A History of the World in 80 Lost Women

(Paperback)

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Description

Journey through thousands of years of human history (now with the women put back in).

From the earliest human civilizations through to the present day, the stories of countless influential women leaders, artists, warriors, scientists and more have been ignored, forgotten, or actively suppressed. In Whats Her Name: A History of the World in 80 Lost Women, Olivia Meikle and Katie Nelson restore womens stories to their rightful place in world history.

Based on the acclaimed podcast, Whats Her Name, this is a truly global history that weaves together biographies of incredible women spanning six continents andthousands of years, from Ancient Egypt and the Roman Empire to imperial China, the Americas and post-war Europe. This book tells a captivating and funny, thought-provoking and deeply researched historical narrative. Drawing on years of study and interviews with dozens of experts, this is an insightful and enthralling look at the trailblazing women you may not have heard of (but should have).

Reviews

A fresh, informative and entertaining pop history of the world told through the biographies of 80 fascinating women you may not have heard of (but should have).

Katie Nelson and Olivia Meikle have given us a joyful gallop through world history providing a vital reminder that women have always done everything - the big stuff, the new stuff, the scary stuff and the inspiring stuff. This book is a chance to revel in the sheer variety and depth of female action right across and beyond the globe. -- Ruth Goodman
It's impossible not to love this book. Katie Nelson and Olivia Meikle take readers on an exhilarating rollercoaster ride through thousands of years of global history, in the company of fourscore largely neglected women - not all of them admirable, but in different ways all extraordinary. It's irreverent and very funny. -- Peter Marshall, Professor of History at the University of Warwick
Breathtaking in its scope, WHAT'S HER NAME is illuminating, entertaining, and endlessly fascinating. Katie Nelson and Olivia Meikle's incisive research brings long-overdue attention to remarkable women who have been overlooked by historians. -- Bruce Goldfarb, author of 18 TINY DEATHS and OCME
Like the podcast, Whats Her Name is an entertaining and informative romp through women's history. -- Diana Giovinazzo, critically acclaimed author of The Woman in Red, A Novel of Anita Garibaldi
Olivia Meikle and Katie Nelson not only tell the stories of forgotten women with their trademark combination of wit, enthusiasm and rock-solid research, they use those stories as a lens to re-examine world history as it is usually taught, and re-create it in the process The result is funny, subversive (in the best possible way), and very, very smart. -- Pamela D. Toler, author of Women Warriors: An Unexpected History
Katie Nelson and Olivia Meikle offer up a female-centric world history by following the paths of largely forgotten women--who very much deserve to be remembered. With a conversational style and engaging layout, the book highlights amazing accomplishments of women worthy of further study. I was hooked from the very first pages! -- Kip Wilson, author of White Rose and One Last Shot.
Whats Her Name brings the narrative up to the present day, telling us not only who we should learn about women but why we should care about them now more than ever. A compulsively readable womens history sampler that begs for a sequel! -- Heath Hardage Lee, Author of The League of Wives and The Mysterious Mrs. Nixon
With breadth, depth, and a bit of humor, Nelson and Meikle offer us an accessible history through the experiences of women from around the world. In the process, they show us what many of us have always known, but can now more clearly see thanks to this book: women made the world and we should know their names. -- Ashley Farmer, Associate Professor, History & African & African Diaspora Studies, University of Texas-Austin, and author of Remaking Black Power: How Black Women Transformed an Era
Katie Nelson and Olivia Meikle vividly illuminate world herstory across time and over all continents (well, maybe not Antarctica). The stories are full of drama, heroism, and snort-tea-out of your nose hilarity. -- Dr. Carolyn Whitzman, Adjunct Professor, Department of geography, environment and geomatics, University of Ottawa
Fascinating, witty, irreverent with a capital 'I.' I had a blast learning about oodles of women I'd never heard of. -- Anne Boyd Rioux, Ph.D., Professor Emerita, University of New Orleans, author of Meg, Jo, Beth Amy: The Story of Little Women and Why It Still Matters (Norton, 2018), creator of Audacious Women, Creative Lives on Substack
This podcast does an amazing job of telling the stories of fascinating women who have made a true impact! * The Today Show *
Some podcasts require celebrity guests or trending topics to be discovered, but WhatsHerName has built a following with thoughtful, personally reported stories of women who deserve more attention. -- The Denver Post

Author Bio

Katie Nelson has a PhD in History from the University of Warwick and has been teaching a wide range of courses in world history and the meaning of life at Weber State University. She is co-author of The Book of Sisters and A Stinky History of Toilets and lives in Utah.
Olivia Meikle teaches Womens & Gender Studies at Naropa University. Shes also the creator of Around the World in 80 Diapers, empowering parents to travel internationally with their kids, and co-author of The Book of Sisters and A Stinky History of Toilets. She has an MA in English Literature and Womens & Gender Studies from the University of Colorado Boulder. She lives in Colorado.