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portybelle's review against another edition
4.0
This is a very special collection of short stories commissioned to commemorate the 100th anniversary of women receiving the vote in the UK. The Word for Freedom comprises 24 short stories from new writers and established authors, all inspired by the theme of women's suffrage. Some are contemporary, some historical, one is set in the future and one is about creatures from a different planet - or is it?
The Word for Freedom explores women's experiences across the world and throughout time. Through the variety of stories it shows the ways they have been exploited, manipulated, kept down, controlled. But it also highlights all the many ways that women have been strong and supported each other and fought for their rights.
I just want to mention a few of the stories which really appealed to me. It was good to read the familiar story of how Emily Davison hid herself in a broom cupboard at Westminster on the night of the census in 1911 as seen through the eyes of the Clerk of Works on duty that evening in Christine Powell's Counting for England. Although Katherine Blessan's Sayyida Nanda is a dark tale of forced marriage, it was so beautifully written that it is one of my favourites. Enid is Going on a Journey by David Cook had me cheering on Enid as she struck out for freedom after decades of marriage. Anne Hamilton's Not Our Kind of Girl was thought-provoking and showed how certain attitudes have changed over the years. One final story I want to mention is Gristle by Angela Clark. This was a very entertaining tale of a woman who had been exploited taking her revenge and I have to admit I was cheering her on despite what she actually did!
There is something for everyone in this book. There are stories which will make you smile, laugh, cry or think. It will make you appreciative all over again for what women did in the past to give modern women the lives we have. But it will also make you think about how women in various situations throughout the world still have to struggle for acceptance, equality and recognition.
The Word for Freedom explores women's experiences across the world and throughout time. Through the variety of stories it shows the ways they have been exploited, manipulated, kept down, controlled. But it also highlights all the many ways that women have been strong and supported each other and fought for their rights.
I just want to mention a few of the stories which really appealed to me. It was good to read the familiar story of how Emily Davison hid herself in a broom cupboard at Westminster on the night of the census in 1911 as seen through the eyes of the Clerk of Works on duty that evening in Christine Powell's Counting for England. Although Katherine Blessan's Sayyida Nanda is a dark tale of forced marriage, it was so beautifully written that it is one of my favourites. Enid is Going on a Journey by David Cook had me cheering on Enid as she struck out for freedom after decades of marriage. Anne Hamilton's Not Our Kind of Girl was thought-provoking and showed how certain attitudes have changed over the years. One final story I want to mention is Gristle by Angela Clark. This was a very entertaining tale of a woman who had been exploited taking her revenge and I have to admit I was cheering her on despite what she actually did!
There is something for everyone in this book. There are stories which will make you smile, laugh, cry or think. It will make you appreciative all over again for what women did in the past to give modern women the lives we have. But it will also make you think about how women in various situations throughout the world still have to struggle for acceptance, equality and recognition.
karlou's review
5.0
The Word For Freedom is a collection of short stories inspired by the suffragette movement. This year marks the 100th anniversary of (some) women finally being given the vote in the UK but although this is a book about the strength, dignity and fortitude of women, it isn't an anthology of suffragette stories, although a few here are set at the time when women were still campaigning to be given the vote. All the stories are linked due to their main characters being women or young girls but are set in various places; whether real or imagined and take place in the past, present or future. They each feature women seeking freedom but this common thread is explored in many different ways.
Some of the authors have written wryly humorous tales of revenge, albeit often with a dark edge to them. In Enid Is Going On A Journey by David Cook, Enid is taking a road trip even though she knows her husband, Steven will be furious. The first thing she does is to discard his CD of brass band classics and then plays Dusty Springfield on the radio. She might not be headed to Tulsa just yet but Bournemouth and the sea await her. In Out Of Office by Emily Kerr, Jenny Smythe sends an email after being accidentally sent a message intended for her male colleague which opens her eyes to the full facts about the inequality in her workplace. Retribution takes on a much darker form in Gristle by Angela Clark and though the punishment may be harsh, I must admit that the black humour here made this one of my favourite stories in the book.
Other stories were more heartrending, perhaps none more so than Sayyida Nanda by Katherine Blessan which is a disturbing retelling of the Cinderella story. Set in Pakistan, Sayyida's life is far from a fairytale and the truth of what has been done to this young girl is terribly upsetting. Her visions of escape may be just a dream but she finds the way to keep hope alive. Lucy's husband and her father have both cruelly failed her in Those Who Trespass Against Us but now she is just waiting for the right moment to change things. In Anna Mazzola's The Silent Woman, modern slavery is given a human face as a woman realises the truth about her situation and knows that at some point she will be ready to scream.
Stories such as Not Our Kind Of Girl by Anne Hamilton and Relevant by Anna Orridge focus on girls and young women and how they may be inspired by the work of others or driven to act by the situations they witness. Their stories may be different but both Mari and Ginny have seen enough to make them want to change the world. Others are about older women who have perhaps spent years accepting their situation but now enough is enough. A safari trip is the catalyst for the protagonist in Isabel Costello's The Word For Freedom whereas a visit to town helps Betty see things more clearly in Myopia by Sophie Duffy. A book inspired by the suffragettes wouldn't be complete without some stories about them; in Counting For England by Christine Powell, Percy, a young clerk of works at the Palace of Westminster spends a life-changing few minutes with Emily Davison and in One Woman, One Vote by Sallie Anderson, Mary is accompanied to the polling station by her overbearing and pompous husband, William as women are finally given the right to vote. Will she follow his orders and vote for the Labour candidate, John Davison - or will she put her cross next to Christabel Pankhurst's name?
I flew through The Word For Freedom, each story is an engaging, thought-provoking and inspiring message about the strength and fortitude of women who somehow manage to keep striving for justice and equality even when things seem almost impossible. It's hard to pick out favourites when the quality is so consistently high but some particularly stood out for me. Cover Their Bright Faces by Abigail Rowe is a bittersweet tale about love as Matty and her girlfriend, Linda learn about the secret her Aunt Portia was forced to keep years ago. There are parts of this story that are almost unbearably sad as we realise that although Portia came alive when she was with Lucy, the time they had to together was all too brief. It's such an emotional story which finishes with an uplifting message of hope that things have changed and will continue to do so. I loved the characters and the touching story about loss, survival and hope in Tiny Valentines by Angela Readman. The initially strained relationship between the prim and proper Elsie and the flighty, Florrie develops as the older woman begins to let down her guard as she learns more about her younger counterpart and I finished it with a tear in my eye. The final story in the book, Brick by Rachel Rivett revisits the suffragette movement once more and is a stirring paean to the power and determination of women through the ages right up to the present day and for as long as necessary. It's the perfect ending to this superb anthology; The Word For Freedom is a fitting tribute to the suffragettes and a celebration of women everywhere. I highly recommend it.
Some of the authors have written wryly humorous tales of revenge, albeit often with a dark edge to them. In Enid Is Going On A Journey by David Cook, Enid is taking a road trip even though she knows her husband, Steven will be furious. The first thing she does is to discard his CD of brass band classics and then plays Dusty Springfield on the radio. She might not be headed to Tulsa just yet but Bournemouth and the sea await her. In Out Of Office by Emily Kerr, Jenny Smythe sends an email after being accidentally sent a message intended for her male colleague which opens her eyes to the full facts about the inequality in her workplace. Retribution takes on a much darker form in Gristle by Angela Clark and though the punishment may be harsh, I must admit that the black humour here made this one of my favourite stories in the book.
Other stories were more heartrending, perhaps none more so than Sayyida Nanda by Katherine Blessan which is a disturbing retelling of the Cinderella story. Set in Pakistan, Sayyida's life is far from a fairytale and the truth of what has been done to this young girl is terribly upsetting. Her visions of escape may be just a dream but she finds the way to keep hope alive. Lucy's husband and her father have both cruelly failed her in Those Who Trespass Against Us but now she is just waiting for the right moment to change things. In Anna Mazzola's The Silent Woman, modern slavery is given a human face as a woman realises the truth about her situation and knows that at some point she will be ready to scream.
Stories such as Not Our Kind Of Girl by Anne Hamilton and Relevant by Anna Orridge focus on girls and young women and how they may be inspired by the work of others or driven to act by the situations they witness. Their stories may be different but both Mari and Ginny have seen enough to make them want to change the world. Others are about older women who have perhaps spent years accepting their situation but now enough is enough. A safari trip is the catalyst for the protagonist in Isabel Costello's The Word For Freedom whereas a visit to town helps Betty see things more clearly in Myopia by Sophie Duffy. A book inspired by the suffragettes wouldn't be complete without some stories about them; in Counting For England by Christine Powell, Percy, a young clerk of works at the Palace of Westminster spends a life-changing few minutes with Emily Davison and in One Woman, One Vote by Sallie Anderson, Mary is accompanied to the polling station by her overbearing and pompous husband, William as women are finally given the right to vote. Will she follow his orders and vote for the Labour candidate, John Davison - or will she put her cross next to Christabel Pankhurst's name?
I flew through The Word For Freedom, each story is an engaging, thought-provoking and inspiring message about the strength and fortitude of women who somehow manage to keep striving for justice and equality even when things seem almost impossible. It's hard to pick out favourites when the quality is so consistently high but some particularly stood out for me. Cover Their Bright Faces by Abigail Rowe is a bittersweet tale about love as Matty and her girlfriend, Linda learn about the secret her Aunt Portia was forced to keep years ago. There are parts of this story that are almost unbearably sad as we realise that although Portia came alive when she was with Lucy, the time they had to together was all too brief. It's such an emotional story which finishes with an uplifting message of hope that things have changed and will continue to do so. I loved the characters and the touching story about loss, survival and hope in Tiny Valentines by Angela Readman. The initially strained relationship between the prim and proper Elsie and the flighty, Florrie develops as the older woman begins to let down her guard as she learns more about her younger counterpart and I finished it with a tear in my eye. The final story in the book, Brick by Rachel Rivett revisits the suffragette movement once more and is a stirring paean to the power and determination of women through the ages right up to the present day and for as long as necessary. It's the perfect ending to this superb anthology; The Word For Freedom is a fitting tribute to the suffragettes and a celebration of women everywhere. I highly recommend it.
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