Yaddith Times

evac squad
speaks all our languages
sisters from the stars


-- Ann K. Schwader

https://www.internationalwomensday.com/

first autumn color
on Buck's Row
fresh red


-- Ann K. Schwader

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack_the_Ripper
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Ann_Nichols

Wise Gals: The Spies Who Built the CIA and Changed the Future of Espionage by Nathalia Holt

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


This is an important, if occasionally confusing, take on the founding of the CIA -- from the viewpoint of the women, rather than only the men, who made it happen. It reads (or rather, listens -- see below) more like multi-viewpoint fiction than standard history, as the reader moves between the lives of a number of women all working in American intelligence during and soon after WW II. As such, it occasionally became somewhat difficult to figure out who was where when doing what. I suspect part of my confusion was due to my listening to this book rather than reading it.

Despite this small difficulty, the book is a treasure trove of stories & insights, taken from the recollections of female CIA founders no longer with us. I was only a little surprised at the degree of sexism they encountered, though the author is careful also to note those men who were not biased against female talent. Highly recommended for those interested in American women's history, CIA history from a fresh perspective, or both.

Note: I actually found this one on Audible, but Goodreads hasn't given me the option of listing that edition.



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The Women of Troy by Pat Barker

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Once again, I was torn between 4 & 5 stars for this second book in Pat Barker's Trojan War series -- & once again, I went with the full 5. Although it could be argued that not enough actually happens, there were so many elegant, lovely, &/or profoundly tragic moments that I couldn't help myself. Besides, middle books -- which is what this one felt like, though I could well be wrong -- do tend to be less eventful.

That said, I found a great deal to love about Briseis's continuing narrative of survival in the camp of the now-victorious Greeks. Protected (somewhat) by a last-minute marriage of convenience to one of Achilles' friends, Briseis & her unborn child are able to move about more freely, interacting frequently with other notable women (Cassandra, Helen, Hecuba) and witnessing the psychological deterioration of Achilles' son Pyrrus. Of course, she also manages to get into considerable danger. Unfavorable winds are keeping the Greeks from sailing for home, & weeks pass as evidence for divine displeasure adds up. Barker's take on Troy isn't quite fantastical, but it comes close -- to the benefit of the plot. Though the gods never actually appear, they feel very real.

As with The Silence of the Girls, there's a fair amount of casual brutality against women in this one -- more implied than described, but likely enough to disturb some readers. Classical or not, this is still life in a war zone. And please note: those who haven't yet read The Silence of the Girls will definitely want to start there.

Recommended for: Mary Renault fans, mythology lovers, and anyone else (besides me) who can't get enough of the current boom in feminist Greco-Roman fiction.








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Powerful Women Who Ruled the Ancient World by Kara Cooney

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


This short (12 lectures) Audible Great Courses offering was actually even more interesting -- & less conventionally feminist -- than I'd expected. Cooney, an Egyptologist, devotes two lectures each to Hatshepsut & Cleopatra VII, plus two each to Greece & Rome. This still allows a little scope for ancient China (one lecture, featuring a dowager empress I do not recommend learning about while eating . . . she made Game of Thrones look like kindergarten), Biblical women, Boudica, & ancient Mesopotamia.

Rather than simply narrating the fascinating lives of these women, Cooney does an excellent job of explaining how they achieved power, what limits were placed upon this (none of them ruled or otherwise held power without a man somewhere in the picture), & what those around them gained from their elevated status. This makes the course nearly as much ancient political science as women's studies -- and, possibly, of interest to a wider audience.

This course is being offered as an "Audible Plus" selection, free with membership. As such, it's well worth the time investment for anyone looking to wind up Women's History Month with some solid academic information.



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A Thousand Ships by Natalie Haynes

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Women's viewpoints seem to be everywhere lately in classical mythology and related fiction (think The Silence of the Girls or Circe), but I'm still glad I made time for this one. Rather than telling the story of one woman/goddess, Haynes moves through the Trojan War & its aftermath through the viewpoints of many women -- Greek and Trojan, mortal & immortal. Although this approach is occasionally disorienting, it adds depth to the familiar plotline while making the most of the author's research. The returning voice of the muse of epic poetry creates a useful but unobtrusive frame.

The novel itself feels less lyrical / emotional than some I've read in this subgenre, but this tone makes the events no less chilling. Haynes' choice of multiple viewpoints allows the examination of some events through more than one woman's eyes. Penelope's voice in letters to her long-absent husband also helps to keep the overall narrative on track, as the faithful but frustrated Penelope hears of Odysseus only from the random songs of bards visiting her court.

The author's own narration might push this one from 4.5 to 5 stars, but perhaps that's only because I'm a sucker for classical /mythological material delivered in a no-nonsense academic British accent. However that extra half-star manifested itself, I'd strongly recommend enjoying this one on audio.



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we welcome them first
as aliens ourselves here
sisters from the stars


-- Ann K. Schwader

https://www.internationalwomensday.com/

Romantic Outlaws: The Extraordinary Lives of Mary Wollstonecraft and Her Daughter Mary Shelley by Charlotte Gordon

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


I can't comment on the scholarship of this one -- I listened on Audible & had no access to any notes the book may have offered. However, I finished it feeling much more informed about the lives of two remarkable women I've been meaning to learn more about for years. My exposure to Wollstonecraft's writing was limited to (portions of!) A Vindication of the Rights of Women back in college, & I've read nothing of Mary Shelley's beyond Frankenstein. Bad, bad recovering English major . . .

This double biography is lively -- maybe a bit sensational, but fully justified by the facts -- & entertaining, and Susan Lyons offers a satisfyingly plummy narrative voice. Anyone hoping to retain a good opinion of either Shelley (the poet) or Byron might want to look elsewhere, however. Like her mother before her, Mary Shelley had enough trouble with both men & money to supply material for a couple of country albums! There is also the very real question of women living free lives before reliable birth control, & Gordon's work doesn't whitewash those details either. Nor does she make her subjects into feminist saints who never made bad life decisions or wronged another woman. They were highly gifted, but very human, people.

Highly recommended for anyone interested in women's literary history, or British lit in general.









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The Silence of the Girls by Pat Barker

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


I wasn't completely sure whether to give this one 4 or 5 stars, but finally settled on 5 for its sheer emotional power. Yes, there is rather modern British dialogue & slang (but, hey, we already know the PBS Roman Empire speaks British English, why not the ancient Greeks?). Yes, it is occasionally disconcerting when the plot shifts viewpoints between Briseis (first person) and her captor Achilles (third person). And even at the end, I was never completely sure who Briseis was telling her tale to. Other than me, of course.

However, none of this mattered while I was reading this very different, very lovely, & very brutal take on the Trojan War. This is war from the captive's view, and not just any captive. Briseis, a young royal woman from a Trojan city, was Achilles' personal prize -- and the the cause of his refusal to fight after Agamemnon took her away. Most of the novel is told from her POV, and it's every bit as harsh (& conflicted) as you'd imagine. Although Barker never gets gratuitously graphic, there's no question here about what happens to women in war.

If you've read the Iliad, you know the plot already. What matters here -- other than some breathtaking writing every so often -- is how women, mostly enslaved, figured into that plot. And how some men were decent in spite of the situation, and how many weren't.

Recommended (strongly) for Mary Renault fans, and anyone else looking for a different view of classical war. Or, probably, war as it still is.





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half the sky
is half the stars
alien sisters

-- Ann K. Schwader


https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Women%27s_Day