Books about Women Lost to History
15th Century
• Lady Tan’s Circle of Women - Lisa See
Tan Yunxian is a female physician who lived in Imperial China during the Ming Dynasty and whose compendium of medical cases is the earliest surviving Chinese medical text written by a woman. Tan was shaped by the early death of her mother and subsequent education by grandparents who were both medical practitioners. She defied tradition to pursue her ambition to treat women of all classes at a time when the classes didn’t co-mingle. A page turner!
17th Century
• Galileo’s Daughter - Dava Sobel
A historical memoir of science, faith, and love, it details the relationship between Renaissance scientist Galileo and his daughter Suor Maria Celeste, a nun. Based on Marie Celeste’s 124 surviving letters (Galileo’s are lost to history) to Galileo, this book offers a glimpse of who Galileo was on a personal level and reminds us that paradigm-changing scientific revelations never come about easily.
18th Century
• America’s First Daughter - Laurie Kamoie and Stephanie Dray
This historical novel recounts the life of Martha ‘Patsy’ Jefferson, daughter of Thomas Jefferson. The novel begins the day after Thomas Jefferson’s death and Patsy is organizing his papers and destroying anything that can damage his reputation. It then reverts to telling her story of her upbringing, traveling to France with her father and witnessing the French Revolution firsthand, through the death of her father and her husband. She was a remarkable woman who saw so much more of the world and politics than most men of her time.
• My Dear Hamilton - Stephanie Dray
The story of Eliza Schuyler Hamilton, a revolutionary woman who, like her new nation, struggled to define herself in the wake of war, betrayal, and tragedy. The author used thousands of letters and original sources to tell Eliza’s story. It is refreshing to hear about the history of our country from a female point of view.
• The Discovery of Jeanne Baret - Glynis Ridley
This is about the first woman to circumnavigate the globe in 1766, disguised as a teenage boy in order to work as principal assistant to the French naturalist Philibert Commerson.
19th Century
• The Woman they could not Silence - Kate Moore
A story about a fiercely determined, brilliant woman name Elizabeth Packard who is admitted into an insane asylum in Jacksonville, Illinois by her husband in 1860. She had six children, was not only sane but well educated and an OG feminist. By the time of her death, she was responsible for securing the passage of 34 bills in 44 legislatures across 24 states which gave rights to women where before there existed NONE and instituted reforms in mental institutions.
• Her Lost Words - Stephanie Marie Thornton
A love letter to two brilliant women, Mary Wollstonecraft who is regarded as one of the world’s founding feminist philosophers, and her daughter, Mary Shelley who is renowned for being the mother of science fiction with her classic ‘Frankenstein’ novel. This mother/daughter duo broke glass ceilings are yet their stories have been lost to history, until this novel!
• The Rebellion of Miss Lucy Ann Lobdell - William Klaber
An incredible true story about a young woman who dresses and lives as a young man in the mid 19th century in order for her family to survive.
• The Book of Lost Friends - Lisa Wingate
This is an incredible story inspired by true events. It is the end of the Civil War in the south as three young women set off on a perilous quest. One is heir to a now-destitute plantation, one her illegitimate free-born creole sister, and one a former slave. Each carries private wounds and powerful secrets as they head for Texas. Then in 1987, a teacher discovers a hidden book that takes her on a journey of discovering a piece of lost history.
• These is my Words: The Diary of Agnes Prine 1881-1902 - Nancy Turner
Loosely based on the author’s great grandmother’s life, this is a riveting story of a 17 yo girl in the late 19th century who, through her diary entries, tells of her family’s wagon journey to Arizona Territory via San Angelo, Texas. The trials and tribulations of Sarah and her family are beautifully woven in this novel.
• What is Visible - Kimberly Elkins
The astounding true-life story of Laura Bridgman, the first deaf and blind person who learned language and blazed a trail for Hele Keller. At the age of 2, Laura lost four of her five senses to scarlet fever. At the age of 7, she was taken to the Perkins Institute in Boston to determine if she could be taught. What follows is her remarkable story and its links to the great social, philosophical, theological, and educational changes rocking Victorian America.
• A Name of her Own - Jane Kirkpatrick
Based on the life of Marie Dorion, the first mother to cross the Rocky Mountains and remain in the NW, this is the fictionalized adventure account of a real woman’s fight to settle in a new landscape, survive a nation at war, protect her sons and raise them well and, despite an abusive and alcoholic husband, keep her marriage together.
• Margaret Fuller: A New American Life - Megan Marshall
Margaret Fuller was America’s first female correspondent in the mid 19th century and a fierce advocate for a myriad of causes which focused on improving the lives of women through education. She was truly an OG feminist and the likes of Susan B. Anthony were inspired by her works and words.
Civil War Heroines
• Liar, Temptress, Soldier, Spy: Four Women undercover in the Civil War - Karen Abbott
This is the fascinating true account of four women during the Civil War, two Confederates and two Unionists, who each spied for the cause they embraced and suffered for doing so. Another engrossing novel that is hard to put down! One used a spy ring of women to infiltrate Confederate officials, one dressed and lived as a man for over a decade before the war started, one was a spinster with connections and money who freed many slaves, and one was just coming of age as the war broke out and, tired of the respectable actions such as sewing circles, used her familial connection to Stonewall Jackson’s army to handle intelligence on behalf of the Confederacy.
• The Traitor’s Wife - Allison Pataki
Few know that Benedict Arnold’s wife, Peggy Shippen Arnold, was not only instrumental but even helped orchestrate the betrayal of Benedict Arnold. Her secret is that she was loyal to the British and her former British lover, Major John Andre, along with her husband, hatched the plot to deliver West Point to the British. A fascinating and riveting story of our early nation.
• The Abolitionist’s Daughter - Diane McPhail
A novel that explores a little known aspect of Civil War history - southern abolitionists. This is a powerful and profoundly emotional story about those who did the right thing, despite those around them and the prevailing sentiments of the South.
Turn of the 19/20th Century
• Mademoiselle Chanel - C.W. Gortner
A novel about Coco Chanel, the gifted laundrywoman’s daughter who revolutionized fashion, built an international empire, and became one of the most influential and controversial figures of her time. Born into rural poverty, Gabrielle (Coco) and her siblings are sent to an orphanage after their mother’s death. The nuns nurture her exceptional sewing skills which will propel her into a live far removed from the drudgery of her childhood. She redefines women’s fashion in the 1920’s and what it means to be a modern woman. When Paris falls to the Nazis, she is forced to make choices that will haunt her.qas
• The Dictionary of Lost Words - Pip Williams
If you love words, you must read this book! A mesmerizing tale of a fictional young lady, woven through the history of the creation of the Oxford English Dictionary, who creates her own dictionary. The author brings to life a vast ensemble of remarkable women who acted behind the scenes during the making of the OED, forever lost to the history books, but brought to life with this delightful story.
• The Bookbinder - Pip Williams
This book explores the lost art of bookbinding in England at the Oxford University Press just after the turn of the last century and the role women played in keeping books published during WW I. It’s storyline is fictional but the places they live, work, and study are real. Some crossover with characters mentioned from The Dictionary of Lost Words.
• The Personal Librarian - Marie Benedict
The remarkable, little known story of Belle De Costa Greene, J.P. Morgan’s personal librarian, who became one of the most powerful women in New York despite the dangerous secret she kept to make her dreams come true.
• Mrs. Sherlock Holmes - Brad Ricca
The incredible true life story of Mrs. Grace Humiston, a New York lawyer and detective at the beginning of the 20th century, who solves cases no else wants and advocates for the innocents. She went on to become the first female US District Attorney. Her work changed how the country viewed the problem of missing girls, but victory came at a price when she learned all too well what happens when one woman upstages the entire NYPD.
World War II Heroines
• The Book of Lost Names - Kristin Harmel
A Jewish woman in France during WWII, named Eva Traube, and her friends were responsible for saving thousands of Jewish children by forging documents and recording each name in a hidden book so that they could one day be reunited with their families. *Although Eva’s story is not true, all the facts that build the story are true and there were female forgers aplenty.
• The Alice Network - Kate Quinn
Fictional story about the very real Louise de Bettignies, aka Alice Dubois, who was known as the Queen of Spies during WW I and II. This was a nail biting, page turner filled with action and bravery as Alice recruited and trained female spies who proved instrumental in smuggling information across enemy borders risking their lives daily.
• The Rose Code - Kate Quinn
Fictional story of three very different females who worked at Bletchley Park, England during WWII as codebreakers. Riveting and informational, absolutely could not put it down!
• The Huntress - Kate Quinn
The story of Nina Markova, a Russian pilot with the Night Witches, an all-female night bomber regiment, who gets stranded behind enemy lines then hunted by a lethal Nazi murderess known as the Huntress. Nina escapes with bravery and cunning. A few years later, Ian Graham is a British war correspondent determined to find the Huntress and bring her to justice after the war. This page-turning novel explores the aftermath of the war and bringing justice to those that escaped it in the aftermath of the Nuremburg trials. You won’t be able to put it down!
• Lady Clementine - Marie Benedict
I was surprised by this book! I had no idea how influential Lady Clementine, Winston Churchill’s wife, was and how much he depended on her advice and wisdom. They survived two World Wars and each played a pivotal role in this tragic historical time.
• A Most Clever Girl - Stephanie Marie Thornton
A thrilling tale of love, loyalty, and espionage, based on the incredible true story of Elizabeth Bentley, a Cold War double agent spying for the Russians and the United States.
• Lilac Girls - Martha Hall Kelly
Historical fiction inspired by the true story of the Ravensbruck Rabbits, a group of Polish women who were victims of torturous medical experiments during the Second World War. The novel focuses on three women: Caroline, an American socialite who works for the French Consulate, Kasia, a 16 yo Polish woman who fights for the resistance, and Herta, a German medical student loyal to the Reich, who gets a position at a labor camp called Ravenbruck. It is a story of love and redemption.
• The Only Woman in the Room - Marie Benedict
This is a fictionalized account of Hedy Lamarr, who flees Austria, her controlling husband, and the Nazis in 1937, lands in Hollywood and becomes a famous movie star. But, what most people don’t know is that she is responsible for a world changing invention that helped turn the tide of WWII. Like all Marie Benedict’s books, a MUST READ!
• The Butterfly and the Violin - Kristy Cambron
Fictionalized story of a real WWII heroine, Adele, an Austrian aristocrat, a talented violinist, and daughter to a high-ranking member of the Third Reich, who risks everything when she begins smuggling Jews out of Vienna. The story weaves back and forth from modern day to the troubling times of WWII.
• The Librarian of Burned Books - Brianna Labuskes
Inspired by the true story of the Council of Books in Wartime – the WWII organization founded by booksellers, publishers, librarians, and authors to use books as ‘weapons in the war of ideas’ – this book is an unforgettable historical novel, a haunting love story, and a testament to the beauty, power, and goodness of the written word. It follows the lives of three women who each play a part in fighting the Nazis with the power of words and books.
• When Books Went to War - Molly Guptill Manning
At the heart of this fascinating novel is the idea that books can change the world. Books bring comfort to those who need it and unite us in times of great difficulty. The author explores the consequences of book banning during WWII and how a group of librarians campaigned to save these books.
Modern Era – 20th and 21st centuries
• The Woman with the Cure - Lynn Cullen
True story of a woman named Dr. Dorothy Horstmann who was responsible for finding a vaccine for polio in the middle of the 20th century. This book covers a dark, almost forgotten history in our country where the summers brought fear as they stole our children in vast numbers due to the poliovirus. This book is the untold story of one woman’s unwavering determination to eradicate the virus.
• Her Hidden Genius - Marie Benedict
Dr. Rosalind Franklin made world-changing contributions when she discovered the double helix structure of DNA. But, because she lived in a man’s world, her discoveries were never credited to her. This is a riveting story about one woman’s determination to follow her passion in spite of the misogynistic battles she faced. Truly a forgotten heroine.
• Excellent Daughters - Katherine Zoepf
True stories of Arab women who are making a difference in a traditionally patriarchal society. From 9/11 to Tahrir Square to the rise of ISIS the author gives voice to the remarkable women at the forefront of change in the Islamic countries such as Lebanon, Syria, and Saudi Arabia. A fascinating look into a topic that westerners typically know very little about.
• Flappers: Six Women of a Dangerous Generation - Judith Mackrell
The women who defined the Jazz Age – Josephine Baker, Tallulah Bankhead, Diana Cooper, Nancy Cunard, Zelda Fitzgerald, and Tamara de Lempicka – would presage the sexual revolution by nearly half a century and would shape the role of women for generations. These women came from vastly different backgrounds but all ended up passing through Paris, the mecca of avant- garde. They weren’t just dancing and carousing; they were fighting for recognition and dignity in a male dominated world.
• The Other Einstein - Marie Benedict
A work of historical fiction that portrays the lesser known physicist, Mileva Einstein, Albert Einstein’s first wife. Mileva moved from Serbia to Switzerland to attend school where she must prove herself equal to men in a sexist, patriarchal society. There she meets Albert and eventually they work together researching and publishing papers. What few people today realize is that Mileva originates the theory of relativity; however, Albert arranges for her name to be left off that publication, as well as all of their collaborative projects. This is the tragic story of a brilliant woman eclipsed by society’s treatment and view of women.
• The Moment of Lift: How Empowering Women Changes the World - Melinda Gates
An incredibly inspiring book! Melinda introduces us to her heroes in the movement towards equality, offers startling data, shares moving conversations she’s had with women from all over the world, and shows how we can all get involved. She advocates for women, driven by the belief that no one should be excluded, all lives have equal value, and gender equity is the lever that lifts everything! *Melinda Gates may not be lost to history, but the stories of the women she recounts are.
• Land of A Thousand Hills - Rosamond Halsey Carr and Ann Howard Halsey
Rosamond Carr's thrilling memoir of her life in Rwanda--a love affair with a country and a people that has spanned half a century. During those years, she has experienced everything from stalking leopards to rampaging elephants, drought, the mysterious murder of her friend Dian Fossey, and near-bankruptcy. She has chugged up the Congo River on a paddle-wheel steamboat, been serenaded by pygmies, and witnessed firsthand the collapse of colonialism. Following 1994's Hutu-Tutsi genocide, Carr turned her plantation into a shelter for the lost and orphaned children-work she continues to this day, at the age of eighty-seven.