Book Review: What Would Boudicca Do? By Elizabeth Foley and Beth Coates
Rating: ★★★
Genre: Nonfiction
Synopsis (from publisher’s website): Tired of being talked over? Of social media making you feel crap? Of the pressure to 'have it all' and a hot bod too?
Boudicca stuck up for herself and now she can help you do the same. It is time to start channelling the spiky superwomen of history to conquer today. It is time to turn to women like Frida Kahlo and Josephine Baker, Hypatia and Cleopatra, Coco Chanel and Empress Cixi. In this irreverent guide they will help you figure out how to dispatch a loverat, back yourself, kill it at work and trounce FoMo.
With original illustrations by Bijou Karman, What Would Boudicca Do? will make you fired-up and ready for anything.
Review:
How stunning is this bright, bold cover? I listened to the audiobook which is narrated by Elisabeth Hopper. What Would Boudicca Do? features the stories of 50 inspirational women throughout history and their achievements. Each woman’s chapter has a short biography and advice on how we can learn from them today.
The women range from well-known figures such as Frida Kahlo and Coco Chanel, to some I was unfamiliar with including Akiko Yosano and Mekatilili wa Menza. Although the chapters dedicated to each of these females were brief, it was fascinating to discover their stories and the mark they left on the world.
A number of the ladies were controversial and the authors explained in the afterword: "None of them was perfect - some of them did terrible as well as wonderful things. They were morally complex people but we're here to celebrate their achievements rather than how ‘nice’ they were along the way."
I enjoyed the premise of this book, but the only thing I wasn’t too keen on is the writing style. The authors were trying to appeal to a teenage audience and so there are a lot of slang words which felt out of place. Mary Wollstencraft is described as being “up the duff”. Was it really necessary to use this phrase?
For a book which is about female empowerment, it does get a bit snarky at times. I’m not sure why Foley and Coates thought it was ok to throw shade at feminists who use moon cups.
Overall, What Would Boudicca Do? is an interesting read, although I personally would have preferred more history and less pop-culture references.
Favourite Quote: Nothing is sadder than lack of female solidarity.
Read If: You would like an introduction to awesome women from the past and enjoy feminist nonfiction.
Link to Amazon:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/What-Would-Boudicca-Do-Remarkable/dp/0571340482
Help us keep the City Girl Network running by supporting us via Patreon for the price of a cheap cup of coffee - just £2 a month. For £3 a month you can also get yourself a Patreon exclusive 10% off any of our ticketed events! You can also support us by following us on Instagram, and by joining our City Girl Network (city wide!) Facebook group.
Written by Shahrzad Saeedi
