The Courageous Voices of Women Storytellers
Celebrating Women’s History Month with Dover
This Women’s History Month, let us acknowledge and appreciate the past and present contributions that women have made in the form of storytelling, revealing their truth and reflecting society through centuries. From the voices of women homesteaders who forged their destiny in the face of great odds during the days of the American Frontier to women slave narratives and women abolitionists in the fight against slavery; suffragettes that shed light on systemic injustice; entrepreneurs, feminists, journalists, and literary and social activists, Dover offers a rich profusion of influential works by and about women. Spanning from the 19th to the 20th centuries, all have distinguished themselves by courageously speaking up and speaking out — and telling their stories.
Meet the extraordinary female heroes who have shown tremendous courage, creativity, and resilience to rise above adversities in Today’s Wonder Women: Everyday Superheroes Who Are Changing the World. From CEOs, entrepreneurs, and activists to media moguls and movement creators, they share inspiring stories, encouraging us all to stand up for what we believe in and defy cultural norms while striving toward success.
The Wit and Wisdom of America’s First Ladies delivers more than 350 humorous and heartfelt reflections by White House wives from Abigail Adams to Martha Washington.
Moving, incisive, and enduringly relevant writings by the African-American poet and feminist Audre Lorde include her thoughts on the radical implications of self-care and living with cancer, as well as essays on racism, lesbian culture, and political activism in A Burst of Light: and Other Essays.
American poet Dorothy Parker, a founding member of the Algonquin Round Table and famous for her acerbic wit, cynicism, and satirical humor in titles such as Enough Rope, was a devoted social activist in her own right, advocating for civil rights and social justice. Upon her death, she bequeathed her estate to Martin Luther King Jr., and upon King’s death, to the NAACP.
The visual artist Djuna Barnes wrote poetry, plays, newspaper and magazine articles, and short stories, and is regarded as an important voice of feminism, modernism, and lesbian culture. Her book, Vivid and Repulsive as the Truth: The Early Works of Djuna Barnes, recaptures the vitality of her New York City bohemian literary scene and includes journalism (a firsthand account of the force-feeding endured by suffragettes and an interview with James Joyce), poetry, and stories.
Carrie Chapman Catt, founder of the League of Women Voters and the International Alliance of Women, and suffragist Nettie Rogers Shuler reveal the inside story of the fight for the American woman’s right to vote in Woman Suffrage and Politics: The Inner Story of the Suffrage Movement.
We can remember creative storytellers like pioneering reporter Nellie Bly who pushed boundaries to get her stories heard by faking dementia to expose abuses of patients in Blackwell’s Island Insane Asylum in New York City in Ten Days in a Mad-House: A Story of the Intrepid Reporter. Her groundbreaking investigative journalism was unusual in 1887, especially for women reporters.
The landmark works in feminist theory by Mary Wollstonecraft, Margaret Fuller, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, and Charlotte Perkins Gilman have inspired generations of women and men engaged in the ongoing fight for gender equality.
Three Narratives of Slavery are remarkable stories of courage and perseverance documenting the lives of three black women, Harriet Jacobs, Mary Prince, and Sojourner Truth, as they battled for freedom and racial and sexual equality. Twenty-six bold women joined the abolitionist movement. Hear their voices in Female Abolitionists.
The brave and heroic lives of American women who ventured into the untamed wilderness of the frontier days are captured in Letters of a Woman Homesteader and Daring Deeds of Pioneer Women.
Coloring books are a great way to teach kids about famous women in history. They can learn about 45 impressive women who broke barriers like astronaut Sally Ride in She Was First. An outstanding collection of 100 puzzles features renowned women from around the world, from Jane Austen to Malala Yousafzai, in Remarkable Women Word Search Puzzles. Paper doll enthusiasts will delight in the royal collection featuring the Iconic Fashions of Princess Diana Paper Dolls and Queen Elizabeth II Paper Dolls.
These women and so many more have paved the way for today’s women by using their voices and telling their stories. Their powerful narratives are interwoven within the history of the world. Let us honor their courage and vision as part of celebrating Women’s History Month.
