Nancy Agabian

Fierce

Introducing Fierce, thirteen powerful, entwined biographies and memoirs that describe a staunchly Feminist approach: "To thine own self be true." Historical documentation of human affairs informs the past, but what of the understated and overlooked herstories of half of the world's population? Fierce explores the lives of "masterless women" in education, entrepreneurship, religion, the armed forces, the arts, adventuring, and activism, celebrating their strengths and achievements while questioning the systems that erased the significance of their influence and importance. The writers range in age from their 20s to their 60s, and they hail from diverse heritages and orientations. By sharing the context of their unique life experiences, the authors emphasize their connection to each of their herstorical subjects, whose various provenances span continents and centuries. These essays shine a light on the shadowy, lesser-known impact that women have had on global history through the importance of each of these herstories: - A writer questioning the pervasive sway of caste systems in her own life considers a humble 19th-century Indian woman who made a terrible sacrifice and changed an unfair law. - The blacklisted Armenian intellectual who disappeared without a trace mirrors the loss of information about the essayist's own family in the diaspora and similarly reflects the ongoing decline of her elderly mother's cognitive abilities. - A woman evoked from Native American oral history is inspiring a new generation of young women to create thoughtful and dynamic change inside and outside of their community. - One writer's antiwar sensibility is challenged and transforms into that of sympathetic recognition as she regards the roles of murderous aviatrixes in World War II. Along with striking frontispiece illustrations, additional bonus material encompasses an extensive Reader's Guide including book group materials and substantial writing and conversation prompts, creating a noteworthy compendium to aid contemplation and a better understanding of these herstories that analyzes their links to contemporary and future female narratives. Armed with this knowledge and these truths, each reader can become, "A queen because she ruled over herself, and because she ruled over herself, a queen." -- From Radiant Identity: Chicaba Herstories