Publishers Weekly
★ 06/08/2020
Art historian Quinn (Broad Strokes) commemorates the 100th anniversary of the ratification of the 19th Amendment in this vibrant and witty chronicle of women’s rights in America. In 19 chapters illustrated by 100 female artists, Quinn profiles leaders of the women’s suffrage and feminist movements, as well as groundbreaking women in the fields of art, politics, sports, and music. She notes that Native American women in upstate New York had property rights and personal agency for centuries before the first women’s rights convention was held at Seneca Falls, N.Y., in 1848, and describes Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony as “the Marx and Engels” of the suffrage movement—”a pair of dangerous plotters cooking up revolution.” Other profile subjects include Mary Cassatt, whose Impressionist paintings of women in domestic scenes were “unlikely incendiaries,” according to Quinn; African-American journalist Ida B. Wells, who pushed back against segregation within the suffrage movement; Title IX legislator Patsy Mink; poet Audre Lorde; and the Guerrilla Girls, who fight for female artists’ representation in male-dominated art galleries. Colorful, attention-grabbing illustrations in a diverse array of styles enhance Quinn’s snappy prose on nearly every page. This soaring movement history has something for neophytes and experts alike. Agent: Danielle Svetcov, Levine Greenberg Rostan Literary Agency. (Aug.)
From the Publisher
Don’t assume you know enough about the women’s rights movement in America until you read Bridget Quinn’s She Votes. With inclusion as her guiding principle, Quinn tears down myths surrounding the passage of the Nineteenth Amendment and introduces us to the many witty and wise ’ladies’ who have helped us get this far and who inspire us to go further still.” —Tabitha Soren, artist, photographer, author of Fantasy Life, and former political correspondent for MTV News who spearheaded the Peabody Award-winning voter campaign Choose or Lose
“Bridget Quinn’s beautifully illustrated book She Votes not only tells the story of suffrage, but captures the many battles since for women’s full rights. As the suffragists had hoped and as She Votes chronicles, the power of women’s votes is setting the course on the nation’s long struggle for full equality and justice for all.” —Katherine Spillar, executive director of the Feminist Majority Foundation and executive editor of Ms. magazine
“Wise, wry, and exuberant, Bridget Quinn’s She Votes takes us through the tumultuous battle for women’s voting rights. The original artwork dazzles. It’s an inspiring call to action and the celebration that the centennial deserves.” —Vanessa Hua, author of A River of Stars and Deceit and Other Possibilities, winner of the Asian/Pacific American Award in Literature, award-winning columnist for The San Francisco Chronicle, and National Endowment for the Arts Literature Fellow
“She Votes is quite simply a call to action, a message to today’s women warriors from their badass foremothers to pick up the baton and keep fighting. Told briskly and with biting humor, She Votes is filled with delicious details that correct the record (even the sainted white suffragists were bigots) and illustrate clearly women’s political savvy and tenacity. Did they win? Sometimes. But as they knew—and as Quinn tells us in a history that travels from pre-Seneca Falls to post-Riot Grrrls—the fight is far from over. She Votes is a shot of adrenaline into the body ’feminism’ before the next bugle call.” —Mary Gabriel, author of Ninth Street Women and National Book Award and Pulitzer Prize finalist
“In a time when women’s-suffrage histories are finally in abundance, Quinn’s illustrated compendium stands out (and not only through its vivid illustrations). With language that pulls no punches, she tells the story of women’s fight for equality, from the example set by the Haudenosaunee to the riot grrrl movement and the founders of Black Lives Matter.” —Booklist starred review
“She Votes is accessible, witty and fun…. Sprinkled throughout the 19 chapters are 100 gorgeous renditions of pioneering people or moments, each impeccably illustrated by some of today’s most renowned and up-and-coming illustrators.” —San Francisco Chronicle
“Thoroughly entertaining and informative.” —PopSugar
“A vibrant and witty chronicle of women’s rights in America…. Colorful, attention-grabbing illustrations in a diverse array of styles enhance Quinn’s snappy prose on nearly every page. This soaring movement history has something for neophytes and experts alike.” —Publishers Weekly starred review
