Publisher: William Morrow
Published: July 27, 2021
Source: ARC Paperback via Giveaway win
Summary:
New York Times bestselling author Jennifer Chiaverini returns with The Women’s March, an enthralling historical novel of the woman’s suffrage movement inspired by three courageous women who bravely risked their lives and liberty in the fight to win the vote.
Twenty-five-year-old Alice Paul returns to her native New Jersey after several years on the front lines of the suffrage movement in Great Britain. Weakened from imprisonment and hunger strikes, she is nevertheless determined to invigorate the stagnant suffrage movement in her homeland. Nine states have already granted women voting rights, but only a constitutional amendment will secure the vote for all.
To inspire support for the campaign, Alice organizes a magnificent procession down Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington, DC, the day before the inauguration of President-elect Woodrow Wilson, a firm antisuffragist.
Joining the march is thirty-nine-year-old New Yorker Maud Malone, librarian and advocate for women’s and workers’ rights. The daughter of Irish immigrants, Maud has acquired a reputation—and a criminal record—for interrupting politicians’ speeches with pointed questions they’d rather ignore.
Civil rights activist and journalist Ida B. Wells-Barnett resolves that women of color must also be included in the march—and the proposed amendment. Born into slavery in Mississippi, Ida worries that white suffragists may exclude Black women if it serves their own interests.
On March 3, 1913, the glorious march commences, but negligent police allow vast crowds of belligerent men to block the parade route—jeering, shouting threats, assaulting the marchers—endangering not only the success of the demonstration but the women’s very lives.
Inspired by actual events, The Women’s March offers a fascinating account of a crucial but little-remembered moment in American history, a turning point in the struggle for women’s rights.
My thoughts:
I have been a fan of Jennifer Chiaverini’s historical fiction novels for quite some time. Her attention to detail never ceases to amaze me and the amount of research she puts into her books is always evident.
This book was both awe-inspiring and frustrating in equal measures because of the lengths it took the women to get the right to vote. I applaud everything that some of the women were willing to do to get this right, but at the same time it made me so angry that they had to go through all this in the first place. I admit I didn’t know much about this suffrage march that took place in 1913 in Washington DC and all that went along with it – how hard the women had to work to make it happen in the first place and the abuse they endured along the way. On top of that, the organizers also had to deal with issues of race and that only compounded the problem.
I recently read another book on the suffragist movement, The Accidental Suffragist, earlier this year, and I loved the overlap. While this one is much more detailed, I do love when I happen to pick up books that compliment each other and definitely recommend both if you are interested in this topic.
For me, Jennifer Chiaverini is an author that never fails to enlighten and captivate. I cannot wait to see what comes next from this author…I will for sure be reading it!
