This is the last Friday of Women’s History Month. It is also the last Friday before Vermilion County holds elections on April 2. Therefore, in honor of both of these, I would like to present a set of books about women in politics. You can find or order each of them at Danville Public Libary.
Every Day is Election Day: A Woman’s Guide to Winning any Office, From the PTA to the White House by Rebecca Sive
“With expert guidance and abundant resources, this practical and inspirational guide is for women at all stages of life who want to seek and win public leadership and public office at any level. According to research, women considering leadership positions or running for elected office are more inhibited than men by family concerns and by a lack of confidence, and speaking directly to these issues, this book offers pragmatic advice and strategies for women’s daily lives as advocates, candidates, and powerbrokers and shares the true-life stories, secrets of success, and frank suggestions of women who have led, run, and won. This handy reference teaches women how to surmount public barriers, conquer private fears, and run a winning campaign–be it for a PTA position, board president, U.S. senator, or beyond–with joy, humor, confidence, and no apologies”– Provided by publisher.
A Fighting Chance by Elizabeth Warren
A chronicle of the Massachusetts senator’s two-decade career in Washington describes her childhood pursuit of an education, early exposure to the dysfunctional political process, high-risk advocacy of better bankruptcy laws and competitive run for public office.
 
 
 
Good and Mad: The Revolutionary Power of Women’s Anger by Rebecca Traister
An exploration into the transformative power of female anger and its ability to transcend into a political movement. Long before Pantsuit Nation, before the Women’s March, and before the #MeToo movement, women’s anger was not only politically catalytic, but politically problematic. The story of female fury and its cultural significance demonstrates the long history of bitter resentment that has enshrouded women’s slow rise to political power in America, as well as the ways that anger is received when it comes from women as opposed to when it comes from men.
Margaret Thatcher: A Life and Legacy by David Cannadine
Few modern women have had as great a political impact as Margaret Hilda Roberts, the grocer’s daughter from Grantham who, as Margaret Thatcher, became Britain’s first woman prime minister. The longest serving British premier of the twentieth century, Mrs Thatcher has been the subject of both adulation and vilification. Sir David Cannadine sets Margaret Thatcher in the context of recent British history.
My Beloved World by Sonia Sotomayor
“An instant American icon–the first Hispanic on the U.S. Supreme Court–tells the story of her life before becoming a judge in an inspiring, surprisingly personal memoir. With startling candor and intimacy, Sonia Sotomayor recounts her life from a Bronx housing project to the federal bench, a progress that is testament to her extraordinary determination and the power of believing in oneself. She writes of her precarious childhood and the refuge she took with her passionately spirited paternal grandmother. She describes her resolve as a young girl to become a lawyer, and how she made this dream become reality: valedictorian of her high school class, summa cum laude at Princeton, Yale Law, prosecutor in the Manhattan D.A.’s office, private practice, federal district judge before the age of forty. She writes about her deeply valued mentors, about her failed marriage, about her cherished family of friends. Through her still-astonished eyes, America’s infinite possibilities are envisioned anew in this … book”– Provided by publisher.
No Higher Honor: A Memoir of My Years in Washington by Condoleezza Rice
From one of the world’s most admired women, this is former National Security Advisor and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice’s compelling story of eight years serving at the highest levels of government. In her position as America’s chief diplomat, Rice traveled almost continuously around the globe, seeking common ground among sometimes bitter enemies, forging agreement on divisive issues, and compiling a remarkable record of achievement. A native of Birmingham, Alabama who overcame the racism of the Civil Rights era to become a brilliant academic and expert on foreign affairs, Rice distinguished herself as an advisor to George W. Bush during the 2000 presidential campaign. Once Bush was elected, she served as his chief adviser on national-security issues – a job whose duties included harmonizing the relationship between the Secretaries of State and Defense. With the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, Rice found herself at the center of the Administration’s intense efforts to keep America safe. Here, Rice describes the events of that harrowing day – and the tumultuous days after. Additionally, Rice also reveals new details of the debates that led to the war in Afghanistan and then Iraq.