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Good Girls Don't Make History
History has rarely been told from a woman’s point of view.
Good Girls Don’t Make History is an important graphic novel that amplifies the voices of female legends from 1840 to the present day.
Reliving moments from the lives of Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Sojourner Truth, Alice Paul, Ida B. Wells, and Susan B. Anthony , these inspiring stories are boldly told from one of the most formative eras in women’s history—the fight for the vote in the United States.
The tale begins at a modern-day polling station in California with a mother and daughter voting together, then flashes back 180 years to the World Anti-Slavery Convention where the women's movement got its legendary start.
The twists and turns take readers across the country and through time, illuminating parallels between epic battles for liberty in the past and similar struggles for justice today.
A powerful and important examination of some key figures in the ongoing fight for equality , Good Girls Don’t Make History ’s accounts of bravery, perseverance and courage are truly inspiring for readers of any age.
Good Girls Don’t Make History is an important graphic novel that amplifies the voices of female legends from 1840 to the present day.
Reliving moments from the lives of Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Sojourner Truth, Alice Paul, Ida B. Wells, and Susan B. Anthony , these inspiring stories are boldly told from one of the most formative eras in women’s history—the fight for the vote in the United States.
The tale begins at a modern-day polling station in California with a mother and daughter voting together, then flashes back 180 years to the World Anti-Slavery Convention where the women's movement got its legendary start.
The twists and turns take readers across the country and through time, illuminating parallels between epic battles for liberty in the past and similar struggles for justice today.
A powerful and important examination of some key figures in the ongoing fight for equality , Good Girls Don’t Make History ’s accounts of bravery, perseverance and courage are truly inspiring for readers of any age.
160 pages, Hardcover
First published August 31, 2021
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372 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 121 reviews
August 16, 2021
In a nutshell: This is an educational and insightful graphic novel, but it is intended mainly for the US audience.
“Good girls don’t make history” is a creative reconstruction of the historical events related to women’s struggles to be enfranchised. The story is presented from the present timeline with the narrative going back to the past to recount anecdotes of the famous suffragists who fought for the rights till their very end. The content covers not just white women but also black and native American women who fought the same battle with greater struggles.
On the positive side, the book is inspiring and informative. It shows us how much we have to be grateful for to the courageous women (and men) of the past who were ready to speak against the status quo. People don’t realise that the suffragist movement wasn’t a fight for women’s rights but for equal rights. We all stand on the shoulders of those who came before us. This is especially true when it comes to human right movements of any kinds.
However, the back-and-forth timeline is a little confusing, especially as there is no background provided for any of the historical women. Jumping straight into the movement without knowing how they reached there is like starting a story from in between. It would have helped to know some informative details of the women or to have only one timeline presented in a chronological way, ending in the present. I also felt as if a certain foundational knowledge has been assumed by the book. In that sense, only American readers will benefit from the book as the rest will find a lot of missing gaps in the details provided.
The artwork is appealing. The whole book has a watercolour kind of look, lending a very different feel to the panels. It’s like the resilience of the women is reflected in the fluidity of the graphics. The illustrations are the biggest USP of this book.
The fight for women’s rights still goes on. Especially today, in the light of what is happening in Afghanistan, we realise that the struggle is never over. Some battles have been won; there are many more yet to be fought. Let’s remember what Abigail Scott Duniway said:
"The young women of today, free to study, to speak, to write, to choose their occupation, should remember that every inch of this freedom was bought for them at a great price. It is for them to show their gratitude by helping onward the reforms of their own times, by spreading the light of freedom and of truth still wider. The debt that each generation owes to the past it must pay to the future.”
I loved the intent behind this book, I liked the content too. I just wish it were presented in a better, more easily comprehensible structure so that it could have been read by a wider audience in terms of age as well as nationality.
Thank you to NetGalley and Quarto Publishing Group for the ARC of the book in exchange for an honest review.
***********************
Join me on the Facebook group, Readers Forever! , for more reviews, book-related discussions and fun.
“Good girls don’t make history” is a creative reconstruction of the historical events related to women’s struggles to be enfranchised. The story is presented from the present timeline with the narrative going back to the past to recount anecdotes of the famous suffragists who fought for the rights till their very end. The content covers not just white women but also black and native American women who fought the same battle with greater struggles.
On the positive side, the book is inspiring and informative. It shows us how much we have to be grateful for to the courageous women (and men) of the past who were ready to speak against the status quo. People don’t realise that the suffragist movement wasn’t a fight for women’s rights but for equal rights. We all stand on the shoulders of those who came before us. This is especially true when it comes to human right movements of any kinds.
However, the back-and-forth timeline is a little confusing, especially as there is no background provided for any of the historical women. Jumping straight into the movement without knowing how they reached there is like starting a story from in between. It would have helped to know some informative details of the women or to have only one timeline presented in a chronological way, ending in the present. I also felt as if a certain foundational knowledge has been assumed by the book. In that sense, only American readers will benefit from the book as the rest will find a lot of missing gaps in the details provided.
The artwork is appealing. The whole book has a watercolour kind of look, lending a very different feel to the panels. It’s like the resilience of the women is reflected in the fluidity of the graphics. The illustrations are the biggest USP of this book.
The fight for women’s rights still goes on. Especially today, in the light of what is happening in Afghanistan, we realise that the struggle is never over. Some battles have been won; there are many more yet to be fought. Let’s remember what Abigail Scott Duniway said:
"The young women of today, free to study, to speak, to write, to choose their occupation, should remember that every inch of this freedom was bought for them at a great price. It is for them to show their gratitude by helping onward the reforms of their own times, by spreading the light of freedom and of truth still wider. The debt that each generation owes to the past it must pay to the future.”
I loved the intent behind this book, I liked the content too. I just wish it were presented in a better, more easily comprehensible structure so that it could have been read by a wider audience in terms of age as well as nationality.
Thank you to NetGalley and Quarto Publishing Group for the ARC of the book in exchange for an honest review.
***********************
Join me on the Facebook group, Readers Forever! , for more reviews, book-related discussions and fun.
June 21, 2021
Good Girls Don't Make History is a fantastic graphic novel covering the history of women's suffrage in the United States. It flashes between modern young people preparing to vote and the history of what it took for women to get the vote, and what it took not just for white women but also for Black and indigenous women. Which is important because a lot of that history has tended to be glossed over. Protests, marches, imprisonment, a long fight for equity. I would definitely recommend this, especially for teachers. It's an easy entry point for important conversations. I received a copy of this book for review from the publisher. All opinions are my own.
December 15, 2022
The Publisher Says: History has rarely been told from a woman’s point of view.
Good Girls Don’t Make History is an important graphic novel that amplifies the voices of female legends from 1840 to the present day.
Reliving moments from the lives of Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Sojourner Truth, Alice Paul, Ida B. Wells, and Susan B. Anthony, these inspiring stories are boldly told from one of the most formative eras in women’s history—the fight for the vote in the United States.
The tale begins at a modern-day polling station in California with a mother and daughter voting together, then flashes back 180 years to the World Anti-Slavery Convention where the women's movement got its legendary start.
The twists and turns take readers across the country and through time, illuminating parallels between epic battles for liberty in the past and similar struggles for justice today.
A powerful and important examination of some key figures in the ongoing fight for equality, Good Girls Don’t Make History’s accounts of bravery, perseverance and courage are truly inspiring for readers of any age.
I RECEIVED A DRC FROM THE PUBLISHER VIA EDELWEISS+. THANK YOU.
My Review: "It was we, the people; not we, the white male citizens; nor yet we, the male citizens; but we, the whole people, who formed the union...men, their rights and nothing more; women, their rights and nothing less."
Susan B. Anthony
What better way to start a story about why voting matters, what it cost to extend the vote to women, and the long, long struggle of slightly more than half of Humanity to get a bare minimum of representation at the tables where the powerful decide how far they can shove the weak without reigniting 1789's fires.
What makes a good graphic novel? A novel, in its essence, is meant to take the reader on a deep and careful examination of some emotional state, physical event, or social reality. What makes a graphic story successful is the way that novel is told: one can't readily imagine a visual take on Gravity's Rainbow, or if you can, do share how it would work. Some interior stories aren't necessarily good as artwork. This story...a mother takes her tween daughter with her to vote, encounters a long, long wait, and takes the bored, restless youngster on the story-journey of how it came to be that US women got their right to vote for the people who govern them.
Micaela Dawn presents the stories with economy and energy. It's a lovely story, told competently and aimed at its eight-and-up audience, represented by lovely artwork showing the selected scenes from the past and present in enough detail to make them interesting and without cramming too much visual stimulation into the frame with the words telling the story.
Here is a representative passage:
To my mind, the best marriage of medium to message and talent to task. I think our grand/daughters need to see and absorb this message so they will know what we are fighting for when we work to protect voting rights.
Good Girls Don’t Make History is an important graphic novel that amplifies the voices of female legends from 1840 to the present day.
Reliving moments from the lives of Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Sojourner Truth, Alice Paul, Ida B. Wells, and Susan B. Anthony, these inspiring stories are boldly told from one of the most formative eras in women’s history—the fight for the vote in the United States.
The tale begins at a modern-day polling station in California with a mother and daughter voting together, then flashes back 180 years to the World Anti-Slavery Convention where the women's movement got its legendary start.
The twists and turns take readers across the country and through time, illuminating parallels between epic battles for liberty in the past and similar struggles for justice today.
A powerful and important examination of some key figures in the ongoing fight for equality, Good Girls Don’t Make History’s accounts of bravery, perseverance and courage are truly inspiring for readers of any age.
I RECEIVED A DRC FROM THE PUBLISHER VIA EDELWEISS+. THANK YOU.
My Review: "It was we, the people; not we, the white male citizens; nor yet we, the male citizens; but we, the whole people, who formed the union...men, their rights and nothing more; women, their rights and nothing less."
Susan B. Anthony
What better way to start a story about why voting matters, what it cost to extend the vote to women, and the long, long struggle of slightly more than half of Humanity to get a bare minimum of representation at the tables where the powerful decide how far they can shove the weak without reigniting 1789's fires.
What makes a good graphic novel? A novel, in its essence, is meant to take the reader on a deep and careful examination of some emotional state, physical event, or social reality. What makes a graphic story successful is the way that novel is told: one can't readily imagine a visual take on Gravity's Rainbow, or if you can, do share how it would work. Some interior stories aren't necessarily good as artwork. This story...a mother takes her tween daughter with her to vote, encounters a long, long wait, and takes the bored, restless youngster on the story-journey of how it came to be that US women got their right to vote for the people who govern them.
Micaela Dawn presents the stories with economy and energy. It's a lovely story, told competently and aimed at its eight-and-up audience, represented by lovely artwork showing the selected scenes from the past and present in enough detail to make them interesting and without cramming too much visual stimulation into the frame with the words telling the story.
Here is a representative passage:
To my mind, the best marriage of medium to message and talent to task. I think our grand/daughters need to see and absorb this message so they will know what we are fighting for when we work to protect voting rights.
August 31, 2021
The title Good Girls Don't Make History was inspired by Pulitzer Prize-winning historian Laurel Thatcher Ulrich who wrote that "well-behaved women seldom make history" and comes from her 1976 article on Puritan funeral services despite having been attributed to many different people in the past. The statement and often-quoted phrase speaks to the prevailing and chronic way in which women frequently fail to receive proper attribution or credit for their work and contributions. Too often female lives, points of view and accomplishments have been excluded from history altogether.
This graphic novel was created as many extraordinary women, as well as men, have been sidelined for far too long in the American school system. It strives to give its readers a wide-ranging overview of the diverse men and women who fought ardently for women's liberty and the use of the illustrated format makes this a much more vibrant, engaging and accessible read. The systematic abuse, disrespect and imprisonment of women during their campaign to win the right to vote is an embarrassment to history and a badge of honour to those who bravely fought for what is right.
The book proudly shares the stories of 70 years of socially and economically diverse women who had one clear goal: to achieve the right to vote. As we celebrate the first female Vice President of the United States, Kamala Harris, it is important to acknowledge the decades of persistent and doggedly determined female leaders who paved the way to this historic moment. An informative, empowering and fascinating read from start to finish. Full of people who should be celebrated a lot more than they actually are. Highly recommended.
This graphic novel was created as many extraordinary women, as well as men, have been sidelined for far too long in the American school system. It strives to give its readers a wide-ranging overview of the diverse men and women who fought ardently for women's liberty and the use of the illustrated format makes this a much more vibrant, engaging and accessible read. The systematic abuse, disrespect and imprisonment of women during their campaign to win the right to vote is an embarrassment to history and a badge of honour to those who bravely fought for what is right.
The book proudly shares the stories of 70 years of socially and economically diverse women who had one clear goal: to achieve the right to vote. As we celebrate the first female Vice President of the United States, Kamala Harris, it is important to acknowledge the decades of persistent and doggedly determined female leaders who paved the way to this historic moment. An informative, empowering and fascinating read from start to finish. Full of people who should be celebrated a lot more than they actually are. Highly recommended.
September 6, 2021
The E-Arc Good Girls Don’t Make History was kindly provided by Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. This has not altered my opinion of the book.
This was fantastic! What a wonderful way to tell such an important, and still fresh, part of our history. The graphic novel format lifts this story up and makes it easier and a little more fun to read, imo. I learned a lot more about the suffrage movement through this graphic novel, and it made me even more determined to make sure I never take my right to vote for granted. I think this is a great starting place for reading more about the fight for equality and for the right to vote, and it definitely motivated me to read more on the subject. (An important thing to note is that this book has an American audience in mind, and deals with the fight for women's right to vote only in the US.)
If you are in any way interested in the suffrage movement, the ongoing fight for equality, feminism, or just reading more nonfiction, then I highly recommend getting this graphic novel!
This was fantastic! What a wonderful way to tell such an important, and still fresh, part of our history. The graphic novel format lifts this story up and makes it easier and a little more fun to read, imo. I learned a lot more about the suffrage movement through this graphic novel, and it made me even more determined to make sure I never take my right to vote for granted. I think this is a great starting place for reading more about the fight for equality and for the right to vote, and it definitely motivated me to read more on the subject. (An important thing to note is that this book has an American audience in mind, and deals with the fight for women's right to vote only in the US.)
If you are in any way interested in the suffrage movement, the ongoing fight for equality, feminism, or just reading more nonfiction, then I highly recommend getting this graphic novel!
September 12, 2021
I have received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review
Good Girls Don't Make History is a very quick and informative read. I liked going back and forth through the past and present throughout this. Mostly because we got to see the women, we all learned about in History classes, raising their voices and wanting to be heard. The battle for equal rights was never easy and it's frustrating that women's rights are in trouble once again.
With the fight never dying from the people determined to make sure equality becomes a real thing and not an unreachable dream. I feel like there will never be enough information that people can provide when it comes to this fight. Each day something new is said or done and it makes the world think.
In the end, I just hope more voices are heard and more books are made and read that revolve around these fights. Whether it's more graphic novels or an actual novel. Words are powerful. Voices can be loud and get louder.
Continue the fight to make the world a much better place for everyone.
"It was we, the people; not we, the white male citizens; nor yet we, the male citizens; but we, the whole people, who formed the Union... Men, their rights, and nothing more; women, their rights, and nothing less."
- Susan B. Anthony
Good Girls Don't Make History is a very quick and informative read. I liked going back and forth through the past and present throughout this. Mostly because we got to see the women, we all learned about in History classes, raising their voices and wanting to be heard. The battle for equal rights was never easy and it's frustrating that women's rights are in trouble once again.
With the fight never dying from the people determined to make sure equality becomes a real thing and not an unreachable dream. I feel like there will never be enough information that people can provide when it comes to this fight. Each day something new is said or done and it makes the world think.
In the end, I just hope more voices are heard and more books are made and read that revolve around these fights. Whether it's more graphic novels or an actual novel. Words are powerful. Voices can be loud and get louder.
Continue the fight to make the world a much better place for everyone.
January 4, 2023
Well done graphic novel showing the history of the suffrage movement in the United States. Beginning with Elizabeth Cady Stanton in 1840 to the march on Washington in 1913 and continuing forward till women are given the right to vote. I like that the art looks like the women. I can recognize Alice Paul, Inez Milholland and others. I like the modern moments that are included making the history a teaching moment for younger generations. I’ve read about many of these same women in The Women’s March by Jennifer Chiaverini (Jan 2021). But this covers the history well including the fact that it was easier to get black men voting rights before women. And although black women are included in the movements they weren’t universally accepted. I can easily see this being welcome on the shelves in libraries in middle and high school. And it was is an educational to me as an adult reader as well. This was published in Aug 2021. I'm not sure why it is still available on NG but thank you to Quarto Publishing Group - Wide Eyed Editions for the temporary ARC.
August 13, 2021
" For every woman who will get the right to vote, from this day on. may she know what sacrifices were made to get it and what power she had because of it."
Thank you to netgalley for providing me with a arc of this book.
This book was very inspiring and i liked it . It follows women during the 1900s and their fight for the right to vote. it taught me alot about the history of the US women's rights movement and it was a very fast and informing read.
Thank you to netgalley for providing me with a arc of this book.
This book was very inspiring and i liked it . It follows women during the 1900s and their fight for the right to vote. it taught me alot about the history of the US women's rights movement and it was a very fast and informing read.
March 27, 2022
This was a different sort of pick for my non-fiction book club. Previously I have stayed away from graphic novels because some of the panels were so jumbled, I had a very difficult time. This book was very easy to follow and gave me more background into the suffrage movement and how women still have to deal with some voting issues.
The illustrations and text were just right and easy to follow. I highly recommend this to all age groups.
The illustrations and text were just right and easy to follow. I highly recommend this to all age groups.
September 14, 2021
Well done graphic novel that goes over the U.S. Women's suffrage movement from Seneca Falls to the present.
I was hoping it wouldn't be too white washed, because the white women are usually credited with the movement. But because it was told from the prospective of the past as well as the present, we do get comments from the present day women about how screwed up and racist the movement was. The example given, which I have heard about before, was that during the March on Washington, just before Wilson was inaugurated, that Ida B. Wells, who was Black, was asked to march at the back of the march by some of the white organizers. She refused.
Good, complete story. Highly recommend it.
Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review.
I was hoping it wouldn't be too white washed, because the white women are usually credited with the movement. But because it was told from the prospective of the past as well as the present, we do get comments from the present day women about how screwed up and racist the movement was. The example given, which I have heard about before, was that during the March on Washington, just before Wilson was inaugurated, that Ida B. Wells, who was Black, was asked to march at the back of the march by some of the white organizers. She refused.
Good, complete story. Highly recommend it.
Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review.
August 13, 2021
While I was visiting upstate New York earlier this summer, I spent a day at the Women’s Rights National Historical Park in Seneca Falls. It was powerful to experience the museum there, and visit the houses and places where Americans met and fostered a movement to win women the vote. What I appreciated most were the words of women long gone: women who believed with their hearts and backed up with their actions that change and progress were necessary, inevitable, and good. It was a pleasure to continue to think about those extraordinary women (and many more!) by reading Good Girls Don't Make History, a new graphic novel for young adults written by Elizabeth Kiehner, Kara Coyle, and Keith Olwell, and illustrated by Michaela Dawn and Mary Sanchez.
Good Girls Don’t Make History isn’t quite nonfiction, but it reads like it. I say it isn’t, because it takes some creative license with the conversations historical figures may have had with each other, and it also includes some original characters for the sake of the narrative – to intro specific stories and vignettes. What it is: a collection of the experiences of influential women in the women’s suffrage movement. The book attempts to illustrate most of the important events from a history often excluded from mainstream U.S. History narratives. It does this by taking readers through a rough timeline of events in the suffrage movement, and by introducing many of the historical figures involved. The effect is a skim: for fully-fleshed out history and context (and to truly “meet” the characters and know all of their aims and dreams, and to read them in their own words), most readers will want to do additional research.
According to the forward, the team behind Good Girls Don’t Make History hopes to present women’s history that is glossed over in textbooks in an accessible, easily digestible format. The goal is to educate, to reveal hidden (or forgotten, or ignored) history, and to reach those who might not dive any deeper than their high school assignments for information about America’s past. While that is admirable, the book itself suffers from a lack of cohesive storytelling and from trying to pack too much history into a short volume. The sheer number of names, organizations, dates, and competing interests are confusing, even to someone with prior knowledge of the events covered.
One thing I appreciated about this graphic novel was that it complicated the view of suffragettes as heroes focused on equality for all. The book tells the story of Black women who were excluded from national suffrage organizations and points out that they did their own organizing as a result. Good Girls Don’t Make History also makes clear that many women of color did not receive the vote until many years after the passage of the 19th Amendment. This may, even in 2021, still be news to a lot of people.
Let’s talk about art! It was constructed digitally, with a watercolor-like look, in a palette of blues, reds, and yellows. My favorite page spreads were those with a short quote from an important woman in history one page, and a portrait of that woman on the facing page. I also appreciated the spreads with illustrated renderings of actual newspaper headlines from important dates and events related to woman’s suffrage. I would have liked to see a little more emotion in the art – the closeups of women’s facial expressions could have told more of the story instead of relying completely on the text or dialogue.
In all, Good Girls Don’t Make History is an introductory text that covers the timeline of an important history. While I didn’t find it compelling, I think it could spark conversation, especially if included in a library alongside graphic novels like Mikki Kendall’s Amazons, Abolitionists, and Activists.
Recommended for: middle and high school libraries and classroom libraries, and those who may not know where to begin reading about the women’s suffrage movement.
Good Girls Don’t Make History isn’t quite nonfiction, but it reads like it. I say it isn’t, because it takes some creative license with the conversations historical figures may have had with each other, and it also includes some original characters for the sake of the narrative – to intro specific stories and vignettes. What it is: a collection of the experiences of influential women in the women’s suffrage movement. The book attempts to illustrate most of the important events from a history often excluded from mainstream U.S. History narratives. It does this by taking readers through a rough timeline of events in the suffrage movement, and by introducing many of the historical figures involved. The effect is a skim: for fully-fleshed out history and context (and to truly “meet” the characters and know all of their aims and dreams, and to read them in their own words), most readers will want to do additional research.
According to the forward, the team behind Good Girls Don’t Make History hopes to present women’s history that is glossed over in textbooks in an accessible, easily digestible format. The goal is to educate, to reveal hidden (or forgotten, or ignored) history, and to reach those who might not dive any deeper than their high school assignments for information about America’s past. While that is admirable, the book itself suffers from a lack of cohesive storytelling and from trying to pack too much history into a short volume. The sheer number of names, organizations, dates, and competing interests are confusing, even to someone with prior knowledge of the events covered.
One thing I appreciated about this graphic novel was that it complicated the view of suffragettes as heroes focused on equality for all. The book tells the story of Black women who were excluded from national suffrage organizations and points out that they did their own organizing as a result. Good Girls Don’t Make History also makes clear that many women of color did not receive the vote until many years after the passage of the 19th Amendment. This may, even in 2021, still be news to a lot of people.
Let’s talk about art! It was constructed digitally, with a watercolor-like look, in a palette of blues, reds, and yellows. My favorite page spreads were those with a short quote from an important woman in history one page, and a portrait of that woman on the facing page. I also appreciated the spreads with illustrated renderings of actual newspaper headlines from important dates and events related to woman’s suffrage. I would have liked to see a little more emotion in the art – the closeups of women’s facial expressions could have told more of the story instead of relying completely on the text or dialogue.
In all, Good Girls Don’t Make History is an introductory text that covers the timeline of an important history. While I didn’t find it compelling, I think it could spark conversation, especially if included in a library alongside graphic novels like Mikki Kendall’s Amazons, Abolitionists, and Activists.
Recommended for: middle and high school libraries and classroom libraries, and those who may not know where to begin reading about the women’s suffrage movement.
January 16, 2023
Well-behaved women seldom make history, or so the saying goes: and indeed, Good Girls Don't Make History takes us through the work of some of the women who refused to settle for "good," because they had something more meaningful in mind—full citizens who had the right to vote.
The illustrations are wonderful here, something like (I say without any kind of art background) watercolor with sharply defined shapes. I particularly liked the full-page illustrations of some of the women highlighted in the book (and wished that every major player had been given a full-page illustration!), as well as the way the present-day sections, scattered throughout, made subtle use of the diversity of the locales in which those sections take place. A girl in Marin County, California, waiting in a voting line with her mother will be surrounded by a different array of people than a girl waiting in Gwinnett County, Georgia—and that's reflected in the illustrations.
I had so many US history classes growing up, and of course some of these names and images are familiar to me, but many of them are also not—I had no idea, for example, that Native Americans didn't get the right to citizenship (and thus to vote) until 1924 (and that many states still found ways to keep them from voting), or just how long it took for many Black women to be able to vote. The latter in particular is not a surprise, but I'm left with the distinct impression that my history lessons glossed over some major facts. To that end, while I'm thrilled that the book makes a point to highlight the roles of Black women in particular during the fight for women's suffrage (and also makes a point to call out white suffragists who wanted suffrage only for white women), I wish it had taken an extra ten or twenty pages to cover Black women's suffrage after the 19th amendment.
Altogether, though, this is extremely timely and will make a valuable addition to school libraries. I hope this team of writers/illustrators/etc. continue with this sort of work on further topics.
Thanks to the author and publisher for providing a free review copy through NetGalley.
The illustrations are wonderful here, something like (I say without any kind of art background) watercolor with sharply defined shapes. I particularly liked the full-page illustrations of some of the women highlighted in the book (and wished that every major player had been given a full-page illustration!), as well as the way the present-day sections, scattered throughout, made subtle use of the diversity of the locales in which those sections take place. A girl in Marin County, California, waiting in a voting line with her mother will be surrounded by a different array of people than a girl waiting in Gwinnett County, Georgia—and that's reflected in the illustrations.
I had so many US history classes growing up, and of course some of these names and images are familiar to me, but many of them are also not—I had no idea, for example, that Native Americans didn't get the right to citizenship (and thus to vote) until 1924 (and that many states still found ways to keep them from voting), or just how long it took for many Black women to be able to vote. The latter in particular is not a surprise, but I'm left with the distinct impression that my history lessons glossed over some major facts. To that end, while I'm thrilled that the book makes a point to highlight the roles of Black women in particular during the fight for women's suffrage (and also makes a point to call out white suffragists who wanted suffrage only for white women), I wish it had taken an extra ten or twenty pages to cover Black women's suffrage after the 19th amendment.
Altogether, though, this is extremely timely and will make a valuable addition to school libraries. I hope this team of writers/illustrators/etc. continue with this sort of work on further topics.
Thanks to the author and publisher for providing a free review copy through NetGalley.
July 18, 2021
How I read this: Free ebook copy received through Edelweiss
This book was gorgeous. I can't tell you how amazing the art and coloring is. It's absolutely stunning. Since I had an ebook review copy, only half the book had art (the rest was a draft because it's an early review copy), and I find myself wanting to see the final result so much, because it is just such a gorgeous book.
That said, I had no idea the fight for women's suffrage took so long. I remember reading the history as a child, but this book explores the ups and downs (more of the downs on the way, it seems) than the book I read as a child did. I also can't believe how late women's rights to vote came to the US as well. Even my country had it earlier, and we're supposed to be 'backwards'. We had it on the same year we declared independence from the Tzar (1917). America sure took their sweet time. And more than that, I didn't know that women were still technically not in the constitution back in 2020. Absolutely unbelievable.
This book doesn't have much of a plot, it's very journalistic and rather jumpy, only focuses on the main events, who said what, snapshots of things happening, and the main leaders. So it gives a good timeline, but it doesn't really tell a story, or any individual stories. Nevertheless, it is informative and stays on the topic very well, and the art is UNBELIEVABLE. Also, it's a very important subject, so I can't see myself giving it any less than 5 stars. Definitely buy it and put it on your coffee table. Or give it as a gift to your teenage daughter, niece or friend's child.
I thank the publisher for giving me a free copy of the ebook in exchange to my honest review. This has not affected my opinion.
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This book was gorgeous. I can't tell you how amazing the art and coloring is. It's absolutely stunning. Since I had an ebook review copy, only half the book had art (the rest was a draft because it's an early review copy), and I find myself wanting to see the final result so much, because it is just such a gorgeous book.
That said, I had no idea the fight for women's suffrage took so long. I remember reading the history as a child, but this book explores the ups and downs (more of the downs on the way, it seems) than the book I read as a child did. I also can't believe how late women's rights to vote came to the US as well. Even my country had it earlier, and we're supposed to be 'backwards'. We had it on the same year we declared independence from the Tzar (1917). America sure took their sweet time. And more than that, I didn't know that women were still technically not in the constitution back in 2020. Absolutely unbelievable.
This book doesn't have much of a plot, it's very journalistic and rather jumpy, only focuses on the main events, who said what, snapshots of things happening, and the main leaders. So it gives a good timeline, but it doesn't really tell a story, or any individual stories. Nevertheless, it is informative and stays on the topic very well, and the art is UNBELIEVABLE. Also, it's a very important subject, so I can't see myself giving it any less than 5 stars. Definitely buy it and put it on your coffee table. Or give it as a gift to your teenage daughter, niece or friend's child.
I thank the publisher for giving me a free copy of the ebook in exchange to my honest review. This has not affected my opinion.
Book Blog | Bookstagram | Bookish Twitter
September 29, 2021
Good Girls Don't Make History is a graphic novel written by Elizabeth Kiehner and Kara Coyle and illustrated by Micaela Dawn and Mary Sanche. It highlights the oft-told dramatic moments in the history of women's suffrage activism, from the 1840s through the 1920 ratification of the 19th Amendment, prohibiting sex-based voting discrimination.
In one fictional vignette of this nonfiction graphic novel, a modern-day girl's complaint about the length of a voting line results in her mother replying that it took nearly one hundred years to get this right.
The narrative then flashes back to the past and centers Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Lucretia Mott organizing the Seneca Falls Convention in 1848, the founding meeting of the women’s rights movement in the United States.
Good Girls Don't Make History is written and constructed rather well. The narrative focuses largely on well-known white women such as Susan B. Anthony, Victoria Woodhull, Inez Milholland, and Alice Paul, as well as several portraits of Black women's suffrage activists, such as Frances Ellen Watkins Harper, Sojourner Truth, and Ida B. Wells.
Luscious illustrations by Dawn present a rich range of expressions and dynamic angles. Unfortunately, the book upholds a tired narrative of white women's suffrage activism, failing to point out the large degree of racism and white supremacy present within the movement, and eliding the many significant contributions of Black women, such as Ida B. Wells' founding of the Alpha Suffrage Club.
All in all, Good Girls Don't Make History is a wonderful account of bravery, perseverance, and courage that is truly inspiring.
In one fictional vignette of this nonfiction graphic novel, a modern-day girl's complaint about the length of a voting line results in her mother replying that it took nearly one hundred years to get this right.
The narrative then flashes back to the past and centers Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Lucretia Mott organizing the Seneca Falls Convention in 1848, the founding meeting of the women’s rights movement in the United States.
Good Girls Don't Make History is written and constructed rather well. The narrative focuses largely on well-known white women such as Susan B. Anthony, Victoria Woodhull, Inez Milholland, and Alice Paul, as well as several portraits of Black women's suffrage activists, such as Frances Ellen Watkins Harper, Sojourner Truth, and Ida B. Wells.
Luscious illustrations by Dawn present a rich range of expressions and dynamic angles. Unfortunately, the book upholds a tired narrative of white women's suffrage activism, failing to point out the large degree of racism and white supremacy present within the movement, and eliding the many significant contributions of Black women, such as Ida B. Wells' founding of the Alpha Suffrage Club.
All in all, Good Girls Don't Make History is a wonderful account of bravery, perseverance, and courage that is truly inspiring.
September 8, 2021
Huge thanks to Quarto Publishing Group @quartobooksuk, Wide Eye Editions and Netgalley @netgalley for this e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.
First of all, I want to say that I am a huge advocate of using graphic novels for educational purposes. I think graphic novels are sadly under used in the educational system and they absolutely shouldn't be. This book is one of them that should 100% be used to educate future generations. This novel follows the lives and paths of the women who fought in the United States Women's Suffrage Movement. These stories are perfectly written. The author did an awesome job of sticking to the facts while still explaining the emotional journeys of each one of the "characters." The art is beautiful and plays perfect homage to the story being explained.
Overall I give this story five stars. This books advocates for the women who fought so hard for the freedoms we women now enjoy. This story is absolutely necessary and couldn't have come at a more perfect time. Women are absolutely under attack in this country and we need these type of inspiring stories to fight for the rights we deserve. I've already bought this for my home library and I absolutely recommend you do as well. Read this! Read this! Read this!
First of all, I want to say that I am a huge advocate of using graphic novels for educational purposes. I think graphic novels are sadly under used in the educational system and they absolutely shouldn't be. This book is one of them that should 100% be used to educate future generations. This novel follows the lives and paths of the women who fought in the United States Women's Suffrage Movement. These stories are perfectly written. The author did an awesome job of sticking to the facts while still explaining the emotional journeys of each one of the "characters." The art is beautiful and plays perfect homage to the story being explained.
Overall I give this story five stars. This books advocates for the women who fought so hard for the freedoms we women now enjoy. This story is absolutely necessary and couldn't have come at a more perfect time. Women are absolutely under attack in this country and we need these type of inspiring stories to fight for the rights we deserve. I've already bought this for my home library and I absolutely recommend you do as well. Read this! Read this! Read this!
January 24, 2023
3.5
As an educational non-fiction graphic novel about the US women's rights movement, this book is a five (5) stars read. However, as a graphic novel that Estíbaliz would enjoy and devour, three (3) stars suffice.
The historic achievement retold here is grandiose and compelling, but the narrative is choppy at times, and the conversations are not always true to the fact. The art didn't really catch my eye that much, as it felt to me pretty didactic and static (boring in a way).
Over all, interesting and informative, but not mesmerizing.
As an educational non-fiction graphic novel about the US women's rights movement, this book is a five (5) stars read. However, as a graphic novel that Estíbaliz would enjoy and devour, three (3) stars suffice.
The historic achievement retold here is grandiose and compelling, but the narrative is choppy at times, and the conversations are not always true to the fact. The art didn't really catch my eye that much, as it felt to me pretty didactic and static (boring in a way).
Over all, interesting and informative, but not mesmerizing.
September 5, 2021
The art in here is absolutely beautiful! I enjoyed this graphic novel intended to illustrate gaps in education about the long journey that women's suffrage has and continues to undergo, but I will say that I think it is a little too US centric. Though it is specifically targeting women's suffrage in the US, and that is valid as a project, it does still rely on a US based education to try and fill in gaps, but foreign readers looking to learn some of the history may get lost really easily.
July 26, 2021
Arc provided by NetGalley.
Really moving graphic novel of women’s suffrage in the United States—also with a focus on Black and Indigenous women’s stories. The art is truly stunning, and I cried a few times actually. It’s wonderfully done, flashing between modern day discussions and the historic fight it took to get there. And I learned a fair few things too, which is what it’s all for really. Recommend!
Really moving graphic novel of women’s suffrage in the United States—also with a focus on Black and Indigenous women’s stories. The art is truly stunning, and I cried a few times actually. It’s wonderfully done, flashing between modern day discussions and the historic fight it took to get there. And I learned a fair few things too, which is what it’s all for really. Recommend!
March 29, 2025
I didn't love this graphic nonfiction about the U.S. women's suffrage movement. It gives snippets of dialogue between major suffrage leaders with very little context or personality. The only way it works to give insight into this really important bit of history is if you then look up each woman on your own. In my opinion, at least. The illustrations are well done.
March 24, 2022
I learned a lot from this book. A lot that I had taken for granted as a white female.
October 4, 2021
For transparency, I was given details about this book when it was still early in its planning stages. I backed the Kickstarter, and I was given an advanced look of some of the pages before it went to print.
For more than 10 years, I have taught American women's history, which has always included an academic journey through the Suffrage Movement. Good Girls... is a much-needed and appreciated addition to the bank of resources I have to help students understand the fraught and often violent circumstances that led to women's suffrage. It's a long and complex history, which has often been distilled to a sprinkling of prominent white women.
The graphic novel, beautifully illustrated by Micaela Dawn and Mary Sanche, begins in a contemporary time. A mother and daughter (Ava) wait in a long line in order for the mother to cast a ballot. While Ava, somewhat petulantly, bemoans waiting, her mother insists that this is not waiting but doing; it's democracy in action. The reader swiftly is transported to 1840 and the World Anti-Slavery Convention, leading us to feel that Ava's mother is telling the story of how it all began.
Throughout the book, we bounce between the timelines, making present the events of the past. In the contemporary timeline, other women beyond Ava and her mother discuss suffrage and the institutional impediments that continue to restrict voting rights in the United States of America. The contemporary passages feature diverse and clearly intersectional characters.
The historic sections are not quite as encompassing. Kiehner and Coyle include prominent African Americans involved in the movement: Frederick Douglass, Sojourner Truth, Francis Watkins Harper, Ida B. Wells-Barnett, Bettiola Heloise Fortson, Mary E. Jackson, Mary Church Terrell, and Juno Frankie Pierce. Their visibility here is important, and it's clear that these women, and thousands of others like them, were excluded from the major suffrage organizations and events because of racism.
While I appreciate that there are only so many pages available, I am missing the stories of the Chicana women, like Aurora Lucero and Nina Otero-Warren, who campaigned all over the American West for a national amendment and the necessity of Spanish bilingualism in suffrage-related campaign materials. I am missing the stories of the garment workers, many of them immigrants or first generation Americans, who joined the suffrage movement strategically to create labor laws that would ensure safe working conditions - especially important after the public tragedy of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire. I am missing the voices of Indigenous women, like Marie Louise Bottineau Baldwin and Zitkala-Sa, who participated in suffrage events while they advocated broadly for Indigenous Rights. (It is important for me to note that there is explicit mention of how early suffragists like Mott learned about Haudenosaunee communities and their egalitarian political infrastructures.)
I know there are too many stories to tell, and many of them don't support the cohesive storyline that's been developed over time. I think Good Girls... is a step in a better, more inclusive direction. The authors and illustrators have been thoughtful and careful in their representations. Nothing is ever painted in rose-colors for the sake of hiding how messy and sometimes destructive the movement was. The conversations between the sections about the past and those in the now are so important; the work is never done. And, those pages depicting contemporary public protests for women's rights make it clear that women of all ages can and should participate in social resistance when injustice persists.
I look forward to using this book in my women's studies classes. It will work wonderfully next to the primary source texts written by many of the women mentioned in the book. I can fill in the gaps for other stories while students get a broad overview of nearly 100 years of history. It'll work great next to something like Katja von Garnier's film Iron Jawed Angels, which focuses on the last 20 years of the movement.
I also will be gifting copies of this to my scholar friends who have interests in women's history and/or graphic novels. The format of the book is so accessible, the illustrations are beautiful, and the prose is clear and purposeful. It's appropriate for children who are learning about civics (I recall learning about Lucretia Mott in 4th grade) and can be an important resource for high schoolers who may feel anxious or apathetic about voting.
In short, I think Good Girls Don't Make History is a fantastic book, and I look forward to sharing it with my students and my friends.
For more than 10 years, I have taught American women's history, which has always included an academic journey through the Suffrage Movement. Good Girls... is a much-needed and appreciated addition to the bank of resources I have to help students understand the fraught and often violent circumstances that led to women's suffrage. It's a long and complex history, which has often been distilled to a sprinkling of prominent white women.
The graphic novel, beautifully illustrated by Micaela Dawn and Mary Sanche, begins in a contemporary time. A mother and daughter (Ava) wait in a long line in order for the mother to cast a ballot. While Ava, somewhat petulantly, bemoans waiting, her mother insists that this is not waiting but doing; it's democracy in action. The reader swiftly is transported to 1840 and the World Anti-Slavery Convention, leading us to feel that Ava's mother is telling the story of how it all began.
Throughout the book, we bounce between the timelines, making present the events of the past. In the contemporary timeline, other women beyond Ava and her mother discuss suffrage and the institutional impediments that continue to restrict voting rights in the United States of America. The contemporary passages feature diverse and clearly intersectional characters.
The historic sections are not quite as encompassing. Kiehner and Coyle include prominent African Americans involved in the movement: Frederick Douglass, Sojourner Truth, Francis Watkins Harper, Ida B. Wells-Barnett, Bettiola Heloise Fortson, Mary E. Jackson, Mary Church Terrell, and Juno Frankie Pierce. Their visibility here is important, and it's clear that these women, and thousands of others like them, were excluded from the major suffrage organizations and events because of racism.
While I appreciate that there are only so many pages available, I am missing the stories of the Chicana women, like Aurora Lucero and Nina Otero-Warren, who campaigned all over the American West for a national amendment and the necessity of Spanish bilingualism in suffrage-related campaign materials. I am missing the stories of the garment workers, many of them immigrants or first generation Americans, who joined the suffrage movement strategically to create labor laws that would ensure safe working conditions - especially important after the public tragedy of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire. I am missing the voices of Indigenous women, like Marie Louise Bottineau Baldwin and Zitkala-Sa, who participated in suffrage events while they advocated broadly for Indigenous Rights. (It is important for me to note that there is explicit mention of how early suffragists like Mott learned about Haudenosaunee communities and their egalitarian political infrastructures.)
I know there are too many stories to tell, and many of them don't support the cohesive storyline that's been developed over time. I think Good Girls... is a step in a better, more inclusive direction. The authors and illustrators have been thoughtful and careful in their representations. Nothing is ever painted in rose-colors for the sake of hiding how messy and sometimes destructive the movement was. The conversations between the sections about the past and those in the now are so important; the work is never done. And, those pages depicting contemporary public protests for women's rights make it clear that women of all ages can and should participate in social resistance when injustice persists.
I look forward to using this book in my women's studies classes. It will work wonderfully next to the primary source texts written by many of the women mentioned in the book. I can fill in the gaps for other stories while students get a broad overview of nearly 100 years of history. It'll work great next to something like Katja von Garnier's film Iron Jawed Angels, which focuses on the last 20 years of the movement.
I also will be gifting copies of this to my scholar friends who have interests in women's history and/or graphic novels. The format of the book is so accessible, the illustrations are beautiful, and the prose is clear and purposeful. It's appropriate for children who are learning about civics (I recall learning about Lucretia Mott in 4th grade) and can be an important resource for high schoolers who may feel anxious or apathetic about voting.
In short, I think Good Girls Don't Make History is a fantastic book, and I look forward to sharing it with my students and my friends.
May 28, 2021
I obtained a DRC from Edelweiss+
"Woman, like the Black man, will never be taken by her brother and lifted to a position. What she desires, she must fight for."
Good Girls Don't Make History is a historical comic highlighting the history of women and Black Americans in their respective fights for their inalienable rights. The entire graphic novel is written from an intersectional perspective, with phenomenal illustrations, and memorable quotes from history. I have never before seen history framed in a medium such as this, but my goodness is it incredible.
Good Girls Don't Make History jumps between the present and the past, showing women exercising their right to vote in 2020 while also jumping back to show women fighting for their right to vote. The modern setting being on November 2nd, 2020 is poignant, knowing the tumultuous four years that preceded the historic election as well as what came after. Many of the illustrations in Good Girls Don't Make History are yet unfinished, but from what is completed, it is clear so much love and talent has gone into creating this.
It would not at all be surprising to me if we saw this novel popping up in American schools shortly after it has been published. I look forward to reading this again with a physical copy in my hands!
"Woman, like the Black man, will never be taken by her brother and lifted to a position. What she desires, she must fight for."
Good Girls Don't Make History is a historical comic highlighting the history of women and Black Americans in their respective fights for their inalienable rights. The entire graphic novel is written from an intersectional perspective, with phenomenal illustrations, and memorable quotes from history. I have never before seen history framed in a medium such as this, but my goodness is it incredible.
Good Girls Don't Make History jumps between the present and the past, showing women exercising their right to vote in 2020 while also jumping back to show women fighting for their right to vote. The modern setting being on November 2nd, 2020 is poignant, knowing the tumultuous four years that preceded the historic election as well as what came after. Many of the illustrations in Good Girls Don't Make History are yet unfinished, but from what is completed, it is clear so much love and talent has gone into creating this.
It would not at all be surprising to me if we saw this novel popping up in American schools shortly after it has been published. I look forward to reading this again with a physical copy in my hands!
March 29, 2023
Every star I have that I can give I will give to this. I cried my way through it and loved every minute of it.
February 13, 2022
As a middle school teacher I am all too aware of the fact that many of today’s youth want to read graphic novels instead of paragraph and chapter based books. I applaud the topic of the suffrage movement in the USA for a book for youth. I love graphic novels and nonfiction books that are done well. This is a unique book regarding the subject material and the graphic format.
However, first you need to know that this is mixed with historical fiction because some of the people and their conversations are made up. Secondly this is a heavy text graphic novel, similar to the book RGB. Ideally, in a graphic type book, the illustrations are used to convey some of the meaning or emotion in the story. With a high quality graphic format book, the meaning is a combination of graphically conveyed meaning to text with the two working together. In this book, every box has text and often the illustration doesn’t add much to the content and understanding of the material. Secondly, even in the case of an injury and a person being unconscious, there is hardly any depiction in the illustration. The faces seem creepy to me and something is wrong with not enough emotion being conveyed in the facial expressions. It heavily relies on the eyebrow shape to convey emotion. The eyes all look strange and wrong. I can’t put my finger on why. This is digitally created art.
There is a focus on division between the people working toward the same cause. Not all white women were united and working with each other, this is stated, and the same is made clear for black and native American women. I know people are complex and imperfect. The same divisions occurred during the Civil Rights Movement with Hispanics not being included in black organizations working toward the same cause. (Why this happens, I do not know.)
I felt the writing was choppy, I could not engage with it. I attended a Suffrage Movement exhibit at The Constitution Museum in Philadelphia in 2021 which was engaging and interesting. As an adult who wants to know more about this not taught to me in public school or college topic I was disappointed in this book. With that said it is one of its kind at this point in time so it is a good starting point to include in libraries and school classroom libraries. I am torn between a 3 and 4 star review.
However, first you need to know that this is mixed with historical fiction because some of the people and their conversations are made up. Secondly this is a heavy text graphic novel, similar to the book RGB. Ideally, in a graphic type book, the illustrations are used to convey some of the meaning or emotion in the story. With a high quality graphic format book, the meaning is a combination of graphically conveyed meaning to text with the two working together. In this book, every box has text and often the illustration doesn’t add much to the content and understanding of the material. Secondly, even in the case of an injury and a person being unconscious, there is hardly any depiction in the illustration. The faces seem creepy to me and something is wrong with not enough emotion being conveyed in the facial expressions. It heavily relies on the eyebrow shape to convey emotion. The eyes all look strange and wrong. I can’t put my finger on why. This is digitally created art.
There is a focus on division between the people working toward the same cause. Not all white women were united and working with each other, this is stated, and the same is made clear for black and native American women. I know people are complex and imperfect. The same divisions occurred during the Civil Rights Movement with Hispanics not being included in black organizations working toward the same cause. (Why this happens, I do not know.)
I felt the writing was choppy, I could not engage with it. I attended a Suffrage Movement exhibit at The Constitution Museum in Philadelphia in 2021 which was engaging and interesting. As an adult who wants to know more about this not taught to me in public school or college topic I was disappointed in this book. With that said it is one of its kind at this point in time so it is a good starting point to include in libraries and school classroom libraries. I am torn between a 3 and 4 star review.
January 31, 2022
A great graphic novel with beautiful illustrations that depict many of the struggles American women have faced in order to obtain equal rights. The narrative was much more focused on the suffragettes in the late 1800s and early 1900s. It was also more focused on the white women championing the fight. There were inclusions of the roles some African American women took in helping obtain rights, but they seemed less central to the main plot that was being conveyed; the white women the narrative follows are all fairly interconnected, so the inclusion of black women seems almost tangential. The narrative also works to bring the history into the present by including different perspectives of women voting or protesting for equality, and how these women redirect the narrative back into the historical past. While it's a great way to move the history and narrative along, the modern women could have been swapped out with actual modern activists; if the fight for equal rights is still as big as the narrative implies, why leave the modern women as generic and nameless? Why not actually include female identifying individuals that are fighting for these rights? I understand that a graphic novel/book can only be so long, but if a narrative plans to tackle a 100+ year struggle in an entire nation, it should probably be storyboarded a little more and identify how best to tell the narrative of equal rights to include more than just a few historical figures; what narratives are missing, what identities are missing, which figures are missing, are any major movements missing, etc. I'd be interested in knowing how Latine, Indigenous, Polynesian, Trans, Non-binary, and Intersex female identifying individuals play into this narrative of fighting for equal rights and how 'good girls don't make history'.
August 22, 2021
*I received an eARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
5/5
Good Girls Don’t Make History by Elizabeth Kiehner and illustrated by Kara Coyle is a book every woman about to vote whether it be for the first time or the tenth time needs to read.
Yes it’s American history. Yes I am Canadian. Did I still get emotional and cry? Yes of course.
This book does a good job of giving you the most important facts and people and dates without too much sensory overload. The pacing is great for both the past and present scenes. I liked that they showed the current situation in America’s voting politics along with the history.
I actually learned a thing or two and was interested to learn about it. And that’s saying something since I barely paid attention during high school social studies. Just ask my teachers and friends, I was constantly asleep. Really. So for a book to keep me interested all the way about this topic is a big deal.
I think this book should be standard literature found at any high school in America and even Canada. This story is important. This fight is important.
Almost done I promise. Included inside are also the voices of black and indigenous women, and for that I am so thankful. It shows the reality of what WOC were facing alongside the white women. And spoiler alert, it was harder for WOC. Shocker, right?
Anyway please read this book no matter what gender you are, what nationality. It’s an important and interesting one. That we still need to learn from.
I even got a Jeopardy question right after reading this. And for that it’s getting 5 stars.
5/5
Good Girls Don’t Make History by Elizabeth Kiehner and illustrated by Kara Coyle is a book every woman about to vote whether it be for the first time or the tenth time needs to read.
Yes it’s American history. Yes I am Canadian. Did I still get emotional and cry? Yes of course.
This book does a good job of giving you the most important facts and people and dates without too much sensory overload. The pacing is great for both the past and present scenes. I liked that they showed the current situation in America’s voting politics along with the history.
I actually learned a thing or two and was interested to learn about it. And that’s saying something since I barely paid attention during high school social studies. Just ask my teachers and friends, I was constantly asleep. Really. So for a book to keep me interested all the way about this topic is a big deal.
I think this book should be standard literature found at any high school in America and even Canada. This story is important. This fight is important.
Almost done I promise. Included inside are also the voices of black and indigenous women, and for that I am so thankful. It shows the reality of what WOC were facing alongside the white women. And spoiler alert, it was harder for WOC. Shocker, right?
Anyway please read this book no matter what gender you are, what nationality. It’s an important and interesting one. That we still need to learn from.
I even got a Jeopardy question right after reading this. And for that it’s getting 5 stars.
August 6, 2021
There is so much to love about this book! The format of Good Girls Don't Make History is an engaging and vibrant graphic novel, interspersed with full-page highlights of important women in the women's suffrage movement (paired with a moving quote).
The graphic novel skips back and forth between present time and important events throughout the women's suffrage movement. I love this illustration format because it really highlights the emotions and keeps the narrative engaging. This book is a lot of pages but you could read it in one sitting.
I love the inclusion of the diverse young women in the present day coming to terms with that came before them for their right to vote as well as what is required of them to continue to fight for equal rights for all. It helps bring history to life.
That said, this book doesn't totally work as a rich historical background. Lots and lots of important names are dropped and it may feel hard to keep up if the reader isn't already familiar with them. This book works as a lovely and moving primer, though. I think kids who come across this will find it as a nice spark to look into the history in more depth.
I also love the important inclusion of Black and Indigenous women and the complex history of women's suffrage -- that many white women tried to keep the vote for only white women. It's layered, nuanced, and as I said engaging. It's a great way to make history accessible to teens.
***Note: I was given a review copy of this book by Quarto Kids. Opinions are my own.
The graphic novel skips back and forth between present time and important events throughout the women's suffrage movement. I love this illustration format because it really highlights the emotions and keeps the narrative engaging. This book is a lot of pages but you could read it in one sitting.
I love the inclusion of the diverse young women in the present day coming to terms with that came before them for their right to vote as well as what is required of them to continue to fight for equal rights for all. It helps bring history to life.
That said, this book doesn't totally work as a rich historical background. Lots and lots of important names are dropped and it may feel hard to keep up if the reader isn't already familiar with them. This book works as a lovely and moving primer, though. I think kids who come across this will find it as a nice spark to look into the history in more depth.
I also love the important inclusion of Black and Indigenous women and the complex history of women's suffrage -- that many white women tried to keep the vote for only white women. It's layered, nuanced, and as I said engaging. It's a great way to make history accessible to teens.
***Note: I was given a review copy of this book by Quarto Kids. Opinions are my own.
September 3, 2021
Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for sending me the e-ARC in exchange for an honest review!
Good Girls Don't Make History is a historical graphic novel that dives into the development of female rights and the first female vote in America. The story flips between the modern world where women are going to take their vote, and the famous females who worked hard to get us here when there wasn't a woman who had that choice. It also covers this struggle not only for white women, but also for black and native American who fought with greater struggle.
The narrative of this book had good things in mind and showed us why we should be so grateful for the progress women’s rights movements have made. I just struggled following the story. The flip in timeline wasn't the issue, that was actually something I really enjoyed. Getting to see how hard those historical women worked, and seeing girls now learn how important they are to history was really interesting. The issue was the lack of information for any of the historical women in question. As a non-American, I didn't completely understand who they were or what they came from.
As a graphic novel, the illustrations are gorgeous. They have this really pretty watercolour look that not only looks beautiful, but also helps convey the message the book is trying to show.
The fight for women’s rights still goes on. Especially today, in the light of what is happening in Afghanistan, we realize that the struggle is never over. Some battles have been won; there are many more yet to be fought.
My rating: 3.5 ⭐
Good Girls Don't Make History is a historical graphic novel that dives into the development of female rights and the first female vote in America. The story flips between the modern world where women are going to take their vote, and the famous females who worked hard to get us here when there wasn't a woman who had that choice. It also covers this struggle not only for white women, but also for black and native American who fought with greater struggle.
The narrative of this book had good things in mind and showed us why we should be so grateful for the progress women’s rights movements have made. I just struggled following the story. The flip in timeline wasn't the issue, that was actually something I really enjoyed. Getting to see how hard those historical women worked, and seeing girls now learn how important they are to history was really interesting. The issue was the lack of information for any of the historical women in question. As a non-American, I didn't completely understand who they were or what they came from.
As a graphic novel, the illustrations are gorgeous. They have this really pretty watercolour look that not only looks beautiful, but also helps convey the message the book is trying to show.
The fight for women’s rights still goes on. Especially today, in the light of what is happening in Afghanistan, we realize that the struggle is never over. Some battles have been won; there are many more yet to be fought.
My rating: 3.5 ⭐
November 28, 2022
GOOD GIRLS DON’T MAKE HISTORY by Elizabeth Kiehner, Kara Coyle, and Micaela Dawn is a powerful graphic novel about the suffrage movement in the US and how long it took for women to have the right to vote. The illustrations are gorgeous and the storyline moving and compelling. I do not take my right to vote for granted and exercise it every time there is an election. Women fought for this right; some sacrificed their lives for it. I honour these courageous women!
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July 26, 2021
I received a free eARC from the author/publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Good Girls Don't Make History is a graphic novel tracing the movement for equality and women's rights in the US from 1840 to the present day. It's told in two timelines: one at a modern polling booth, and a chronological journey through key moments in the suffrage movement.
I loved the illustrations in this graphic novel. It's all colour, and the style is sort of like watercolours. They're absolutely stunning.
I thought the content was well researched and presented. I think that it's easy to read, and would make an excellent first foray into the history of women's suffrage in the United States. While it does include a few moments with Black leaders of the movement, such as Sojourner Truth and Ida B. Wells, and it does make it clear that white women didn't want to include them, I felt like it was mostly focused on the various groups led by white women. As an Australian, I don't know enough about the women's suffrage movement in America to say whether this reflects the historical realities.
Still, this was an informative and entertaining read. I'd recommend it to people who are interested in the history of women's suffrage, particularly in the US; to those interested in feminism and civil rights movements; and general lovers of history. I think readers who enjoy non-fiction graphic novels would also enjoy this. It has similar subject matter to Amazons, Abolitionists, and Activists: A Graphic History of Women's Fight For Their Rights by Mikki Kendall, illustrated by A. D'Amico, so fans of that might also enjoy this.
Good Girls Don't Make History is a graphic novel tracing the movement for equality and women's rights in the US from 1840 to the present day. It's told in two timelines: one at a modern polling booth, and a chronological journey through key moments in the suffrage movement.
I loved the illustrations in this graphic novel. It's all colour, and the style is sort of like watercolours. They're absolutely stunning.
I thought the content was well researched and presented. I think that it's easy to read, and would make an excellent first foray into the history of women's suffrage in the United States. While it does include a few moments with Black leaders of the movement, such as Sojourner Truth and Ida B. Wells, and it does make it clear that white women didn't want to include them, I felt like it was mostly focused on the various groups led by white women. As an Australian, I don't know enough about the women's suffrage movement in America to say whether this reflects the historical realities.
Still, this was an informative and entertaining read. I'd recommend it to people who are interested in the history of women's suffrage, particularly in the US; to those interested in feminism and civil rights movements; and general lovers of history. I think readers who enjoy non-fiction graphic novels would also enjoy this. It has similar subject matter to Amazons, Abolitionists, and Activists: A Graphic History of Women's Fight For Their Rights by Mikki Kendall, illustrated by A. D'Amico, so fans of that might also enjoy this.
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