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Jo Freeman Reviews Kamala’s Way, an Overview of Harris’ Life in California Politics
Jo Freeman writes: This is a political biography. Published only a week before Kamala Harris was inaugurated as this country’s first female Vice President, this book is an overview of Harris’ life in California politics. The author was able to write it so quickly because he has reported on California politics, policy and justice for two newspapers in that state for four decades; Harris has been politically active for about three. more »
Ferida Wolff's Backyard: Hearts and Lovers; Ah, Memories (of African Violets)
Ferida Wolff writes: This is a time that nourishes memories. Some of my friends are going through their closets and rediscovering things they had forgotten. One friend found a coat that she used to wear on cold days when walking her dog. Now her daughter wears the same coat while walking her own dog, appreciating its physical and emotional warmth. Another friend looked back on her quilting days and thought it might be good to re-explore that craft. An African Violet plant on my kitchen windowsill brings back memories of my mother-in-law, may she rest in peace, who was a nature lover. She planted gardens outdoors and pots of plants indoors. She especially loved African Violets and gave me the plant that I still have. more »
Jill Norgren Reviews The Doctor's Blackwell: How Two Pioneering Sisters Brought Medicine to Women — and Women to Medicine
Working with primary sources, Nimura documents the courage, drive, and training that the sisters drew upon to establish the dispensary and hospital. They had no personal wealth. Their mission was not merely to aid women who were ill but to educate them in the power of hygiene and sanitation at a time when it was not understood that germs caused illness. Indeed, they were teaching hygiene to mothers at a time when doctors rarely washed their hands between patients. In her excellent new biography, The Doctors Blackwell, Janice Nimura documents another important force for change: individuals. In this book, written with grace and clarity, Nimura describes how the Blackwells brought women to medicine and medicine to women. more »
Jo Freeman Reviews Stories from Trailblazing Women Lawyers: Lives in the Law by Jill Norgren
"This book is primarily based on one hundred oral histories of outstanding women lawyers commissioned by the American Bar Association's Commission on Women in the Profession. Impressed by Norgren's other books on women lawyers, two members of the Commission offered to make the transcripts available if she would write another book. Norgren explores childhood influences, law school experiences, and the various types of practice that these women engaged in. Until 1972, most law schools had quotas on women, usually about 7 percent, if they admitted any at all. Law professors told them that they were taking a man's place. But the fact that Amy Coney Barrett, who was born in 1972, could become a Supreme Court Justice while raising seven children is evidence of how far it has declined as a barrier to having a successful career." more »