Marthe Jocelyn,
Scribbling Women: True Tales from Astonishing Lives
Tundra Books, 2011.

Rating: E

Right from the title on, this book was intriguing. Scribbling Women focuses on personal writings (journals, letters, diaries) of eleven women. Historically, the oldest one is Sei Shonagon (965-1010) and the most recent is the still living Doris Pilkington Garimara. They come from all parts of the globe (though to be selected by Jocelyn, their writings had to be either be in, or translated into, English) and many travelled extensively. These women are all absolutely remarkable and Jocelyn gives us insight into their lives and times in this excellent book.

Each woman’s story starts with a picture of the woman and a direct quote from her writing. Jocelyn then fills in background biographical and social/cultural information to paint a more illuminating picture. Further personal writing excerpts from each woman are used throughout the rest of the chapter and additional details are written to complete the story. There is a reference map at the beginning of the text which can be referred to for the origin and travels of each woman. There are also notes in the back outlining the source of each quote. However, because each quote is not referenced within the text (and no mention of the referencing style is made in the introduction), it does not fit any standard or taught style. This is a drawback to this text as, since there is no corresponding number in the notes, each note must be looked at individually to find the one that references the specific item in the chapter. In a school setting, it would be wise to point out to students the non-standard format used and that it would not be acceptable for a student to use this format for an assignment.

Jocelyn has drawn from the lives of many different women with a wide variety of backgrounds. There are courtesans, explorers, authors and women of various economic, social and cultural backgrounds. I knew of very few of these eleven women before I read this text, but was drawn into the story of each one. This book makes excellent curriculum support (ex. primary sources, women in various time periods, cultures) and a fascinating read.

This book is highly recommended for both school and public libraries.

Thematic Links: Women in Various Time Periods; Different Cultures; Personal Writing; Recognition of Women

Sarah Nelson
Vol. 16, number 5
June 2011

*Rating System:
E - Excellent, enduring, everyone should see it!
G - Good, even great at times, generally useful!
A - Average, all right, has its applications.
P - Problematic, puzzling, poorly presented.