Women's History Facts & Fictions

Madame Restell: The Life, Death, and Resurrection of Old New York's Most Fabulous, Fearless, and Infamous Abortionist by Jennifer Wright
non-fiction biography, sociopolitical history
Hachette Books, February 2023

A prologue, thirty-eight chapters, an epilogue, acknowledgments, notes, and an index lay out the compelling real-life saga of Ann Trow, who transformed herself into Madame Restell. This unapologetically pro-choice champion battled poverty, ignorance, misogyny, and anti-choice zealot Anthony Comstock. The details of her ordeal, triumphs, and criminalization, and the author's narrative tone and pace are compelling.

This passage from the epilogue summarizes the ongoing battle for women's bodily sovereignty in the United States:
The same sentiments that motivated Comstockery are alive and well today...

[note: Reading this nudged me to add a biography of Margaret Sanger to my TBR list.]

The 1619 Project: A New Origin Story edited by Nikole Hannah-Jones, Caitlin Roper, Ilena Silverman, Jake Silverstein
non-fiction with fiction and poetry
One World, November 2021

Like the quilts used by enslaved people who self-liberated en route to freedom in the northern U.S. and Canada, this text stitches together official accounts of historical records with autobiographical reflections and artistic expressions that together frame multi-tiered images and ideas about the origins of the United States of America. Its informational density demands conscientious focus and a measured reading pace in order to absorb and process the preface and each of the eighteen chapters. Acknowledgments, notes, contributors, credits, and an index also offer additional topics to pursue in-depth.

A Sinister Revenge (Veronica Speedwell #8) by Deanna Raybourn
fiction, 19th-c. historical mystery
Berkley, March 2023

The pragmatic-grumpy-reserved trio of Veronica, Stoker, and Tiberius reunite to solve a mystery rooted in the past. Misdirection, deadly grudges, and mayhem combined with humor entertain in the most recent installment of this irresistible series.

Some of Them Will Carry Me by Giada Scodellaro
fiction
Dorothy Project, October 2022

The cover art of "Two Women" by Tschabalala Self is a multi-media work as is Some of Them Will Carry Me. Poems, very short stories, footnotes and more offer a string of vignettes, mostly in English--"La Genovese" also in Italian--all contemplating and confessing to inhabiting womanhood while moving through a world that too often ignores, dismisses or distorts women's existence. In this collection women assert their voices and points of view and dynamic presence in a multitude of powerful ways that demand recognition.

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The Best Man: Unfinished Business by Malcolm D. Lee with Jayne Allen Delivers All the Feels

Black love. Black joy. Black drama. Humanity in its vast melanin array. [front cover of a paperback ARC for The Best Man: Unfinished Business; silhouette of three adults] The Best Man: Unfinished Business by Malcolm D. Lee with Jayne Allen adult contemporary fiction with romantic elements Storehouse Voices, July 2025 First, dedicated fans of The Best Man franchise and its beloved characters need not fear how they’re treated in this first of three novels. In fact. One thread of Harper’s storyline seems to reflect the real-life author/screenwriter/director’s battle to protect and maintain the integrity of The Best Man universe. Mission accomplished. Second, once readers - fans or not - start this novel they won’t want to stop. The compulsion to re/watch The Best Man movies and limited series and maybe even to reread this book while anticipating the release of book two in 2026 will prove difficult to resist. Who are you? Who are your people?...

A Million Lives Book Festival - An Unfortunate Exception, Not the Event Rule

[2 decorative stickers on lined writing paper from left to right: a round smiley face arranged upside down to look like a frown and a round smiley face arranged right sight up] By now most bookish folk and others have heard about the inaugural A Million Lives Book Festival held at the Baltimore Convention Center last Friday and Saturday. To recap: according to participating authors and attendees many promises were made and almost all of them were broken. As outreach director and co-organizer for The Write Women Book Fest scheduled to host its 6th event Saturday, July 19 & Sunday, July 20 of this year at the Bowie Comfort Inn & Conference Center in Bowie, Maryland, U.S.A., my reaction to the feedback being shared about A Million Lives is nightmarish. Even though we aren't connected to it in any way or familiar with the event organizer or her company, our completely unrelated event has felt some minor residual effects because people are worried. And that's an understanda...

Our Poet Laureate's Memoir + More TWWBF2025 Prep

Educator, poet, short story author, mindfulness guide and now the moniker of memoirist has been added to the long list of creative accomplishments earned by Poet Laureate of The Write Women Book Fest Aressa V. Williams. She was born and raised in the vibrant community of Washington, D.C.'s Northeast neighborhood of Deanwood. Her Memoir evokes the nostalgia, challenges, victories, heartaches and joys of her life that connect with readers across generations and locations. [photo credit: H.L. Brooks; image: two paperback ARCs of In Deanwood, A Memoir by Aressa Verdell Williams arranged on a tabletop; cover art of a sepia toned two-story colonial house with four columns - two on each side of the front door] The ebook is currently available with print copies coming soon! https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/in-deanwood-aressa-verdell-williams/1147594007 Just under 3 weeks before day one of The Write Women Book Fest and we've finished decorating t-shirts for our aw...

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