UNLADYLIKE

A feminist history and primer for today’s women.

Unladylike podcast hosts Conger and Ervin present an encyclopedic overview of gender roles in history, aiming not only to enlighten teen readers about centuries of women’s experiences, but to motivate them to stand up for themselves and grow into complete, conscientious adults. Warning readers “it’s time to get comfy with being uncomfy,” this comprehensive action guide addresses many aspects of contemporary living, including body image, the beauty industry, sexuality, the workplace, biased language, and activism. Some of the volume’s pithiest and timeliest segments illuminate the fraught history of women’s reproductive rights. The book offers numerous practical tips for “detoxing from the sexist myths, mind-sets, and stereotypes culture constantly force-feeds us,” and compells readers with its sassy, take-no-prisoners colloquial style to adopt the authors’ Guerilla Girls–esque mantra: “stay curious. build empathy. raise hell.” Along the way, the authors call out numerous feminist trailblazers—Anita Hill, Fanny Kemble, Qiu Jin, Florynce “Flo” Kennedy—in an effort to demonstrate that ordinary people can step up to disrupt the status quo and introduce change. Full-color infographics and illustrations make historical examples of women’s subjugation and hair-raising statistics on various types of gender and racial inequity more accessible. Intersectionality and gender identity are also addressed and referred to throughout.

Gritty, wildly informative, and informed: a must-have feminist survival guide for the Trump era.