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iamrainbou's review
4.0
I loved every single story. Of course, I knew I would love this anthology; girls rebelling against society, culture, and family, stories about girls saving herself, finding their own happy endings. The stories are so full of hope and happiness, bittersweetness and heartbreak. Romance, adventures and serious conversations about identity.
The Radical Element is everything I always wanted to read as a teen.
The Radical Element is everything I always wanted to read as a teen.
beautifullybookishbethany's review
4.0
The Radical Element is an inspiring collection of short stories about girls throughout American history who are radical in their own ways. Spanning the early 1800's through the 1980's, these are tales of impressive young women believing in themselves and coming to terms with the often unpleasant realities of their day. They are of diverse religious backgrounds, races, ethnicities, sexualities, and experiences. One story even features a bright, passionate aspiring lawyer who is autistic. While I didn't love every story, many of them were amazing and I loved the breadth of representation.
The stories are arranged in chronological order, which created a narrative flow that I really enjoyed. Two of my favorite stories (by Anna-Marie McLemore and Dhonielle Clayton) use magical realism to deal with the ugliness of racism. In every story, we get a moment with brave heroines, and a window into pieces of history that are rarely found in textbooks. A Jewish community in 1830's Georgia, female spies during the Civil War, Cuban immigrants in 1970's New York, and more. The Radical Element is interesting, thought-provoking, inspiring, and often beautiful. As in any anthology, some stories packed less of a punch, but overall it was very well curated and definitely worth reading. I received an early copy through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
The stories are arranged in chronological order, which created a narrative flow that I really enjoyed. Two of my favorite stories (by Anna-Marie McLemore and Dhonielle Clayton) use magical realism to deal with the ugliness of racism. In every story, we get a moment with brave heroines, and a window into pieces of history that are rarely found in textbooks. A Jewish community in 1830's Georgia, female spies during the Civil War, Cuban immigrants in 1970's New York, and more. The Radical Element is interesting, thought-provoking, inspiring, and often beautiful. As in any anthology, some stories packed less of a punch, but overall it was very well curated and definitely worth reading. I received an early copy through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
bredmgz214's review
3.0
This book consisted of 12 different stories set in the past by various authors about diverse girls/woman fighting for what they believe in. I love reading books like this, that are about woman being powerful and amazing rising against the norm because they believe in their heart something else and fighting for it with everything. I think these books are important and need to be read.
utopiastateofmind's review
5.0
(Disclaimer: I received this free book from Netgalley. This has not impacted my review which is unbiased and honest.)
I fell in love with The Radical Element from the introduction to the final pages. It was inevitable that I would. I mean, I am the biggest historical fiction fan and I cannot resist a good heroine. The Radical Element would be the ultimate kryptonite. It not only gave me one fiery heroine - it gave me twelve. I repeat twelve.
Many of the authors I was already familiar, and a huge fan of: Mackenzi Lee, Anna-Marie McLemore, Dhonielle Clayton, and Stacey Lee. But I found myself falling in love with the rest. And that's the beauty of anthologies - you find new authors to crush on and find their books.
The Stories
There was such a range of diversity within these pages. The Radical Element warmed my heart in so many ways: giving me variety, difficult dilemmas, and heroines that were not afraid to put themselves first. Their identities are questioned, put at stake, and they have to figure out what is worth fighting for. Be still my heart. I could fall in love with all of them.
full review: https://utopia-state-of-mind.com/review-radical-element-edited-jessica-spotswood/
I fell in love with The Radical Element from the introduction to the final pages. It was inevitable that I would. I mean, I am the biggest historical fiction fan and I cannot resist a good heroine. The Radical Element would be the ultimate kryptonite. It not only gave me one fiery heroine - it gave me twelve. I repeat twelve.
Many of the authors I was already familiar, and a huge fan of: Mackenzi Lee, Anna-Marie McLemore, Dhonielle Clayton, and Stacey Lee. But I found myself falling in love with the rest. And that's the beauty of anthologies - you find new authors to crush on and find their books.
The Stories
There was such a range of diversity within these pages. The Radical Element warmed my heart in so many ways: giving me variety, difficult dilemmas, and heroines that were not afraid to put themselves first. Their identities are questioned, put at stake, and they have to figure out what is worth fighting for. Be still my heart. I could fall in love with all of them.
full review: https://utopia-state-of-mind.com/review-radical-element-edited-jessica-spotswood/
bookphile's review
3.0
3.5
I received a free copy of the book from Netgalley in return for an honest review.
Content Warning: there is a story that deals with pretty explicit abuse by a parent. All the stories deal with either blatant sexism or misogyny, racism, and religious persecution.
A mixed bag of short stories. Some of them were simply amazing and I wished there was more! Others I could barely get through and ended up skimming. There is a mix of genres, some are more fantasy, magical realism, however, most were historical. All of the stories touched upon important topics having to do with either sexism, racism, patriotism, religion, relationships, and abuse and how those topics influence women's rights. The stories were all about girls rising above social norms, pushing boundaries, and demanding more from the world that told them they weren't worthy. All they are about the girls carving a path for themselves. A few of these did make me wish they were longer and were full-length novels.
Overall, a good anthology, with great #ownvoices stories.
I received a free copy of the book from Netgalley in return for an honest review.
Content Warning: there is a story that deals with pretty explicit abuse by a parent. All the stories deal with either blatant sexism or misogyny, racism, and religious persecution.
A mixed bag of short stories. Some of them were simply amazing and I wished there was more! Others I could barely get through and ended up skimming. There is a mix of genres, some are more fantasy, magical realism, however, most were historical. All of the stories touched upon important topics having to do with either sexism, racism, patriotism, religion, relationships, and abuse and how those topics influence women's rights. The stories were all about girls rising above social norms, pushing boundaries, and demanding more from the world that told them they weren't worthy. All they are about the girls carving a path for themselves. A few of these did make me wish they were longer and were full-length novels.
Overall, a good anthology, with great #ownvoices stories.
lostinmylibrary's review
4.0
Rating may change after I actually sit down and average out all of the story ratings.
didyousaybooks's review against another edition
3.0
You gotta love all the GIRL POWER.
This book is full of amazing historical fictional kick ass girls. While non fictional, each of them reflects the longing for more than « everyday » life gave to girls and women in times when the opportunities were scarce and most of all the fighting for women rights was left to be done.
What I liked was the huge diversity that was presented in The Radical Element.
After reading the first two stories, I was to admit I was a bit scared all the stories were going to focus on religion, which was not what I had in mind when I requested the book on Netgalley (thank you for the opportunity to access this book and give an honest review in exchange) but it was not the case.
All the stories are historical fictions, some of them have fantasy elements which was a nice surprise, and all of them treated with the place women, and young girls in general, every one of them from a different community, had during various times of history.
I appreciated the authors’ comments on why they chose their theme and how some of them were influenced by real women and all of them by real historical events.
As always in short stories anthologies, some stories are better than others, and I always have the feeling they are way too short for my liking.
Now, if you want to spend a little time with girls from different time periods and share a tiny moment of their life, The Radical Element is for you.
Some stories feel a bit déjà-vu and I think it’s partly due to the fact that we all know the struggles women, and especially women of colors, have to overcome. Those are the tragically « clichées » stories of coming-of-age we get for girls.
Family expectation and society pressure to fit in a mold is true for everyone and is an ageless and universal theme.
It’s nothing you haven’t read before in some way or other, especially if you read YA but it certainly does the job and they all leave you with a satisfied feeling that those amazing girls will do amazingly.
I know it certainly made me want to read more about women in history, I always love history, and fictional or not, reading about it always broadens your views on how much the world has changed, and every way it has not. We’ve come a long way and still have a long way to go.
This book is full of amazing historical fictional kick ass girls. While non fictional, each of them reflects the longing for more than « everyday » life gave to girls and women in times when the opportunities were scarce and most of all the fighting for women rights was left to be done.
What I liked was the huge diversity that was presented in The Radical Element.
After reading the first two stories, I was to admit I was a bit scared all the stories were going to focus on religion, which was not what I had in mind when I requested the book on Netgalley (thank you for the opportunity to access this book and give an honest review in exchange) but it was not the case.
All the stories are historical fictions, some of them have fantasy elements which was a nice surprise, and all of them treated with the place women, and young girls in general, every one of them from a different community, had during various times of history.
I appreciated the authors’ comments on why they chose their theme and how some of them were influenced by real women and all of them by real historical events.
As always in short stories anthologies, some stories are better than others, and I always have the feeling they are way too short for my liking.
Now, if you want to spend a little time with girls from different time periods and share a tiny moment of their life, The Radical Element is for you.
Some stories feel a bit déjà-vu and I think it’s partly due to the fact that we all know the struggles women, and especially women of colors, have to overcome. Those are the tragically « clichées » stories of coming-of-age we get for girls.
Family expectation and society pressure to fit in a mold is true for everyone and is an ageless and universal theme.
It’s nothing you haven’t read before in some way or other, especially if you read YA but it certainly does the job and they all leave you with a satisfied feeling that those amazing girls will do amazingly.
I know it certainly made me want to read more about women in history, I always love history, and fictional or not, reading about it always broadens your views on how much the world has changed, and every way it has not. We’ve come a long way and still have a long way to go.
talkdarcytome's review
4.0
I was approved for an E-ARC of this book by Candlewick Press in exchange for an honest review.
My technical rating is 3.8 because you get weird ratings in anthologies but I rounded up.
I adored a Tyranny of Petticoats, but I have to say I think I may have loved A Radical Element even more. I think the stories were better in this collection, they were more thoughtful and purposeful. As always, I wish some of them were longer and I can only hope some of the authors decide to flesh them out into full-blown novels- it won't happen but I can hope.
Ratings for the individual stories:
Daughter of the Book - Dahlia Adler
4.5/5
I loved the Hebrew history and the examples of women strength in the Old Testament/Torah. I've always been fascinated with stories like Ruth or Ester and I was so excited to get to follow a character who was just as interested as I am. Rebekah's strength and hunger for knowledge was a fantastic example of what we can sometimes take for granted today.
You're a Stranger Here - Mackenzi Lee
2/5
I was actually disappointed by this story. I was looking forward to Mackenzi Lee because historical fiction is kind of her thing, but I didn't enjoy it. While I loved learning about the early Mormon conflicts, I found the story uninteresting.
The Magician - Erin Bowman
5/5
LOVED this one. I have heard of Erin Bowman before, but never actually picked up any of her work. I loved the western "Mulan"esque style of this story. I felt the characters were extremely strong and the plot was full. Usually, short stories make me feel like something is lacking, but this one was complete and gave me everything I wanted.
Lady Firebird - Megan Shepherd
5/5
My favorite of the entire anthology. I am definitely picking up more Megan Shepherd and I want an entire novel dedicated to this story. Love love loved it.
Step Right Up - Jessica Spotswood
3.5/5
I always find that the editor's stories in anthologies are the weakest. I love the idea behind this story, carnival/circus stories are my favorite. BUT, it wasn't well executed. The story was a little choppy and the ending was way too fast. It felt like all the action happened in the last paragraph and left something to be desired.
Glamour - Anna Marie Mclemore
3/5
I enjoyed the representation in this story. I think the idea was fascinating and wish that it had been executed better. The magic was confusing and unexplained. Most of everything was left to the reader to figure out and I guess I'm just not that smart.
Better for All the World - Marieke Nijkamp
4/5
One of my favorites. Loved the #ownvoices representation. Same problem I run into with short stories - I wish it were longer and/or the ending had been stronger. Will definitely be keeping an eye out for Marieke Nijkamp in the future.
When Moonlight isn't Enough - Dhonielle Clayton
5/5
So original and very well written. The first sentence "Before the war, moonlight used to taste like sugar and butter and fresh cream." WHAT? That's so insanely beautiful and delicious. I loved this story and it may be one of my favorite short stories of all time. You should read this anthology just for this story.
The Belle of the Ball - Sarvenaz Tash
4.5/5
As an aspiring writer, I loved Rosemary. I identify with her more than any other character in this collection. I wish I could see her achieve all of her dreams.
Land of the Sweet, Home of the Brave - Stacey Lee
3/5
Great representation and I loved that it talked about the Japenese internment camps during WWII. That was my favorite aspect. History classes don't often teach us enough about this time in American history. However, I didn't love this story. The beauty competition seemed cliche. Not my favorite.
The Birth of Suisi Go Go - Meg Medina
2.5/5
I loved the idea of this story, but nothing happens. To me, I didn't see any growth or "radical element" as is the theme of the entire anthology.
Take Me with U - Sara Farizan
4/5
I don't know a lot about the Iran/Iraq war in the 80's. In history classes, we often stop at the Cold War and don't move on so a lot of the Middle East conflict goes over my head. I think it was incredibly interesting to read as someone who's first language isn't English. I also loved her character arc throughout the story. And, that band name, "Ovarian Cysters", that's just incredible.
Thanks again to Candlewick for allowing me to read this incredible collection early. It's definitely one of my favorites so far this year.
My technical rating is 3.8 because you get weird ratings in anthologies but I rounded up.
I adored a Tyranny of Petticoats, but I have to say I think I may have loved A Radical Element even more. I think the stories were better in this collection, they were more thoughtful and purposeful. As always, I wish some of them were longer and I can only hope some of the authors decide to flesh them out into full-blown novels- it won't happen but I can hope.
Ratings for the individual stories:
Daughter of the Book - Dahlia Adler
4.5/5
I loved the Hebrew history and the examples of women strength in the Old Testament/Torah. I've always been fascinated with stories like Ruth or Ester and I was so excited to get to follow a character who was just as interested as I am. Rebekah's strength and hunger for knowledge was a fantastic example of what we can sometimes take for granted today.
You're a Stranger Here - Mackenzi Lee
2/5
I was actually disappointed by this story. I was looking forward to Mackenzi Lee because historical fiction is kind of her thing, but I didn't enjoy it. While I loved learning about the early Mormon conflicts, I found the story uninteresting.
The Magician - Erin Bowman
5/5
LOVED this one. I have heard of Erin Bowman before, but never actually picked up any of her work. I loved the western "Mulan"esque style of this story. I felt the characters were extremely strong and the plot was full. Usually, short stories make me feel like something is lacking, but this one was complete and gave me everything I wanted.
Lady Firebird - Megan Shepherd
5/5
My favorite of the entire anthology. I am definitely picking up more Megan Shepherd and I want an entire novel dedicated to this story. Love love loved it.
Step Right Up - Jessica Spotswood
3.5/5
I always find that the editor's stories in anthologies are the weakest. I love the idea behind this story, carnival/circus stories are my favorite. BUT, it wasn't well executed. The story was a little choppy and the ending was way too fast. It felt like all the action happened in the last paragraph and left something to be desired.
Glamour - Anna Marie Mclemore
3/5
I enjoyed the representation in this story. I think the idea was fascinating and wish that it had been executed better. The magic was confusing and unexplained. Most of everything was left to the reader to figure out and I guess I'm just not that smart.
Better for All the World - Marieke Nijkamp
4/5
One of my favorites. Loved the #ownvoices representation. Same problem I run into with short stories - I wish it were longer and/or the ending had been stronger. Will definitely be keeping an eye out for Marieke Nijkamp in the future.
When Moonlight isn't Enough - Dhonielle Clayton
5/5
So original and very well written. The first sentence "Before the war, moonlight used to taste like sugar and butter and fresh cream." WHAT? That's so insanely beautiful and delicious. I loved this story and it may be one of my favorite short stories of all time. You should read this anthology just for this story.
The Belle of the Ball - Sarvenaz Tash
4.5/5
As an aspiring writer, I loved Rosemary. I identify with her more than any other character in this collection. I wish I could see her achieve all of her dreams.
Land of the Sweet, Home of the Brave - Stacey Lee
3/5
Great representation and I loved that it talked about the Japenese internment camps during WWII. That was my favorite aspect. History classes don't often teach us enough about this time in American history. However, I didn't love this story. The beauty competition seemed cliche. Not my favorite.
The Birth of Suisi Go Go - Meg Medina
2.5/5
I loved the idea of this story, but nothing happens. To me, I didn't see any growth or "radical element" as is the theme of the entire anthology.
Take Me with U - Sara Farizan
4/5
I don't know a lot about the Iran/Iraq war in the 80's. In history classes, we often stop at the Cold War and don't move on so a lot of the Middle East conflict goes over my head. I think it was incredibly interesting to read as someone who's first language isn't English. I also loved her character arc throughout the story. And, that band name, "Ovarian Cysters", that's just incredible.
Thanks again to Candlewick for allowing me to read this incredible collection early. It's definitely one of my favorites so far this year.
rachelkc's review against another edition
4.0
In stories that range in setting from Savannah, Georgia in 1838 to Los Angeles in 1923 to Boston in 1984, this collection of historical fiction by 12 different authors - a veritable Who's Who of YA Lit right now - features characters who refuse to let society define them. They boldly claim their identities and pursue their dreams in defiance of the norms of their communities.