Rated of 5
by Robin F. (tucson, az) A short history of women
If you have a curiosity about the early days of women's struggles to independence, this book answers some of those questions. Initially, it was difficult for me to keep the characters straight and I did have to go back and reread sections. However, I enjoyed reading this book and would recommend it as a bookclub selection.
Rated of 5
by Lee M. (Creve Coeur, Missouri) A Short History of Women
WOW, so it didn't start in the 60's with Steinem and Friedan! Kate Walbert's book is a wonderful exploration of women, their foibles and their victories. Should be required reading for all our teenagers.
Rated of 5
by Marissa P. (Tarrytown, NY) Difficult Read
This book jumped around so much that it was hard to follow. No character was developed adequately and the book at most was dull.
Rated of 5
by Alexandra K. (Pittsburgh, PA) A Short History of Women
At times I had a very difficult time getting the characters straight and had to go to the beginning of the book to read as to who was who. So I cannot highly recommend this book - I found it tedious to read and really quite uninteresting.
Rated of 5
by Sharon S. (Stanley, N.C.) A Short History of Women
The year is 1914 the eve of WWI and the British Women's Suffrage Movement. This is where the author introduces us to the matriarch of the Townsend family, Dorothy Trevor Townsend. Walbert creates a strong female who makes a controversial decision that will ultimately change the Townsend women for five generations. The only problem - Walbert's chronology of the characters was at best hard to follow, I had to keep referring to the lineage chart. Walbert weaves a tapestry of love, friendship, loss and regret that flows in the Townsend blood for centuries to come.
Rated of 5
by Kristina K. (Glendale, CA) A History of All Women
I’ve read two of Kate Walbert’s previous works, "Where She Went" and "Our Kind," and loved both. Walbert is a master at weaving together separate strands of history and multiple characters’ story lines, often featuring the stories of women, into one poignant narrative written with lyrical prose. "A Short History of Women" is no exception. Here, Walbert weaves together a multi-generational history of the Townsend women from the British suffragette at the turn of the last century to her great, great granddaughter in 2007 New Haven, Connecticut. At first, Walbert’s style of bouncing back and forth between various time periods felt confusing, particularly since several of the characters share similar names (there are three Dorothys). The family tree she includes at the beginning of the book is very helpful. In spite of that, I found myself getting caught up in each character’s story and enjoying the way their histories all overlapped and circled back on each other. And while the novel features a specific history of the Townsend women, I feel that Walbert has written a history of all women who have struggled with powerlessness and the need for a meaningful life, revealing what I believe is an intentional irony in the title that suggests that such a history could ever be considered “short.”
As a side bar, Walbert’s inclusion of historical references to real women’s history, including the suffragette movement, Florence Nightingale, and Dora Maar, has made me interested in investigating these stories in greater detail.
I recommend this book highly as a personal read and as a selection for book groups. I will be recommending it to my own book group.
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of 5
by Robin F. (tucson, az) 
of 5
by Marissa P. (Tarrytown, NY) 
of 5
by Alexandra K. (Pittsburgh, PA) 
of 5
by Kristina K. (Glendale, CA) 
