This was a wonderfully immersive exploration of some of the women who trail blazed a path through modern history. Newman writes with authority and empathy about the women that history has forgotten, along with examining some of the reasons why and I found it absolutely fascinating. There were definitely some women here that should be more well known but I also appreciated the discussion around figures such as Margaret Thatcher and the contributions such figures made (or didn't make) to the feminist cause. By definition, this is a wildly feminist book and there is an undercurrent of anger throughout, which is understandable but never off putting. The writing is clear and accessible and I think that Newman has created a great resource that serves as a jumping off point for further research into the lives of specific women featured here. My one criticism is that I wish it could have covered a longer historical time frame (only the 20th century is covered), but I appreciate the immense undertaking that would entail. Overall, I found this to be a very well constructed book that should be on any woman's TBR.
I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

This is a brilliant book, especially if you are a woman, but also men should read it to find out what things women have given to society since the days of ancient history. She starts with Anglo Saxon women, and moves forward in history. Obviously, the women from the end of the 19th century, and forward to the present day are more easily accessible research material, and she quotes this, at will, and in some detail.
I especially enjoyed the stories of the suffragettes, the women at Ford going on strike, the miners wives, and the amount of detail that Margaret Thatcher put the cause of women back by around 100 years, by her insistence that she was treated like a men, and yet denied a lot of women the chance to go to work, and be women with children.
I do hope this book is widely publicized, and sells in large numbers, as it is well-written, full of good humour, and quotations from people that matter.
Thank you to Net Galley and the publishers for allowing me to read this book.

I think the strength of this book - apart from the excellent writing - is the choice of apparently "obscure" bloody, brilliant women. Many of these types of book choose women we are familiar with but Cathy Newman has researched far and wide and found some really amazing women it is unlikely you would have heard of. The book is small vignettes and it is ideal to dip in and out of. I had it on my phone and it was excellent while in waiting rooms, or on the bus etc because the writing is immediate, you can get right into it and then you have someone to think about and issues to contemplate. I think it would make a special gift for young women (and indeed men) who want to understand the real contribution made by women who rarely got the credit they deserved.

I was given a copy of this book by Netgalley in return for an honest review.

Beautifully titled, bloody brilliant collection of bloody brilliant women. Thoroughly enjoyed this and have purchased copies as gifts for friends. Would make a great book club pick too - I predict some interesting discussions!

Really enjoyed reading this, very well written and full of interesting accounts of women I'd not previously heard of.

Would make a fantastic gift

This is an excellent book and would be an appropriate gift for every teenager. But one word of warning – the last chapter contains both the f-word and the c-word. Maybe it’s mealy-mouthed of me to use euphemisms when Newman quotes the words in full, but I believe some people would be offended by the words and thus I prefer to avoid giving that offence.

Like some other reviewers, I was confused by the length of the introduction. My Kindle tells me it is 5% of the book. When 17% of the book is consumed by acknowledgements, bibliography and the index, that seems like a disproportionately long introduction. Once you realise that it’s not really an introduction in the traditional sense, but more a full chapter covering history prior to the “real” start of the book in Victorian times.

The book is a series of examples, showing women who won’t conform to traditional norms; who won’t rock the boat; and who don’t see why they can’t behave as men would have done in similar circumstances. I confess that I hadn’t heard of many of these women. (However, there are undoubtedly many men who also did outstanding things and whose names are similarly unknown to me. I am woefully ignorant when it comes to social history – my fault, no-one else’s.) These exemplars should be better known; and all young people should be encouraged to realise that ability, not tradition, should be the only barrier to achieving something.

Sadly, my review copy of the Kindle book showed every digit from 0-9 as a question mark, thus I could see no dates, no numbers, no page numbers, etc.. I assume this has been fixed since no-one else mentions it as a major problem.

#BloodyBrilliantWomen #NetGalley

I thought this book was really interesting but I didn't like how it wasn't in sections but jumped around. This meant it was quite hard to dip in and out of.

I think this is well worth a read and we need more books like this celebrating women that we should know about buy don't.

I'm afraid I was unable to read this book properly or able to enjoy it fully as the text was littered with hieroglyphics instead of numerals. I tried on both my Kindle Fire and on my Paperwhite, but it was the same on both devices. I feel the dates are very relevant and, without them, the book isn't as easy to follow. It's a shame as it looks like a great read.

I won't give a poor star value if I haven't read a book, though.

An absolutely bloody brilliant book! Cathy Newman, doyenne of Channel 4 News, has written a readable, engrossing history of notable women in Britain over the past century or so. Some of these women are well known, but many are much more obscure, even though they have made considerable contributions to politics, science and other fields. The book works through by chronology and is easy to become engrossed in. Newman's research is exemplary - she has dug out fascinating nuggets of information that are well-referenced and continually surprising. An excellent read for anyone interested in women's history. Hearty recommendation.

Truly inspiring book. I learnt about so many women in history I hadn't heard of before. Especially loved the first female police officer Edith Smith's story. Made me feel very empowered to be a woman and read about all that we have gone through over the years.

Incredible accounts of amazing women throughout our history. So many women I had no idea existed, let alone had such an impact.

The book is well written and easy to read, not swimming in prose and complication. I've found myself bringing these women up in conversation when anything vaguely connects to their mark in history because more people should know about them!

I can already think of 2/3 of my friends I'll buy copies of this for Christmas gifts. Wonderful.

Over the past one hundred and fifty years there have been women at the forefront of all major events in history and promoting social change in the UK. Unfortunately history has tended to have a male-centric view of events and therefore the contribution of women has not really been emphasised. In this polemic Cathy Newman gives the reader a taste of some of these groundbreakers and influencers. It's a fast-paced book and leaves the reader wanting to know a lot more about some!

Dear history, meet herstory.

As a black migrant female, I am always conscious about the complexities of present day and prior models of feminism, and the likelihood to brush past interaectionality that is at play in The multidimensional plight for equality. This book is a good effort in giving as many sects of womanhood a seat at the table; a voice.

I thought I knew my feminist history and this tore that to pieces and retold it to me. The omission of dates in the publisher’s draft was a bit of a hurdle, but the devil in the detail; fact-checking and contextual nuances added in to flesh out some of the gritty facts of life as a woman in yesteryears makes for a great non-fiction read.

This book uncovers the ‘pioneers, revolutionaries and geniuses your history teacher forgot to mention’. Read about women such as engineer Beatrice Shilling, whose work played a role in helping RAF pilots in the Battle of Britain, and developmental biologist Anne McLaren, whose work paved the way for IVF.

Brilliant book, well researched and well built up. I believe it is for anyone and it could be a great present for anyone. Historically correct and eye opening.

UK readers may be familiar with Cathy Newman from her role as journalist and presenter on Channel Four’s nightly news programme. She has a very direct but completely amicable style that often disarms the people that she interviews. This easygoing style translates into her written prose and what could be a dull and dry subject is a lively journey through the ages.

My only real gripe with this book celebrating great women in history is the cover. A terribly misleading choice of artwork that has more akin with a Jacqueline Wilson tweenies novel than a celebration of female pioneers. That’s not to say that it shouldn’t be given to older teenagers to read, as a sixteen year old I would have devoured a book like this and been inspired to step away from the norm.

Reading this book over the weekend of the centennial commemorations of the ending of the first world war has been particularly poignant. Reading about the struggles of early pioneers in education, nursing, science and literature has been especially interesting in the context of the work that these women undertook in the absence of the men during the war years.

One of the biggest surprises for me was learning more about Scottish family planning pioneer Marie Stopes. Famous for her campaigning for women’s rights and a woman’s right to birth control she was also a devout advocate of eugenics and the purification of the race. So much so that when her only son married a woman who wore glasses she cut him out of her will. Horrified that he would even consider having children with someone who was genetically faulty.

Bloody Brilliant Women should be an addition to every A Level History reading list so that everyone can appreciate the strength and depth that women have brought – and continue to bring – to society, politics, literature, science, medicine. Indeed every aspect of life. Brava Cathy Newman!

Provided by Net Galley and William Collins in exchange for an honest review.

UK Publication Date: Oct 4 2018. 336 pages.

I thoroughly enjoyed learning about all of these women I had not known existed. If these are the women Cathy Newman personally picked out to write about, how many more have there been that are not widely known about? I'll be passing this book on to my friends and family.

Energetic and take, Newman's broad history of women emerged from her discovery at school reading history books that apart from Mrs Thatcher and queen Elizabeth there were next to mine British women mentioned. She feels strong women, equal to men, are the answer and lauds such women coming to power in the way men can do. Journalistic and also full of lots of stories, affecting and funny, this might while away many hours happily..

This is a smart well written book that really highlights and draws attention to the massive impact women have had in history with regard to inventions, politics and society that has been swept aside.

It might get lost in the embarrassment of riches of profiles of amazing women books, which is a shame, because this is good. Very good.

Why was I not taught about these women at school?

The pages are full of women who are a real inspiration.

I shall be buying copies for my family and friends (of both gender) and singing it praises from the rooftop.