Uppity Women of Ancient Times

This book (and the rest of the series) is written for people who are NOT fascinated by dry, scholarly textbooks. Plenty of people are subjected to the usual bland recounting of historical events and have surmised that history is not only boring, it's sexist. This series turns both notions on their heads. If you are looking for a "serious" tome on feminist history, don't bother reading this. The author wrote in conversational, slang-ridden style in order to appeal to people who AREN'T history buffs. Why so many people wrote reviews trashing this book because it isn't boring just shows the elitist snobbery that academica carries within. If you are mildly interested in learning a bit about women who never got their fair shake in male-centric world of historical writing, this book is for you. THe research is solid, the stories are true and nothing in this book is "bad" other than her glib style. If writing in an appealing way is somehow tantamount to heresy in historical writing then so be it. I personally cannot understand why a book with so much to say (in a short amount of time) is so maligned just because it isn't written to put you to sleep.

Even though I adore ancient history, the format of most history books is, well, boring. Uppity Women of Ancient Times defies all sterotypes, though. With over two hundred women in this book, she dosn't get much room to talk about the individuals, but her wording is brief, modern, and perfectly hilarious. With this book not only can you relate to the charactors, but you can actually understand why the did the things they did (in most cases, at least). Full of clever, powerful, and just plain funny women, this book gives meaning to the saying "you go girl."

I enjoy the Uppity Women series by Vicki Leon greatly. I have read most of the volumes and have been lucky enough to purchase for myself a couple for my library. I will keep adding to the collection until I have every one. Some may find her style to be flip or fluffy. But, I think her writing is passionate and shows a deep love and affinity for women in history. If anyone who wrote the other reviews actually read the writing of women in history. In particular, travel literature by Isabelle Eberhardt, Flora Tristan, Isabelle Bird, Francis Trollope etc. You and they might see that women in history wrote about themselves in an exuberant, lively, fun and impassioned manner. Ms. Leon is only following in their brilliantly and unfortunately almost forgotten footprints. If you love women, literature, and history, please by the series and buckle up! It is a wild and wonderful ride through the world of women!

In her entertaining and excellent work Vicki Leon, has written biographies of some of the most famous, not so famous, and infamous women of the ancient world. Leon spins her tales of these women, who are indeed uppity, with humor, wit, and a knack for presenting them as real people not just historical figures. Many professional historians, and other fans of history would scoff at a book like this as not being serious history. However, history also need not be heavy, and dry. Why not make it an exercise in both learning and fun? This book is simply for the fan of history, who wants to enjoy it with a good laugh. And in this Leon has done a superb job, and I recommend her book highly.

An excellent book: very informative, witty, and easy to read. Leon celebrates 200 different women, most of whom I had not heard before, and not only from Greece and Rome. Several are from Africa and the Orient, and she even includes the amazing British Celt Boudicca