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Equal Power: A Handbook for Men and Women
Why is gender inequality so stubbornly persistent? Power. Even today, power remains concentrated in the hands of men right across the worlds of business, politics, and culture. Decisions taken by those with power tend to perpetuate gender inequality rather than accelerate solutions, and those who see the problem often feel powerless: ingrained sexism and gender inequality can seem too huge to solve.
Equal Power holds a mirror up to society, showing the stark extent of gender inequality while making the case that everyone has the power to create change. Whether you are a teenage student, a global CEO, or a taxi driver, there is much you can do to create a world of equal power. In this inspiring and essential book, deputy leader of the Liberal Democrats and former Government Minister for Women, Jo Swinson outlines the steps we can all take, small and large, to make society truly gender equal.
Equal Power holds a mirror up to society, showing the stark extent of gender inequality while making the case that everyone has the power to create change. Whether you are a teenage student, a global CEO, or a taxi driver, there is much you can do to create a world of equal power. In this inspiring and essential book, deputy leader of the Liberal Democrats and former Government Minister for Women, Jo Swinson outlines the steps we can all take, small and large, to make society truly gender equal.
Hardcover
Published February 1, 2018
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Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews
February 19, 2018
A really engaging book that tackles an important and timely issue. It's full of personal experience, quotes, statistics and other evidence that together make a forceful case for change. It also equips us with concrete actions that we can all take to make equal power a reality.
September 14, 2025
Second book by a previous member of the coalition govt I've read and it was similarly engaging, pretty good status check on feminism in 2018 (mixed bag on progress since...)
September 14, 2018
An excellent primer on feminism, and the all-pervading patriarchy with lots of useful tips on practical action and, for those of us who do not identify as female, lots of content and context to explain it.
Much was familiar to me, and the book lacks an academic rigour; but that's not it's intent. It is, though, well referenced, easy to read, and covers all aspects of our culture.
Much was familiar to me, and the book lacks an academic rigour; but that's not it's intent. It is, though, well referenced, easy to read, and covers all aspects of our culture.
June 27, 2018
A great, accessible and compelling appraisal of where we currently stand on gender equality with practical, achievable suggestions on how we can all work together to move forwards. Read it - what have you got to lose?
November 2, 2018
Started off strong and I really liked the list of actions you could take at the end of each chapter but I feel as though there are better books on the topic out there.
December 20, 2019
There's actually nothing wrong with this book, and would recommend it to read as a basic overview of gender equality, I just didn't particularly rate it because:
1) It covers a lot of ground that you'll already be familiar with if you've read any other book about gender equality/feminism in this past year, or even a series of articles. It does a good job of summarising a lot of other thought, but does so in a very high-level way, and doesn't contribute anything new.
2) I wanted to hear more about Swinson's story--which is very interesting, and would have been a unique perspective not detailed elsewhere. From being a politician, entering it young, everything Scotland + UK at the moment, to what she will do next in her post-elected office career. The few snippets that she writes about she does so candidly, but rarely.
3) It's gratuitous in its use of shock, every chapter involves very explicit (and it felt almost exploitative) example of gendered violence or hate. It wasn't really necessary to make the point and felt cheap, given that none of it was lived experience. Again, almost all of the examples have been covered elsewhere.
4) Swinson starts off by saying that this is a "call to arms", only I didn't hear any one particular call. Encouraging people to go into elected office was at least substantiated with more information. Everything else was fairly superficial, in terms of following more diverse people on Twitter, sharing things on social media and donate to a charity you like.
1) It covers a lot of ground that you'll already be familiar with if you've read any other book about gender equality/feminism in this past year, or even a series of articles. It does a good job of summarising a lot of other thought, but does so in a very high-level way, and doesn't contribute anything new.
2) I wanted to hear more about Swinson's story--which is very interesting, and would have been a unique perspective not detailed elsewhere. From being a politician, entering it young, everything Scotland + UK at the moment, to what she will do next in her post-elected office career. The few snippets that she writes about she does so candidly, but rarely.
3) It's gratuitous in its use of shock, every chapter involves very explicit (and it felt almost exploitative) example of gendered violence or hate. It wasn't really necessary to make the point and felt cheap, given that none of it was lived experience. Again, almost all of the examples have been covered elsewhere.
4) Swinson starts off by saying that this is a "call to arms", only I didn't hear any one particular call. Encouraging people to go into elected office was at least substantiated with more information. Everything else was fairly superficial, in terms of following more diverse people on Twitter, sharing things on social media and donate to a charity you like.
February 11, 2023
An engaging book that tackles a complex issue of how to achieve gender equality. I would encourage everyone to read the book, especially those who believe that inequality doesn’t exist.
What I liked about the book is it encourages attacking the problem from multiple directions if we want to make any progress. It needs to be a collective joint ownership at all levels - political, social , business etc and how even one individual can make the difference by taking small steps.
Priyanka sharma
What I liked about the book is it encourages attacking the problem from multiple directions if we want to make any progress. It needs to be a collective joint ownership at all levels - political, social , business etc and how even one individual can make the difference by taking small steps.
Priyanka sharma
June 11, 2022
In the chapter on violence she tells us about Sreypov Chan who, she says, was a slavery victim. Jo believes this because she read it in Marie Claire magazine. Her story is not true though. Somaly Mam pretended she had been a sex slave in Cambodia and founded the Somaly Mam Foundation. She then got girls to pretend that they too had been sex slaves. Long Pross was one, Meas Ratha another.
Why didn't Jo Swinson investigate this properly? If she had done so she would have realised that American evangelical Christians have engaged in brothel raids where women were captured and kept against their will. They were kept in poor conditions and had their property taken from them, often permanently. They were kept in so-called rescue centres. This is the real violence against women, but people like Jo Swinson aren't interested in that.
Why didn't Jo Swinson investigate this properly? If she had done so she would have realised that American evangelical Christians have engaged in brothel raids where women were captured and kept against their will. They were kept in poor conditions and had their property taken from them, often permanently. They were kept in so-called rescue centres. This is the real violence against women, but people like Jo Swinson aren't interested in that.
January 30, 2021
This book is a quite eye-opening in terms of how gender inequality impact women’s lives, as the author shares her encounter of gendered inequalities, from her personal to social and political life and discuss how the issue of gender equality be addressed within the entirety of the race, gender, identity, religion, class structures, politics, childhood, bodies, parenting, work, culture, sport, violence and men. The useful read is an innovative idea and action plans that we can implement to mitigate gender inequality in our everyday lives and motivate others to have a more engaging discourse around gender equality regardless of our culture, politics, economy, geography, and many other societal determinants.
July 20, 2019
This book was so cleverly written.
It spoke on so many topics women deal with on a daily basis. I think this is a must read for everyone. It is about taking control of yourself and you environment. I think many people will probably will feel ‘not so alone’ while reading this.
At times I had to put this down, to think about this information. This will probably stay with me and help me in situations in the future.
I will post it when I come across situations in daily life when this book strengthens and inspires me.
It spoke on so many topics women deal with on a daily basis. I think this is a must read for everyone. It is about taking control of yourself and you environment. I think many people will probably will feel ‘not so alone’ while reading this.
At times I had to put this down, to think about this information. This will probably stay with me and help me in situations in the future.
I will post it when I come across situations in daily life when this book strengthens and inspires me.
July 6, 2018
Well written, well researched, and thoroughly enjoyable and personable to read.
Not my first book on feminism, nor will it be the last. Love how each section comes with tangible actions people can take or organisations they could join to help move society closer to equal power between the genders.
Not my first book on feminism, nor will it be the last. Love how each section comes with tangible actions people can take or organisations they could join to help move society closer to equal power between the genders.
June 20, 2021
I just want to be mates with Jo and change the world with her. I love that every section has concrete actions you can take to work on that specific aspect of gender equality and I will definitely be working on these in the future and with pupils too. So many ideas!
May 5, 2020
2.5/5 stars
May 18, 2021
Read as audiobook
December 8, 2023
Really good structure (and sources!!) + I also loved the action approaches at the end of each chapter. Everyone can learn something!
May 29, 2024
We’ve been having lots of conversations lately at uni about gender and power and privilege and such, and I realllllllllly wanna recommend this to a few men in the room. 🫠🥲
May 30, 2019
A practical guide for small (or occasionally big) things anyone and everyone can do address gender imbalances in society. I'm a big fan of Jo politically, so I'm a tad biased, but I thought her writing was incredibly accessible and well structured (the summary action points at the end of each chapter are particularly helpful).
May 18, 2020
Blueprint for gender equality. Much needed action by everyone required to translate/implement the recommendations and action points in this book.
January 10, 2021
A great book that gives the reader a good understanding of how to achieve full gender equality in modern politics, from the perspective of one of my political heros. This book makes it clear as to why I look up to Jo Swinson. Truly inspiring
Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews