Outrageous Women of the Middle Ages

Outrageous Women

by Vicki León

Some were feisty and fiery. Others were cool and dangerous. All were incredibly courageous. Outrageous Women of The Middle Ages took on the challenge of their world--and didn't worry about ruffling a few feathers.
Among the outrageous women you'll meet are:
* Eleanor of Aquitaine--queen of France and later England, she led a group of women on the Second Crusade and created her own financial system
* Lady Murasaki Shikibu--besides being a wife and mother, she learned the "forbidden" language of Chinese and wrote the world's first novel
* Aud the Deep-Minded--a Viking wise woman and explorer who led her clan, grandchildren and all, on a risky voyage from Scotland to Iceland
* Hildegarde of Bingen--the German nun who, late in life, became a composer, a botanist, and founded convents
* Damia al-Kahina--a nomadic freedom fighter, skilled at peacemaking and war, who kept her North African homeland free

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Biography, Medieval, Feminism

130 pages, Paperback

First published March 4, 1998

About the author

A prolific author of non-fiction, author of numerous books for young and old, Vicki León delights in unearthing unusual facts, fresh anecdotes, and uncommon statistics to create her books on the natural world and the flip side of history. Her book have won rave reviews from a long list of media that includes People magazine. Publishers Weekly, the Los Angeles Times, Voice of America, and numerous NPR stations.

Her bestselling titles for 10 and up include A Raft of Sea Otters, The Secrets of Tidepools, and three titles in the Outrageous Women series.

Her popular titles for older readers include Uppity Women of Ancient Times, Uppity Women of the Renaissance, and the other Uppity titles and the travel title Scenic Highway One.

Reviews

[Whispering · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was nice to hear some women doing something good in society.
I was kind of surprised that early on in the years, like early on C.E, women weren't really thought of as less of woman
There was also a chapter about Khadijah which I thought was nice some (maybe most) Muslims think less of women?
Overall it was very informative.

[Angie · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fun, fast, and very digestible book about some seriously stand-out women of the Middle Ages that focuses on some history and lots of accomplishments and does not focus overly much on husbands or children.

[Crys · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good introduction. Interesting list of women, some I've never heard of. Clever side-note titles (such as "Salerno - the John Hopkins of its day" or "Is there a female doctor in the house?")

Checked this out of the library to find interesting tidbits of this time period that step beyond the textbook for my seniors. Definitely using this in my classroom.

[Peggymsu · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun read about real women in history who stepped outside the boundaries society placed on them.