No Place for a Woman

February 15, 2020
The Wild West conjures lots of images: cowboys, prospectors, and?suffragists. While suffrage for white women was officially bestowed by the federal government in 1920, western states granted their female citizens franchise decades earlier. Wyoming paved the way in 1869, allowing all women over the age of 21 to vote in general elections. Wyoming's bold move served as inspiration to the rest of the West in the following years. Enns (The Pinks, 2017) examines the political, societal, and economic climates that aided the suffrage movement in the West. Most importantly, Enns tells the stories of heroines like Jeanette Rankin, Abigail Scott Duniway, Esther Hobart Morris, and Ellen Sargent. who dedicated their lives to the movement. These women and their counterparts lobbied their legislators tirelessly, intelligently utilized the media, and perpetually promoted suffrage to the public. This book shines a light on an important era in women's history and with the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment just around the corner, it couldn't be more timely. Compact and extremely readable, this title is recommended for all libraries.Women in Focus: The 19th in 2020(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2020, American Library Association.)