Revealing Reads Explore Buried Secrets and Emboldened Activists

3 min read

| By Gale Staff |

Women separated by centuries yet bound by society’s expectations and mores. Secrets that surface, leaving false narratives and shattered families in their wake. Emboldened women emerging triumphant, securing their right to vote. Our September selections run the gamut, offering insightful and inspiring reflections on the female experience.

The Book of V, by Anna Solomon
ISBN: 9781432883386

A Brooklyn mother in 2016. A senator’s wife in the 1970s. The Bible’s Queen Esther, the Jewish orphan who rose to the throne of Persia, credited with saving her people from annihilation. While their lives would seem to be disparate, Solomon’s third novel interweaves their stories and invites readers to consider how they challenged the restraints society often places on women. Designated as one of Entertainment Weekly’s Most Anticipated Quarantine Reads. 

“As with the best of desert island (or pandemic) reads, The Book of V radiates a dynamism that invites rereads and generously keeps giving — challenging and arousing us as it delights.”
– The Washington Post

“A winner for fans of historical fiction, literary women’s fiction, and Jewish interest stories, this would also make for an interesting book discussion.”
– Booklist

Hieroglyphics, by Jill McCorkle
ISBN: 9781432883065

Exploring stashes of weathered family mementoes can unearth joyful discoveries or reveal painful secrets meant to remain hidden. In Hieroglyphics, Lil and Frank marry young, sharing the pain of both having tragically lost a parent as children. Now retired, Lil spends her days constructing a joyful family history for their own children while Frank descends into an obsession of his boyhood home and the single mother now raising her young son there.   

“Throughout, McCorkle weaves a powerful narrative web, with empathy for her characters and keen insight on their motivations. This is a gem.”
– Publishers Weekly

“Gathers layers like a snowball racing downhill before striking us in the heart with blunt, icy force.”
– Kirkus


Suffrage, by Ellen Carol DuBois
ISBN: 9781432880033

Picketing and marching peacefully in support of the 19th Amendment, women were arrested and attacked. Nevertheless, they persisted, and the amendment was ratified on August 18, 1920. Historian DuBois explores the full scope of this movement through portraits of its bold leaders and devoted activists. In vivid prose, readers are presented with a robust and authoritative account of one of the great episodes in the history of American democracy.

“Comprehensive and well-paced … DuBois rightly focuses on the colorful personalities that defined the distinct eras of suffragism, and effectively marshals a wealth of source material.”
– Publishers Weekly

“Ellen Carol DuBois has written a comprehensive history that deftly tackles intricate political complexities and conflicts and still somehow reads with nail-biting suspense.”
– The Guardian

Large print titles are available to purchase through Thorndike Press and through all major wholesalers.

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