This was a lucky find on a stop at a local-ish bookstore. I saw it on a shelf with several other Penguin Classics, and immediately decided to take it home. This group of authors represent a gap in my knowledge, and I was eager to find some new, interesting pieces. I definitely got that! This became one of those books that sprouted bits of paper as I read, marking different passages I wanted to copy out or refer back to. It features a wide range of topics and styles, ranging from accounts of public speeches to excerpts of novels. There were some women I had heard of, and many more who were new to me.

I did have a tiny quibble with the editors. The main thing that slightly annoyed me was a tendency (mostly in the essays) for the editor's introduction to include exact or nearly-exact phrasing from the work itself in the description. I think either putting these bits in quotes and presenting it as the author's impression of her work, or working harder to paraphrase would have been better choices than this awkward middle ground.

Sent out as part of the Female Authors Before 1899 bookray

Excited to read this! Thank you.