Huddle: How Women Unlock Their Collective Power

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Wall Street Journal Bestseller

CNN news anchor Brooke Baldwin explores the phenomenon of huddling, when women lean on one anotherin politics, Hollywood, activism, the arts, sports, and everyday friendshipsto provide each other support, empowerment, inspiration, and the strength to solve problems or enact meaningful change. Whether they are facing adversity (like workplace inequity or a global pandemic) or organizing to make the world a better place, women are a highly potent resource for one another.

Through a mix of journalism and personal narrative, Baldwin takes readers beyond the big headline-making huddles from recent years (such as the Womens March, #MeToo, Times Up, and the record number of women running for public office) and embeds herself in groups of women of all ages, races, religions and socio-economic backgrounds who are banding together in America.HUDDLEexplores several stories including:

• The benefits of all-girls learning environments, such as Karlie Klosss Kode with Klossy and Reese Witherspoons Filmmaker Lab for Girls in which young women are given the freedom to make mistakes, and find their confidence.
• The tactics employed by huddles of women who work in male-dominated industries including a group of US veterans/Democratic Congresswomen, a huddle of African-American judges in Harris County, Texas, and an all-female writers room in Hollywood.
• The wisdom of huddling from trusted pioneers such as Gloria Steinem, Billie Jean King, and Madeleine Albright as well as contemporary trailblazers like Stacey Abrams and Ava DuVernay.
• How professionals such as Chef Dominique Crenn and sports agent Lindsay Colas use their success to amplify other women in their fields.
• The ways huddles of women are dedicated to making seismic change, including a look at Indigenous women saving the planet, the women who founded Black Lives Matter, the mothers fighting for sensible gun laws, Americas favorite female athletes (Megan Rapinoe, Hilary Knight, and Sue Bird to name a few) agitating for equal pay, and female teachers rallying to improve their working conditions.
• The bond between women who practice self-care and trauma healing together, including the women who courageously survived sexual abuse, and the women who heal together in The Class and GirlTrek.
• The ways women are becoming more intentional about the life-saving power of friendship, including the bonds between military wives, new moms, and nurses getting through the time of Covid.

Throughout her examination of this fascinating huddle phenomenon, Baldwin learns about the periods of huddle droughts in America, as well as the ways that Black women have been huddling for centuries. She also uncovers how huddling can be the secret sauce that makes many things possible for women: success in the workplace, effective grassroots change, confidence in girlhood, and a better physical and mental health profile in adulthood. Along the way, Baldwin takes readers through her own personal journey of growing up in the South and climbing the ladder of a male-dominated industry. Like so many women in her field, she encountered many sharp elbows on her career path, but became an early believer in adding more seats to the table and huddling with other women for strength and solidarity. In the process of writing HUDDLE, Baldwin learns that this seemingly new phenomenon is actually something women have been doing for generationsa quiet, collective power she learns to unlock in her transformation from journalist to champion for women.

Reviews

"Brooke Baldwin has always been a fierce promoter of women. Her first book, Huddle, is an exemplification of what happens when women have one anothers backs. If you want to understand the power that can be achieved when women come together to support one another, this is your book. If you want to be inspired by the ambition and tenacity of women, this is your book. If you want to experience the infectious enthusiasm of a woman delighting in her efforts to tell these remarkable stories, this is definitely your book." Lisa Ling, executive producer and host of CNN's This Is Life with Lisa Ling "Like Brooke herself, Huddle uplifts women, encouraging them to believe in their collective power. A fun and inspiring read!" Diane Von Furstenberg, fashion designer, philanthropist, and bestselling author "Its a mans world, but not for long if we tap into the power of Huddle. Women can be our own worst enemies or our greatest resource; Brooke has inspired me to keep fighting for women to shatter ceilings and set the menu at any table at which we find ourselves. What I love most about this book is that it reminds us that solidarity can indeed be contagiousand collaboration, especially among those who have been left out and left behind, can be transformative." Alicia Garza, principal of the Black Futures Lab and cofounder of the Black Lives Matter Global Network "I have spent much of my life in a huddle on the soccer field, planning a winning strategy with other badass women. I know firsthand that Brooke Baldwin is right: magic happens after the huddle. I just finished Huddle, and Im on fire. Brooke is the coach we need in precisely this moment. She reminds us that if we take the power of the huddle off the field and into the world, we will be unstoppable!" Abby Wambach, Olympian, activist, and #1 bestselling author of Wolfpack "I wouldnt be anywhere close to where I am today if not for my beautiful, powerful, badass huddle. And if you want to know why its the most important thing in lifethats right, I said in lifedo yourself and your huddle a favor and pick up this book." Bozoma Saint John, CMO of Netflix, entrepreneur, and badass

Author Bio

Brooke Baldwin is a Peabody Award finalist who anchors the 2 - 4 p.m. edition of CNN Newsroom. She is also the creator and host of CNN's Digital series "American Woman" which focuses on the stories of trailblazing women who have broken barriers in their respective fields and are now helping other women do the same. Baldwin came to CNN in 2008.