Cosa farebbe Frida Kahlo?: Lezioni di vita da cinquanta donne coraggiose

by Elizabeth Foley, Beth Coates

Non ti va di avere figli? Non vedi l'ora di tradire il tuo uomo? Il capo non ti lascia parlare? Vuoi tenerti i capelli bianchi e vestirti da uomo? Essere una donna e averne piene le scatole degli stereotipi può essere faticoso, nella vita privata come in quella professionale. È evidente che il femminismo non ha completato la sua missione: se nel mondo di oggi c'è ancora da sudare, figuriamoci in quello di ieri. Chi allora meglio delle eroiche, spregiudicate e corsare figure femminili del passato può indicare la via giusta da seguire? Cleopatra ci insegna a domare i parenti serpenti, Frida Kahlo a sfoggiare con orgoglio il nostro stile (anche se non piace a tutti), Dorothy Parker a tenere testa ai maschi stronzi, Caterina la Grande a gestire i pettegolezzi, Ada Lovelace a giocare d'azzardo, Agatha Christie a guarire dalle ferite d'amore, Hedy Lamarr a resistere alla disistima altrui. Non mancano le italiane, da Artemisia Gentileschi a Elsa Morante, fino a Maria Montessori. Dall'antichità all'età dell'oro elisabettiana, dal vecchio West alla Parigi del dopoguerra, questa ricca carrellata di storie esemplari, tratte dalle biografie di cinquanta donne coraggiose, compone una miniera di consigli per affrontare le sfide di tutti i giorni con ironia, determinazione e, perché no, una buona dose di sfrontatezza.

Genres: Nonfiction, Feminism, History, Biography, Womens, Historical, Audiobook

223 pages, Paperback

First published September 6, 2018

Reviews

[Kirsten · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wanted less pop culture reference, more fully researched history. All of the subjects have much more to teach than the meme-heavy pages offered.

[Christine Spoors · Rating 2 out of 5]

The title and cover gave me high hopes for this book, but unfortunately I was left disappointed. I did really enjoy reading about women throughout history and meeting some I’d never read about before.

Oddly, the authors had such a judgemental tone throughout which was weird and very out of place in a book about remarkable women. They made subtle digs about everything from feminists who use moon cups to social media users to health food trends?? It felt like it was written by women who judge younger feminists and that really added a sour note to the book. Not sure why these odd comments weren’t edited out!

Also the use of slang and what I guess was supposed to be text talk? There were so many moments I had no clue what they were trying to say due to what I assume was an attempt to make it an easier read for younger teens?? This happened before in another book about badass women in history... I just don’t see the need!

[Evelina | AvalinahsBooks · Rating 4 out of 5]

Despite championing the cause of feminism and equality, we often find ourselves hazy on a lot of achievements by women - especially non-contemporary women. Why is that? Perhaps because history is written by the winners, and those who rebel have often been erased. Well, the book What Would Boudicca Do? sets out to right this wrong, and it does it with no lack of zing and style. Starting with the gorgeous cover that you will want to flaunt in public (so call me vain!) and ending with relevant stories to bolster your self-confidence in pretty much any situation, What Would Boudicca Do? is a good companion for any contemporary woman's nightstand or bookshelf.



Giving Voice to History's Lost Ones

So what did I like best about What Would Boudicca Do? Oh, a lot of things - but most of all, the humor, the motivation, and of course, the knowledge. In the afterword, the authors mention that it was incredibly hard to pick and choose who goes in the book and who doesn't - because its only 50 women, and some of the well known ones, such as Marie Curie, Joan of Arc or Mother Theresa were not included. But that doesn't mean their achievements were not important - the aim was to give some stage time to the strong voices of female history who are lesser known. So while the book does include some really big and well known names such as Queen Victoria, Coco Chanel or Cleopatra, it also introduced me to a lot of powerful women I had never heard about before, and I feel that that's incredibly important.

Everything Needs Some Humor Though

Another thing that I really loved about What Would Boudicca Do? is the humor and the tone. If you're expecting an encyclopedia sort of vibe, you couldn't be more mistaken. The book is full of alliteration, loads of puns and very bitey humor, especially when it comes to discussing men. I would even venture to call it saucy in places! Seems to me that this was the specific intention to color the text, and it's really the only reason I can't recommend it to anyone younger that middle or late teens - basically, high school material. However, precisely because of this kind of language, I think it would be a great hit with older schoolgirls, and a good influence on them too. I have mentioned before that this is one of those books you should have lying around your house, when your younger cousins or teenage nieces come to visit - and that would be for two reasons. One, the book really is motivating, especially for a young soul without a direction. Secondly, it would very probably institute you into the "cool aunt" status.

What Inspired Me The Most?

If I had to pick the most memorable women from the book? I would have a hard time, because they're all so inspiring. But let me present you with at least short passages about some of the women who really caught my attention. Again, I am not mentioning the obvious choices - I love Rosa Parks, but you all know about her already. Let me introduce the ones you might have never heard about - the list can be found here on my blog post. It should give you a sufficient taste of what the book is like - it’s pretty much more of this, although with more spice and spunk. It's a really great source of inspiration and a killer of self-doubt. And hey, its one hell of a fashion accessory to pull out of your bag!

I thank Faber & Faber for giving me a free copy of the book in exchange to my honest opinion. Receiving the book for free does not affect my opinion.

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[Romie · Rating 4 out of 5]

when I say I want a queer and intersectional feminist anthology, I'm talking about this one. just so you know (4.25)

[Erin Guinevere · Rating 2 out of 5]

Cute book with some interesting information on some cool women from the past I hadn't heard of before, but it's very much the kind of feminism you learn when you're 16 and first deciding to call yourself a feminist (making fun of 'moon cuppy, man hating' feminists, etc). There was also some romanticizing of some very problematic women which they did address in the afterward, stating that they weren't saying the women were perfect, but when it comes to literal white supremacists I think it would have been best to just leave them out.

[Kirsty · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read one or two pieces in this book every morning over a few months, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Not only did the words inspire me and set me up nicely for the day, but the cover image of tired (but badass) caffeinated redhead inspired me too! I now have it face-out on my shelf so I can get a little boost every morning.

[Garrisson_wings · Rating 3 out of 5]

Barely 3 stars, and only because some of the women included I'd never heard about before, and was very interesting to read about.
But otherwise, did not like the execution and style at all - all the pop culture references and abbreviations and 'advice' annoyed me to no end.

[Celine Uijthoven · Rating 2 out of 5]

I purchased this book with the intention of acquiring some insights regarding important females in history. Unfortunately, it taught me very little and tried to rely too much on references from the 21st century. I really expected to have obtained a book which would have been a bit more academic and less informal. The idea is great, but it simply wasn’t well executed in my opinion.

[Justine · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm really interested in every biography collection about women in History. This one caught my eye some time ago because of its title: it felt like a practical guide for handling life thanks to great women in History. And it's exactly what it is!

This book is both empowering and instructive. For each woman, there is a part about her life and a part about what we can learn from her life. It was both fascinating and interesting: we get to see how these women suffered a lot of hardships and succeeded nonetheless!

I particularly loved that it was quite diverse and not only centered around Western women.

I got everything I wanted from this book: I learnt, got inspired and added lots of new books to my wish-list!

[Stephanie Anze · Rating 4 out of 5]

Throughout history women have had to struggle under the rules established by men. A struggle that, sadly, still continues on to this day. In this book, we learn about fifty spirited and feisty women that defied the order and structure of their times. Of varying time periods, careers, achievements, ethnocities, places and class, all these women refused to bow down and "color within the lines".

As I was browsing for new books (something I do quite often) I came upon this title. Intrigued, I decided to to give it a go. I am so glad I did. With humour, heart and wit, we are introduced to fifty women that stood up to the patriarchy in their own way (though its worth mentioning that a few of these women did had the support of their fathers and husbands). From queens and royalty to inventors, thinkers and poets, all these women stood out. Wether through sheer force, will and/or words, these women followed their own agenda, not the ones others had created for them. What most impacted me was that many of these women were far from being saints, not entirely "nice" in their attitudes and actions and certainly were not faultless. Yet what shines is their determination through their imperfections. I especially appreciated that the authors focused on less well known women. I was familiar with a few of the names but the majority were new to me (and piqued my interest to learn more about them). The candid style of this book made it a fun read but the subject matters certainly taught me a lot. The author found the right balance of wimsy and informative, fun and accessible without taking away the importance of these women's achievements. Its format (short sections on each women) also makes it an easy read. Would recommend this book, for sure.

In the final note, the author talks about how hard it was to just choose fifty names and that many were worthy of being mentioned. The style and format of this book, I think, lends itself to do a volume two (at least). I would be happy to read it if it was made.

[Anne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Turns out Boudicca "mercilessly burned key settlements [...] slaughtering their citizens" so maybe she isn't the best example, but that's also what makes this book interesting. In the Afterword, the authors say: "None of [these women] was perfect - some of them did terrible as well as wonderful things. They were morally complex people but we're here to celebrate their achievements rather than how 'nice' they were on the way." I love that - how these women are celebrated but not glorified. I learned about a lot of amazing women I didn't know yet as well as great new things about women I did know. This book is also wonderfully witty and I like how it connects all of these women's problems to our moderm everyday life struggles. Great read!

[Jess Magee · Rating 5 out of 5]

EVERY👏🏻GIRL👏🏻NEEDS👏🏻TO👏🏻READ👏🏻THIS
.
This made me understand myself so much better than those crappy talks you get from school telling you to ‘be ladylike’. We need to view these women as a role models in everyday life and this book has me fired up for life!

[Marta :} · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely amazing and inspirational.
Full review to come.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

I fear the hip language and references used will not let this book age well, but otherwise it was a wonderful read.

[Irene Polini · Rating 5 out of 5]

50 donne. 50 storie. 50 modi per essere femministe e grandi donne. Come detto nella postazione dalle autrici è stato difficile scegliere 50 donne: Marie Curie o Jane Austen o le sorelle Brönte mancano all'appello, ma per una precisa ragione che condivido. Sono anche le donne meno conosciute a farci raggiungere certi risultati ed è giusto ricordarle e farle conoscere. Io stessa ho imparato tanto cose e sono estremamente fiera e felice di aver letto questo libro.

[Lucia · Rating 2 out of 5]

2,5/5 Süße und interessante historische Geschichten über Frauen, aber die Weisheiten die daraus folgten waren mir persönlich oft etwas zu flach. Zur einfachen Unterhaltung empfehlenswert, als Ratgeber eher nicht.

[Grace Rogan · Rating 2 out of 5]

The stories of fifty strong women over the centuries was fascinating. Each woman was strong in her own ways, both a heroine and villain in her own story, and a product of the time they lived in and the aspects of that time that they disagreed with.

HOWEVER,

This book itself is not good, imo. The authors give their own little takes and perspectives of the women and their stories. EVERY SINGLE AUTHOR POV MADE ME WANT TO THROW THIS BOOK AT A WALL. The authors dissed historical radical women's movements as OTT and excessive rather than recognizing their value in kickstarting a public movement. They laughed at the very insecurities which the patriarchy has utilized against women for time indefinite- body shape, care giving, and in some cases dramatism.

When a feminist based book calls for women to scrap care giving roles to instead pursue something "useful" like an engineering degree- they are not liberating women. They are only forcing them into a formatted role which the authors believe is more effective or useful- not one the women who choose to be care givers wish to pursue.

My biggest issue with this book was that the authors seemed to be more invested in convincing women to see their antiquated view of feminism as the correct one, rather than opening the possibility for increased personal autonomy and self-searching for women in this day and age.

I'd rec this book to people who want to be introduced to some barrier smashing women from a wide variety of backgrounds and times. But I would encourage that this not be the basis upon which you base or critique your view of feminism. Read more into these amazing women and their stories, and maybe (as I have done) take the authors notes in this book with a pinch of salt and a healthy dose of respect for people expressing their views.... regardless of how you feel about the views.

[Literary Redhead · Rating 5 out of 5]

“What Would Cleopatra Do? Life Lessons from 50 of History's Most Extraordinary Women” by Elizabeth Foley and Beth Coates is a very funny, irreverent, inspirational, and visually delightful guide. This wise handbook shares the wit and sagacity of Cleopatra, Queen Victoria, Dorothy Parker, and forty-seven other heroines on how to handle an array of problems common to women throughout history.

Here are Cleopatra’s thoughts on sibling rivalry, Mae West on positive body image, Frida Kahlo on finding your style, Catherine the Great on dealing with gossip, Agatha Christie on getting dumped, Hedy Lamarr on being underestimated—to list a few—as well as others who address dilemmas including career-planning, female friendship, loneliness, financial management, and political engagement.

Wonderfully whimsical illustrations by L.A.-based artist Bijou Karman add charm to this distinctive gift-worthy tribute to history’s outstanding women. 5/5

Pub Date 23 Oct 2018  

Thanks to Scribner and NetGalley for the review copy. Opinions are fully mine.

#WhatWouldCleopatraDo #NetGalley

[Deb (Readerbuzz) Nance · Rating 4 out of 5]

Who are the strong women who have come before us? What lessons do they have to teach us?

Let's take a look.

This isn't your mother's collection of biographies. I'd be surprised if you could name half of them, even if you are a woman's scholar; the author purposefully omitted many of the usual suspects, and replaced them with some bold and sassy women whose stories have been neglected in the past. Odette Sansom. Empress Dowager Cixi. Phoolan Devi. Wang Zhenyi. Mekatilili wa Menza. Lovely to see some new faces here.

And the author takes a bold and sassy approach to these stories, using each life as a lesson for us women of today. Being a geek and proud. Building your personal brand. Bossing it.

Fresh. Startling, at times. Inspiring.

#2020ReadNonFic

[Orláith · Rating 5 out of 5]

What Would Boudicca Do? by Elizabeth Foley and Beth Coates should be required reading for every teenage girl (and boy)!

Telling the stories of 51 women over 298 pages, it is all at once witty, sad, rousing and educational. It is a celebration of women from all time periods and walks of life, and it teaches, with a healthy dash of humour, all that women are capable of.

While I may not have liked every woman featured in the book, I can understand why they were included and each was as enjoyable to read about as the next.

Thank you so much to Faber Faber for sending me a beautiful free hardback to review.

[chantel nouseforaname · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought this book was a dope look into some less common names that we're used to hearing when it comes to women's place within history.

I really liked the educational/relational slant on each woman and how we could use their contributions to humanity to empower ourselves to push a little harder in our day-to-day lives.

I enjoyed this book and would recommend it to others for sure. The way it was written, I think it'd be perfect to share in a highschool history setting!

My only qualm is that - as usual, I'm always looking for more black women in particular and WWCD gave me a few, but I want moar moar moar! lol. It's a great book tho.

[Shaz · Rating 3 out of 5]

My full review can be found at: https://citygirlnetwork.com/magazine/...

[Diana · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love that it's not a traditional history lesson but a life lesson of what we can learn from these women. It's not about them it's about what they did. A lot in a time when they weren't allowed to, which is always a great reminder on how we should not be limiting ourselves.
And I loved the way it was written, absolutely straight forward and at times maybe a bit blunt, like I said it is not a traditional history lesson.

[Natia Morbedadze · Rating 3 out of 5]

ძალიან მოკლე, თუმცა საინტერესო ისტორიებია 50 მებრძოლი ქალის შესახებ. ბევრს ვიცნობთ, დანარჩენების ცხოვრებაზე კი მეტის გაგების სურვილს გვიჩენს მათთან შეხვედრა. საერთო ჯამში კიდევ ერთხელ ვრწმუნდებით ქალების განსაკუთრებულ ძალაში.

[Hannah Jedan · Rating 4 out of 5]

good book

[Alex · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. It has a great spread of remarkable women - white, black, Asian, Indigenous, disabled, LGBTQI+. It also acknowledges that while some of these women did remarkable things for the sisterhood, they were also flawed and some were downright problematic. I learnt a lot about historical women that I hadn't heard about, including Phoolan Devi, Empress Dowager Cixi and Masako Katsuro.

The meme-like, colloquial language that other reviews seem to take issue with wasn't a problem for me. What do you expect, when the front cover shows Bouddica with a latte in hand? I thought it made the book engaging and highly readable. I finished it in a day.

[Syeda Amna · Rating 1 out of 5]

I think I might have enjoyed this book if I was twelve. I am not.

The premise is that the book will help young women navigate today's problems by asking, "What would (insert strong women from the past) do?" But often there is no connection between the "life lesson" the author is trying to impart and the woman in question.

Consider this. The first chapter begins with:
"Tired of being talked over in meetings? Of having your patronizing boss bropriate your ideas and present them as his own?"

A little further down the page, the author delves into Boudicca's story, and says:

"The Romans took Boudicca's kingdom and, according to their historian Tacitus, raped her daughters and flogged her. Instead of being cowed by this vile outrage, or simply accepting the inevitable sexual violence women endure in war zones, Boudicca set the world on fire. She led a full-on revolt in 60 or 61 CE, mercilessly burning the key settlements of Colchester, St Albans and London to the ground, slaughtering their citizens, both Roman and Briton, and seriously diminishing the crack Ninth Legion... The offenses against Boudicca are clearly far more serious and unforgivable than not being given credit in your workplace, but her emphatic response is something to be emulated, albeit with slightly less disembowelling and arson. Next time someone's stealing your sunshine, make a claim for what's yours and refuse to be disrespected."

What the fuck? What kind of logical acrobatics did the author have to perform to link the two?

This would have worked better if it was simply a collection of biographies of women for young women. The tone would have worked for younger readers who know nothing about these women in the first place.

Instead, we have this self help drivel, which makes it utterly unsalvagable.

To be fair, I don't read self help, but have been delving into it for a project at work, so maybe I was never the target audience. Still, this was just a waste of time. DNF.

[Kirstie · Rating 2 out of 5]

like.... this book is fine. its very trendy and accessible but singularly lacking in any kind of depth. there is absolutely nothing here that you couldnt find on a wikipedia page or viral twitter thread.

its an interesting and eclectic mix of notable women, but i did have some issues. firstly, i didnt like how the whole book took a very reductive tone to a lot of the women presented, simplifying their rich and varied lives to twist them into whatever shallow teachable moment the authors thought would be relevant to a 21st century woman, sometimes completely misrepresenting their lives in the process. this is just not something i vibed with at all.

i also particularly disliked how it glossed over coco chanel's nazi collaboration. hans gunther von dincklage wasnt a "dashing german". he was a nazi. she had a 10 year long love affair with a nazi. its briefly mentioned in the afterword that the women in this book werent all saints and its their "achievements" that really matter or whatever, but honestly it would have been so easy to leave out this one well known literal nazi in favour of literally any other female fashion designer. or at the very least like, mention it? dont just dance around it - say it outright. its one thing to be "morally complex". its another thing entirely to be a nazi. i found it especially baffling that this was largely omitted, as the book made no qualms about detailing marie stopes pro-eugenics opinions, for example. i mean, if you're going to actively choose to include contraversial women in your hashtag girlboss pop feminism book, the least you can do is present the full facts.

also that one little bit in the afterword about "lets big up the boys too" really pissed me off lmao. just because a small handful of men in history weren't raging violent misogynists doesnt mean we have to endlessly praise them for it. the bar is literally in hell.

[Nikki · Rating 2 out of 5]

Another book where I like the premise but dislike the execution. The book was very pop culture-y rather than historical in nature and I quickly grew tired of the book's "voice" and writing. No woman detailed is given much time and between that and the writing, it comes across as if the author did very little research. I also would have liked had the "lessons" simply come from these women's lives rather than seeming to choose women to match pre-conceived lessons the author already wanted to cover. I did, however, like many of the women chosen and that some of the women included were not well-known.

Disclosure: ARC received from Netgalley & publisher in exchange for an honest review. (They may regret this.) Any and all quotes were taken from an advanced edition subject to change in the final edition.

[Innastholiel · Rating 2 out of 5]

Thank God, it's finally over. Look, I appreciate the thought, but I really did not care for the execution. Every chapter is bubbly and punchy, and it's exhausting. Not to mention that, obviously, you don't get much of an insight into any of these women's lives because each one of them has, on average, three to four pages dedicated to them, and about half of that is made up of a far-fetched introduction and how this woman's life story could benefit your own, which, for the most part, is also a stretch. I really don't care for this type of non-fiction.