that she does make a few inappropriate expectations of the reader- namely, she briefly describes how, after moving to Washington D.C., she had a female "companion" (a word that could be used for anything from a dog to a lover, and therefore tells us nothing) in addition to her husband who stayed in Florida. Indeed, all mention of her husband is immediately dropped around this point, and one gets the feeling that she expects us to not only understand her situation, but to approve of it because she doesn't think women should be defined sexually. This doesn't make any sense (imagine a man trying the same thing!) and unfortunately detracts from the overall quality of the book. One can't help but wonder what else Ireland has deemed unfit for the reader to know.

Still, this is not a major point and the book is definitely a good one to read if you want to have some working understanding of feminism beyond the often oversimplified popular media version. The book actually deserves 3.5 stars, but I can only give it 3 or 4.