Stories from Suffragette City

August 1, 2020
A landmark 1915 protest for women's suffrage is the setting for the dozen short stories in this rousing anthology. This year marks the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment, which guaranteed women's right to vote. These stories by writers known for historical fiction focus on an event five years before, a march in New York City by 25,000 supporters of suffrage, "a three-mile-long argument for women's rights." Several of them bring to life real people; among the strongest is Jamie Ford's "Boundless, We Ride." Its protagonist is Mabel Ping-Hua Lee, a Chinese-born suffragist who would become the first woman to earn a Ph.D. from Columbia. Ford makes her a fiercely determined figure with a surprising, and touching, inspiration. The only story not set in New York is "American Womanhood" by Dolen Perkins-Valdez; its first-person narrator is Ida B. Wells-Barnett, the Black suffragist and early civil rights leader. At home in Chicago, she recalls a humiliating event at a 1913 march, an example of racism that seems all too current a century later. Some historical characters recur, like the millionaire Mrs. Alva Vanderbilt Belmont. She's an imposing but remote presence in Katherine J. Chen's "Siobh�n," which focuses on one of her housemaids; in Fiona Davis' "The Last Mile," Alva is a conflicted and more human main character. Other stories are built around fictional characters, many of them immigrants. In Christina Baker Kline's "The Runaway," Kira, a homeless 12-year-old from Ireland, sees the march as a gateway to her future and freedom. But for Ani, the Armenian refugee in Chris Bohjalian's "Just Politics," the protest triggers her worst memories of the political massacre that took her entire family. One character, irrepressible 7-year-old Grace, appears in "A First Step" and then pops up in many other stories, wearing a "Miss Suffragette City" sash and recording the scene with a Brownie camera. A diverse range of vivid characters brings human faces to a historical protest march.

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August 17, 2020
This engrossing collection, pegged to the 100th anniversary of the ratification of the 19th Amendment, brings together 12 prominent fiction writers, including Chris Bojalian, Paula McLane, and Christina Baker Kline, all of whom contribute stories set on Oct. 12, 1915, when suffragettes marched on Fifth Avenue. In an introduction, Kristen Hannah argues that women’s push for the right to vote remains timely: “The ability to vote, and to access the polls, are fights we still face.” Many of the stories feature historical figures such as Alice Paul and Ida B. Wells, both of whom appear in Jamie Ford’s “Boundless, We Ride” and Dolen Perkins-Valdez’s standout, “American Womanhood,” each of which dramatize the bitter political compromises that would marginalize Black women from the movement’s ranks. Another highlight is Alyson Richman’s “A Woman in Movement,” about a young artist who gets her comeuppance after her advertising agency boss signs her drawings with his own name. Davis’s “The Last Mile” best drives home the collection’s overarching message: “Perhaps all these women, no matter which branch of the organization they supported, were part of a giant wave, one set to topple the status quo.” As a whole, the anthology gives assured voice and intriguing dimension to the actors of a pivotal era.

September 1, 2020
An impressive line-up of bestselling authors contribute to this anthology, featuring short stories set on October 23, 1915, the day of an enormous march for women's suffrage in New York City. The opening stories show women making arrangements to attend ( Thylacine by Paula McLain is the strongest of these), and the anthology proceeds throughout the day, capturing snapshots of different women's (and men's) involvement with the march. A diverse range of characters populate these stories, from a housemaid in the home of Alva Vanderbilt Belmont (in Katherine J. Chen's Siobh�n ) to a Chinese American suffragette (real historical figure Mabel Ping-Hua Lee, featured in Jamie Ford's Boundless, We Ride ) to a seven-year-old with a Brownie camera, documenting the day (appearing first in M.J. Rose's A First Step and then recurring throughout the anthology). The authors do not shy away from the racism of the era, nor the ways that social class impacts the women united behind this cause, and this diversity of perspectives, along with the strength of the writing, make this a strong offering.Women in Focus: The 19th in 2020(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2020, American Library Association.)

October 23, 2020

On October 23, 1915, more than 25,000 women marched up Fifth Avenue in New York City, demanding the right to vote. These stories from a dozen best-selling authors all take place on that historic day and highlight the large and small battles women fought for their rights. Mingling fact and fiction, the stories feature wholly imagined characters along with historical figures such as Alva Vanderbilt Belmont, Charles and Katrina Tiffany, and Ida B. Wells-Barnett. Dolen Perkins-Valdez's story "American Womanhood" depicts the conflicted feelings of Ida B. Wells-Barnett, as she reflects on a previous suffrage parade in which she courageously defied orders to march at the back with the other Black women. Chris Bohjalian's "Just Politics," about an Armenian refugee marching in the parade, is a moving story that still resonates today. The rest of the collection offers tales of poignant glimpses into different perspectives of the women's movement, from wealthy socialites to women of color to young girls. VERDICT This nuanced collection serves as an evocative reminder of the hard-fought right for women to vote and commemorates the 100th anniversary of the ratification of the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.--Melissa DeWild, Comstock Park, MI

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