Feisty and Fiery and Fierce : Badass Celtic Women to Live Your Life by from Scotland, Ireland and Wales

by Mairi Kidd

Celtic women, both 'ordinary' and 'extraordinary' have often been overlooked in
recorded history, while their male counterparts hogged the limelight. Too often written
by the victors, and written by men, for men, the incredible stories of Scottish, Irish
and Welsh women have been all-too-often banished to the footnotes of our nations'
interwoven histories.

This collection brings together the stories of those women already well-known, whose
place in history is significant and remembered - or often misremembered - and those
women whose mark is found in the shadows, women whose stories are now uncovered
and celebrated in a new light. Women like Iseabal Ni Mheic Cailein, Jessie Mann and
Helen Crawfurd from Scotland, Petronilla de Meath, Grainne ni Mhaille and Agnes Clerke
from Ireland, and Gwenllian ferch Gruffudd, Nell Gwyn and Laura Ashley from Wales,
whose shared Celtic history and experiences bear remarkable similarities.

Feisty and Fiery and Fierce brings together a 'coven' of 30 badass Celtic women whose
stories challenge the idea that the women of the past rarely did anything worth
recording. The stories of these women, and their true mark on history, will entertain
you, enrage you, uplift you and inspire you.

Genres: Feminism, Nonfiction, History

224 pages, Hardcover

Published September 24, 2020

About the author

Mairi Kidd is Head of Literature, Languages and Publishing at Creative Scotland. She was formerly Managing Director of Barrington Stoke, a prize-winning publisher. A fluent Gaelic speaker, she has an MA in Celtic Studies from Edinburgh University. As CEO of Stòrlann, the National Gaelic Education Resource Agency, she worked with Scottish Government, Bòrd na Gàidhlig and local authorities. She is a contributor to BBC Radio nan Gàidheal's books coverage and writes for broadcast, including Gaelic comedy series FUNC.

Reviews

[Farnz · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75⭐️

[Hilary James-Thomson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found this book a slow starter - it subdivided the women into the 3 nations it discussed and the Scottish chapter was not as inspired in its choices as the other two. I wonder if this is a reflection of the fact Mairi already wrote a whole book on Scottish women. However, overall I would say I enjoyed it and I do look forward to reading her other books.

[Tasha · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another gorgeous book from Mairi Kidd, allowing women from the Celtic nations to be seen.

Blurb:
Throughout history, the women of the Celtic nations of Scotland, Ireland and Wales have risen to challenge and proved themselves to be seriously badass.
Jackie Crookston banged the drum of fair treatment for her fellow Scots and paid with her life.
Anne Bonny swashbuckled her way from Ireland to the Bahamas as a real-life pirate of the Caribbean.
Betty Campbell stood up to racism to teach the children - and win the hearts - of Wales.
Feisty, fiery and fierce in every way, the "her-stories" of these Celtic sisters - from prophets to photographers, artists to activists - will inspire you to face your own modern-day dilemmas in true badass style.

More interesting stories of what women have achieved, with a little bit at the end of each to ask you some searching questions, and what have you learnt from this narrative? Great for dipping in and out of, almost as a meditation tool, to focus thoughts on the different questions raised.

[Joe Stewart · Rating 3 out of 5]

I agree with Hillary and her assessment. This book wasn’t as good as Warrior, Witches and Bitches.
I love reading about ladies and history but I don’t want to hear about the authors feminist views, climate change, misogyny white supremacy, child vaccinations, BLM, and Trump. What does a US President have to do with ladies of history? I bought this book to learn about the ladies of the Celtic nations not the author’s opinion on these topics. Of course, the author is not going to use HIStory but we’re going to use HERstory.

Seems the only word the author uses to describe these outstanding women is badass.

The ladies that were interesting and I wish there were more to their story:
Grace O’Malley - I have a book on her
Anne Bonny - I have a book on her as well.
Betsi Cadwaladr
Gwenllian Ferch Gruffydd

[Izzy]

It does not go in depth about any of the women and sometimes even focuses on the men in their lives. Frankly, I couldn't care less anymore and I'm really sad that I didn't like it since it's a really interesting topic.