Book Review

George Washington was the father of our country.

Bill Gates co-established Microsoft. Thomas Edison improved the light bulb. Stephen King created Cujo. Walt Whitman wrote poetry, Lyndon Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act, and Bass Reeves brought bandits to justice. Notice one thing there? Those are all men, so, why not flip the coin? Read these great books about women in American history...

A generation of us grew up with television doctors who were all men, but in "The Doctor Was a Woman" by Chris Enss (Two Dot, $26.95), you'll see how Hollywood missed the mark, and that women wore white coats, too. Read about a woman physician who worked for the railroad, one who left her home in South Dakota to tend to farmers and their families on the prairie, a ground-breaking plastic surgeon, a female dentist in the late 1800s, and several woman doctors who worked during times of pandemic. You'll love these hidden stories that aren't hidden anymore.

Study any womens magazine from the 1950s, and you'll see plenty of ads targeted expressly to homemakers. In "Housewife: Why Women Still Do It All and What to Do Instead" (Legacy Lit, $30.00), author Lisa Selin Davis looks at why "homemaking" is still mostly women's work today, even if the woman of the house is the breadwinner in a two-adult household. This is a wide and widely interesting look that, most importantly, doesn't denigrate homemakers. Instead, this book leaves women – and men – with ways to find their own comfortable (and equal) choices.

No women’s history book would be complete without considering our First Ladies: in "American Woman: The Transformation of the Modern First Lady, from Hillary Clinton to Jill Biden (Crown, $30.00), author Katie Rogers writes about how our most modern first ladies have molded the role from one of quiet helpmate to one of activism and personal platforms. Though its focus is more contemporary, the book is overall a sweeping look at presidential wives: Rogers reaches back into history for comparison and reality-check, making this a book that will delight historians and political animals alike.

And, finally, if you like a little salt with your history, look for "Unbecoming a Lady" by Therese Oneill (Simon Element, $24.99). Despite what you might think, yesterday's women didn't always behave. Many of them were not quiet or demure or shy at all, and their place was definitely not always in the home. In this book, you'll meet some of history's loudest, most audacious women, the bravest, and the ones who saw something they didn't like and fixed it: inventor, Lilian Gilbreth; Civil War doctor, Mary Edwards Walker; wrongly hospitalized Elizabeth Packard; visionary Ellen G. White; Alaska millionaire, Reindeer Mary Antisarlook; sideshow "fat lady," Celesta Geyer; miser Hetty Green; and others who did what they needed, or simply wanted to do.

If these books aren't enough – because you know you'll want more – check with your favorite librarian or bookseller. They've got all kinds of books to help you see that history is just as often HERstory.