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Vote!: Women's Fight for Access to the Ballot Box
August 18, 2020, marks the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment to the US Constitution, which prohibited states and the US government from denying citizens the right to vote on the basis of sex. See how the 70-year-long fight for women's suffrage was hard won by leaders such as Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Susan B. Anthony, Alice Paul, Carrie Chapman Catt and others. Learn how their success led into the civil rights and feminist movements of the mid- and late twentieth century, as well as today's #MeToo, #YesAllWomen, and Black Lives Matter movements. In the face of voter ID laws, voter purges, gerrymandering, and other restrictions, Americans continue to fight for equality in voting rights.
-- "Journal"
-- "Journal"
120 pages, ebook
First published August 6, 2019
4 people are currently reading
40 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
February 1, 2020
I had just finished Susan B. Anthony by Teri Kanefield and was inspired to read this. Frazer's book had facts but they were choppy and forced. When reading Kanefield's book, I felt as if I was partially living Susan B. Anthony's life along side her. To follow that with this book was a letdown. Despite the very rich material the author had work with, it was just ok.
July 20, 2019
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Received an arc from Net Galley for an honest review.
Expected Release: August 6th 2019
I never learned how truly important it was to vote until my senior year of high school in my advanced placement government class. I continued to learn how important it was to vote into my freshman year of college, and voted in the midterm elections for my state. I then followed the results for the midterm elections for both my state and the entire nation, I was so fascinated by what I learned. I don't think enough young people understand the importance of voting, however, I do think more young people are starting to take notice of politics. I'm hoping that will encourage more of the younger generation to vote.
I learned a lot from this book that was skipped in both my government class and the multiple American history classes I've taken. I have been taught the very basics on the history of Women's Right to Vote. I know about the 19th Amendment and who Elizabeth Cady Stanton was and what she did (mostly because she was my American hero in the fifth grade), but I didn't know enough about the actual events and protests that happened around the country and the abuse these suffragists dealt with. It's truly appalling.
I also enjoyed learning about the history my state, Kansas, had in the Women's Suffragist movement as a whole. I'm sad to say that my state failed in the past to pass the policies to help women and that we supported racist views, but these are things that I am glad that I know! These things weren't taught to me in school and while they are negative compared to what we know and live today, it is still important for people to know the history. Another thing I learned at the very end of this book was that "Kansas passed a law in 2011 that required new voters to present a driver's license, birth certificate, or passport." The book went on to explain that this pretty much killed the vote for new voters both young people and voters born outside of the United States. The League of Women Voters of Kansas eventually challenged this law and as of 2018 the law was, finally, overturned. Again, I had absolutely no idea about this law and it was something that should be discussed in school so we know the voting/political history of our state.
The one thing I didn't like about this book was how textbook it felt. I understand that it is a political nonfiction (kind of) and that it's purpose is to be informational instead of entertaining, but I still felt like the information was more copy and pasted from a textbook. I think the author could've taken risks with this and turned it into something both informational and entertaining at the same time. That way it could be more directed at younger voters, giving them the history of what women had to go through to vote. Knowing some of these facts, while still being entertained, would prove helpful, in my opinion, in getting younger people to vote.
Pre-Review
This definitely felt more textbook than I would've liked, but I did learn a lot of new things that were so simply brushed over in the multiple history classes I've taken.
Received an arc from Net Galley for an honest review.
Expected Release: August 6th 2019
I never learned how truly important it was to vote until my senior year of high school in my advanced placement government class. I continued to learn how important it was to vote into my freshman year of college, and voted in the midterm elections for my state. I then followed the results for the midterm elections for both my state and the entire nation, I was so fascinated by what I learned. I don't think enough young people understand the importance of voting, however, I do think more young people are starting to take notice of politics. I'm hoping that will encourage more of the younger generation to vote.
I learned a lot from this book that was skipped in both my government class and the multiple American history classes I've taken. I have been taught the very basics on the history of Women's Right to Vote. I know about the 19th Amendment and who Elizabeth Cady Stanton was and what she did (mostly because she was my American hero in the fifth grade), but I didn't know enough about the actual events and protests that happened around the country and the abuse these suffragists dealt with. It's truly appalling.
I also enjoyed learning about the history my state, Kansas, had in the Women's Suffragist movement as a whole. I'm sad to say that my state failed in the past to pass the policies to help women and that we supported racist views, but these are things that I am glad that I know! These things weren't taught to me in school and while they are negative compared to what we know and live today, it is still important for people to know the history. Another thing I learned at the very end of this book was that "Kansas passed a law in 2011 that required new voters to present a driver's license, birth certificate, or passport." The book went on to explain that this pretty much killed the vote for new voters both young people and voters born outside of the United States. The League of Women Voters of Kansas eventually challenged this law and as of 2018 the law was, finally, overturned. Again, I had absolutely no idea about this law and it was something that should be discussed in school so we know the voting/political history of our state.
The one thing I didn't like about this book was how textbook it felt. I understand that it is a political nonfiction (kind of) and that it's purpose is to be informational instead of entertaining, but I still felt like the information was more copy and pasted from a textbook. I think the author could've taken risks with this and turned it into something both informational and entertaining at the same time. That way it could be more directed at younger voters, giving them the history of what women had to go through to vote. Knowing some of these facts, while still being entertained, would prove helpful, in my opinion, in getting younger people to vote.
Pre-Review
This definitely felt more textbook than I would've liked, but I did learn a lot of new things that were so simply brushed over in the multiple history classes I've taken.
March 24, 2020
Rounded up to 4 stars because I do really love that cover. This short, succinct look at the women’s suffrage movement is strengthened by colorful pages, interesting inserts, and a glossary in the back. This is not true narrative nonfiction and reads more factual, but is a good starting point for middle and high school readers exploring the subject. The author goes on to address the civil rights movement and current voter suppression tactics. Middle and high school readers looking for a deeper dive into the suffrage movement should check out Winifred Conkling’s Votes for Women! next.
February 20, 2020
It doesn’t flow like others of the genre and type do, but it is nonetheless full of necessary information related to women’s access to vote. Yet it also went a bit long at the end veering toward other women’s rights issues like Title IX.
And the flow interruption was felt because while there were defined text features, there were times I thought I was reading a text box only to realize it was back to the story itself.
The basics are covered, certainly the push-pull of black versus women voting, but also included some detailed information about the expansion west and each state’s views on women voting and the underlying reasons why. It worked, but more as a research tool than narrative nonfiction.
And the flow interruption was felt because while there were defined text features, there were times I thought I was reading a text box only to realize it was back to the story itself.
The basics are covered, certainly the push-pull of black versus women voting, but also included some detailed information about the expansion west and each state’s views on women voting and the underlying reasons why. It worked, but more as a research tool than narrative nonfiction.
September 19, 2020
A nice overview of the most well known players in helping women access the right to vote. Easy to read, recommend to preteens and teens for an easy overview of the 19th amendment and voting rights.
July 3, 2019
I wanted so much more from this book, but it reads like a middle school text book. This was the first time that I ever felt that a book needed an introduction, as it just seemed to jump into the history without any kind of introduction whatsoever.
The writing and history is very, very, very elementary. It pauses to explain what the Underground Railroad is.
This should be marketed more as a middle grade book. I also wish it would have touched on the controversies surrounding Elizabeth Cady Stanton, but instead it painted her as an abolitionist and a feminist, ignoring the ways she did not support black women.
The writing and history is very, very, very elementary. It pauses to explain what the Underground Railroad is.
This should be marketed more as a middle grade book. I also wish it would have touched on the controversies surrounding Elizabeth Cady Stanton, but instead it painted her as an abolitionist and a feminist, ignoring the ways she did not support black women.
February 16, 2026
Vote: women’s fight for access to the ballot box
- In the 19th century women had few rights. When they were married they no longer were seen as a separate legal entity. It was legally difficult to get a divorce and socially unacceptable. In many places women could not refuse sex. They were trapped
- Slavery and it connections to women’s suffrage
- The man voted for the household. If women voted it would disrupt the family
- Women were discouraged from public speaking. Female abolitionists were told to not speak about women’s rights
- Lucy stone, Elizabeth Stanton
- Some women cut down on their activism to take care of their children
- Stanton wanted educated suffrage. Only the most well educated could vote. This is part of the racism of the suffrage movement
- Negros had to come first. They didn’t have to but they did. Black male suffrage and the emancipation proclamation did not bring freedom or women’s suffrage
- The rivalry between black and women’s suffrage
- Sojourner Truth advocated for women’s suffrage
- Despite the passage of the 15th amendment, AAs struggled to vote in the Jim Crow south. The 19th amendment was passed decades before the voting rights act
- Different strategies to achieve women’s suffrage
- In the 1880’s before it was a state Wyoming approved women’s suffrage. When it became a state in 1891, it was the first state to allow women’s suffrage
- By the early 1900’s the suffrage movement had stalled. Its founders had grown old. From 1907-1910 Harriet Stanton Blache sought to widen the movement, she recruited working women and women from all segments of society. Instead of the tradition traditional middle class women that were typical of the movement
- It would take a multi-pronged approach. Pressuring states to pass suffrage, protesting, some court cases, and changing public opinion
- A chaotic a disruptive march in 1914 on the day of Woodrow Wilson’s inauguration. The women were disruptive but respectful. The men harassing them caused chaos
- The silent sentinels - protested outside the White House from January to March 1917. They were ignored, harassed, beaten, and thrown in jail. They spoke out against WWI. America could not fight for democracy abroad while denying it at home
- The silent sentinels are iconic
- Rankin - the first women elected to congress in 1916. Montana passed women’s suffrage in 1914. Rankin was a bad ass, like all of these women. She served two terms. She was reelected to congress in ‘39. A committed pacifist, she was the only member of congress to vote against entering WWII
- August 22nd, 1920 - the 19th amendment was ratified
- Many women supported prohibition. There are connections between the suffrage and prohibition movements
- The in the south black women still struggled to vote under Jim Crow laws
- Vatican City is the only country in the world that does not allow women to vote
- A brief history of voting rights act and its importance. How the voting rights act has been dismantled
- Gerrymandering, voter ID laws, and voter suppression
- I love democracy, I love voting. It is a subject I have been reading about for years. I loved this book and highly recommend it
- In the 19th century women had few rights. When they were married they no longer were seen as a separate legal entity. It was legally difficult to get a divorce and socially unacceptable. In many places women could not refuse sex. They were trapped
- Slavery and it connections to women’s suffrage
- The man voted for the household. If women voted it would disrupt the family
- Women were discouraged from public speaking. Female abolitionists were told to not speak about women’s rights
- Lucy stone, Elizabeth Stanton
- Some women cut down on their activism to take care of their children
- Stanton wanted educated suffrage. Only the most well educated could vote. This is part of the racism of the suffrage movement
- Negros had to come first. They didn’t have to but they did. Black male suffrage and the emancipation proclamation did not bring freedom or women’s suffrage
- The rivalry between black and women’s suffrage
- Sojourner Truth advocated for women’s suffrage
- Despite the passage of the 15th amendment, AAs struggled to vote in the Jim Crow south. The 19th amendment was passed decades before the voting rights act
- Different strategies to achieve women’s suffrage
- In the 1880’s before it was a state Wyoming approved women’s suffrage. When it became a state in 1891, it was the first state to allow women’s suffrage
- By the early 1900’s the suffrage movement had stalled. Its founders had grown old. From 1907-1910 Harriet Stanton Blache sought to widen the movement, she recruited working women and women from all segments of society. Instead of the tradition traditional middle class women that were typical of the movement
- It would take a multi-pronged approach. Pressuring states to pass suffrage, protesting, some court cases, and changing public opinion
- A chaotic a disruptive march in 1914 on the day of Woodrow Wilson’s inauguration. The women were disruptive but respectful. The men harassing them caused chaos
- The silent sentinels - protested outside the White House from January to March 1917. They were ignored, harassed, beaten, and thrown in jail. They spoke out against WWI. America could not fight for democracy abroad while denying it at home
- The silent sentinels are iconic
- Rankin - the first women elected to congress in 1916. Montana passed women’s suffrage in 1914. Rankin was a bad ass, like all of these women. She served two terms. She was reelected to congress in ‘39. A committed pacifist, she was the only member of congress to vote against entering WWII
- August 22nd, 1920 - the 19th amendment was ratified
- Many women supported prohibition. There are connections between the suffrage and prohibition movements
- The in the south black women still struggled to vote under Jim Crow laws
- Vatican City is the only country in the world that does not allow women to vote
- A brief history of voting rights act and its importance. How the voting rights act has been dismantled
- Gerrymandering, voter ID laws, and voter suppression
- I love democracy, I love voting. It is a subject I have been reading about for years. I loved this book and highly recommend it
March 15, 2020
According to the Lerner website this book is intended for Grades 8 - 12. In a lot of ways I think that is a fair judgement, but the beginning of this book had me questioning who the target age was. It feels the need to explain things in parentheses that arguably do not need further explanation. I’d say at least half if not more were un-needed. For example this gem: “citizens overthrew monarchies (rule by kings and queens)”. Please tell me you don’t actually think middle and high schoolers don’t know what monarchies are. That was definitely the worst, but even ones that were technically fine felt unneeded (“between the Union (North) and the Confederacy (South)...” “South Carolina seceded (withdrew) from the United States” “Suffragists also fought for the ballot (the right to vote) in western territories (areas that had not yet become states).”) It’s not even that bad, but it was such a weird consistent choice that I zeroed in on it throughout. The beginning also occasionally felt like a research paper someone from the target audience would have to write themselves for school. Thankfully it did shake off that feeling as the book went along. A big positive was that it focused not just on white women, but black and native american women. It also acknowledged some of the flaws of early feminist leaders (hint: they were racist). I also learned stuff! I don’t remember being taught about women’s suffrage in school. Everything I know is mainly through cultural osmosis. I can see this being in a middle school school library. Overall, pretty informative. Is it successful? I feel like it is, but I’m also not the target audience and can’t say for sure.
August 20, 2020
This book went into too much detail in some areas and not enough in others. There are a ton of random details about different suffragists but the laws that prevented Asians and Native Americans from voting only got one throwaway sentence. There was more of an effort made to include women of color than a lot of other books I've seen about women's suffrage, with frequent mentions of the racist views held by white suffragists and a chapter dedicated to the barriers Black women continued to face after the 19th Amendment, but it still felt like an afterthought. The book also felt too much like a textbook: really informative, but also pretty boring. Overall it was the kind of book I might hand to a teen who needs to write a report, but probably not one I would hand to a teen who's actually interested in history.
October 19, 2020
I did find this very informative and enlightening to read about the different battles and obstacles that lead to women's right to vote. It also provided intriguing historical facts on how the battle is still not won, in other countries but also in the US. I do wish the author didn't gloss over the African American women suffragists that also fought for women's right to vote but I do feel this book was a good introductory start on learning more about the Women's Suffrage Movement from all sides.
November 10, 2024
Very Informative, But Also Fascinating
I ran across this book on accident while searching for my daughter's next read for homeschool. I decided it would also be a great read for me as well. It certainly was a great read for me! I was absolutely in awe of the heroics of all the AMAZING women of the past who fought hard for our rights to vote. Beyond that, I loved the last chapter that focused more on more recent voting obstacles. The facts presented in this book were easy to digest, but gut wrenching all the same. Excellent read!
I ran across this book on accident while searching for my daughter's next read for homeschool. I decided it would also be a great read for me as well. It certainly was a great read for me! I was absolutely in awe of the heroics of all the AMAZING women of the past who fought hard for our rights to vote. Beyond that, I loved the last chapter that focused more on more recent voting obstacles. The facts presented in this book were easy to digest, but gut wrenching all the same. Excellent read!
August 24, 2019
I received a free copy from netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Vote a terrible thing to waste is a great way to introduce an entire generation to the idea of fighting for voting rights especially for women. This book provides a very concise history of the women and men who fought for women's suffrage. I think this would be a helpful book in a lot of middle and high school classes in instructing students about the legacy of women in history.
October 28, 2019
*I received a copy of this book in exchange of an honest review All opinions are my own.*
I thought this book was okay. I definitely learned a lot of what women and African Americans went through to get the rights we have. I also know that while we accomplished a lot, there is still a long way to go. We all have rights, but they’re far from equal.
I think the information in this book is important, but it was rather boring to read. I mean, this stuff is never fun, but it seemed too wordy.
I thought this book was okay. I definitely learned a lot of what women and African Americans went through to get the rights we have. I also know that while we accomplished a lot, there is still a long way to go. We all have rights, but they’re far from equal.
I think the information in this book is important, but it was rather boring to read. I mean, this stuff is never fun, but it seemed too wordy.
March 7, 2021
This book is a wonderful beginners'
guide to the history of voting. I think that many teens and young people will be able to access and appreciate the history of voting, without being overwhelmed or intimidated by the enormity of facts, figures, and names tied to the history of voting. Is it the most detailed? No, but it's not supposed to be. Highly recommend to those who want to start learning about voting rights.
guide to the history of voting. I think that many teens and young people will be able to access and appreciate the history of voting, without being overwhelmed or intimidated by the enormity of facts, figures, and names tied to the history of voting. Is it the most detailed? No, but it's not supposed to be. Highly recommend to those who want to start learning about voting rights.
September 4, 2019
I really enjoyed reading this book even more than I had anticipated. I could see excerpting this for classroom use, but I could not justify reading the entire thing. For instance, I think certain chapters would pair nicely with a unit on social justice or a civil rights movement unit. I learned many new things from this book and I really enjoyed it!
June 11, 2020
Very informative and well-written book. Easy to read and understand. I highly recommend it for all ages.
March 5, 2022
Great background on the suffrage movement!
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews