Iceland's Extraordinary Women and How They Are Changing the World
by Eliza Reid
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Published Feb 2022
288 pages
Genre: Biography/Memoir
Publication Information
Iceland is the best place on earth to be a woman―but why? Secrets of the Sprakkar is a powerful and atmospheric portrait of a tiny country that could lead the way forward for us all.
For the past twelve years, the World Economic Forum's Global Gender Gap Report has ranked Iceland number one on its list of countries closing the gap in equality between men and women. What is it about Iceland that makes many women's experience there so positive? Why has their society made such meaningful progress in this ongoing battle, from electing the world's first female president to passing legislation specifically designed to help even the playing field at work and at home? And how can we learn from what Icelanders have already discovered about women's powerful place in society and how increased fairness benefits everyone?
In Secrets of the Sprakkar (pronounced SPRAH-car), Eliza Reid, the First Lady of Iceland, examines her adopted homeland's attitude toward women―the deep-seated cultural sense of fairness, the influence of current and historical role models, and, crucially, the areas where Iceland still has room for improvement. Reid's own experience as an immigrant from small-town Canada who never expected to become a first lady is expertly interwoven with interviews with dozens of sprakkar ("extraordinary women") to form the backbone of an illuminating discussion of what it means to move through the world as a woman, and how the rules of society play more of a role in who we view as "equal" than we may understand.
"I enjoyed it so much...Reid's style is amusing, her thoughts are honest, and the issues she discusses are becoming more important by the day." - Jane Smiley, The Washington Post
"With warmth, wit, and insight, First Lady Eliza Reid explores the reasons why Iceland is one of the best places on earth for women, as well as the challenges still ahead in achieving full gender equity. Secrets of the Sprakkar is an illuminating, inspiring, and absorbing book about how a more equitable society could elevate us all." - Cheryl Strayed, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Wild
"Secrets of the Sprakkar is a fascinating window into what a more gender-equal world could look like, and why it's worth striving for. Iceland is doing a lot to level the playing field: paid parental leave, affordable childcare, and broad support for gender equality as a core value. Reid takes us on an exploration not only around this fascinating island, but also through the triumphs and stumbles of a country as it journeys towards gender equality." - Hillary Rodham Clinton
"An intimate and inspiring glimpse into a better world for women―and for us all. Eliza Reid's Iceland is utterly captivating." - Alison Pick, Man Booker Prize nominated author of Far to Go
"Iceland is full of extraordinary women, and in this delightful and engaging book Eliza Reid will introduce you to many of them. Prepare to be charmed and enlightened by the sprakkar, and their secrets for living meaningful and fulfilling lives. And don't be surprised if you find yourself booking a trip to visit." - Elizabeth Renzetti
"Reid... is uniquely placed to observe the country which leads the world in gender equality, providing generous parenting leave, abundant childcare, and free prenatal services... The tiny country of Iceland should serve as an inspiration to the rest of the world." - Booklist
"Laced with frank discussions of domestic abuse, intersectionality, and other complex issues, this is a winning portrait of a country at the forefront of the fight for gender equality." - Publishers Weekly
This information about Secrets of the Sprakkar was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Eliza Jean Reid is a Canadian-Icelandic writer and, since 2016, the First Lady of Iceland through her marriage to Icelandic President Guðni Th. Jóhannesson. Before becoming First Lady she co-founded the Iceland Writers Retreat, was a freelance writer for multiple Icelandic magazines and editor of the Icelandair Stopover.
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