Make Way, March

20 recent novels for Women's History Month

Hooray! Spring has sprung and my next novel is about to launch. It’s a sister story, but not my usual historical fare, so I’m interested/anxious/excited to see what readers make of it. You can pre-order THE PEOPLE NEXT DOOR in ebook form on Amazon or grab a copy in print wherever you like to get your books. I had a lot of fun writing a contemporary novel set in familiar places (a neighborhood near a small town about 40 mins out of Philly, not unlike where I live, and Ithaca, in upstate New York, where our middle kid is at college) but that doesn’t mean my love of historical fiction is in any way diminished.

The book I’m working on now is set in Scotland in the 1820s, and I’m still reading lots of historical novels, editing for the Historical Novels Review, and keeping an eye on what’s publishing each month for the American Historical Novel Facebook Group.

With that last hat on, I recently compiled a list of notable American women who have featured in biographical historical novels released in the last 12 months or so, and thought it was something worth sharing here. They may not be sister stories, but these trailblazing women are our sisters in spirit, so here is my non-exhaustive list of 20 recent novels and the women they celebrate:

Julia Child needs no introduction, but The Secret War of Julia Child by Diana R. Chambers takes some lesser known parts of her life story and has been very well received.

Harlem Rhapsody by Victoria Christopher Murray was my first introduction to Jessie Redmon Fauset and I learned a lot about Black literature and the Harlem Renaissance. I also interviewed Murray and you can read that here.

In fact I noted two novels about the wonderful Ella Fitzgerald were published recently: Ella by Diane Richards, and also Can’t We Be Friends by Denny S. Bryce and Eliza Knight. Read my review of that one here.

Trailblazing writer, feminist, and activist, Fuller is the star of Allison Pataki’s Finding Margaret Fuller. It’s the American Historical Novel Book Club pick for next month so I guess I should get reading…

Born enslaved on a Mississippi plantation, Elizabeth Greenfield’s singing career took her around America and even to London and Buckingham Palace. Discover her story in The Unexpected Diva by Tiffany L. Warren.

What’s not to love about this fabulous photo of Peggy Guggenheim? Learn about the life of this famous heiress and art collector in Peggy, a novel by Rebecca Godfrey.

Discover how Ruth Handler created the iconic Barbie in the 1950s, in Renée Rosen’s Let’s Call Her Barbie.

In Lady Flyer, Heather B. Moore tells the story of Nancy Harkness, a WW2 pilot and commander. This one seems like a very timely read!

I’ve come across mention of the Colony Club in NYC a couple of times (most recently researching the de Acosta sisters) so I’m interested in learning about Daisy Harriman and others in The Colony Club by Shelley Noble.

Hazel Lavery looks very striking in this picture. This American socialite had a big impact on Anglo-Irish affairs. Find out how in The Lives & Loves of Hazel Lavery by Lois Cahall.

And now for two sports-related women. Discover Effa Manley, still the only woman inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame, in A League of Her Own by Kaia Anderson.

As a tennis fan, I’m excited for this one! I do keep saying I’m done with reading WW2 fiction, but then along comes another one I just can’t miss. I have Ace, Marvel, Spy by Jenni L. Walsh out on loan from the library and I’m looking forward to mixing some espionage in with my favorite sport.

Lizzie McDuffie was a White House maid to Eleanor and Franklin Roosevelt. Find out how she exerted her influence and became a champion of people’s rights, in Shara Moon’s Let Us March On.

Here’s another one I really enjoyed: Jackie, a novel by Dawn Tripp. My review is here.

Stephanie Dray is a great storyteller and also great to hear in person. If you have a chance to attend one of her events, don’t miss it. I enjoyed hearing her talk about the writing of Becoming Madam Secretary at an event last year and then reading the book. Frances Perkins had a huge impact on US government. Don’t miss this one!

Portia Washington, daughter of Booker T. Washington, takes center stage in Piper Huguley’s American Daughters, a novel about Portia’s friendship with another famous American daughter, Alice Roosevelt.

Nancy Randolph may have married a founding father, but her life was far from carefree. In The Scandalous Life of Nancy Randolph, I tell the story from the points of view of Nancy, her sister Judy, and her enslaved woman, Phebe. Not read it yet?? Well why ever not??

A pioneering Black journalist, Alice Jones Rhinelander was at the center of a sensational divorce case highlighting issues of class and race in America in the 1920s. The Trial of Mrs. Rhinelander by Denny S. Bryce, tells Alice’s story.

I’ve yet to read Susan Higginbotham’s The Queen of the Platform about women’s rights champion, Ernestine Rose, but having read a couple of Higginbotham’s other novels, I know this one will be well-researched and gripping.

Last but not least, Katharine Wright, sister of the more famous Wright Brothers, gets her moment in the sun in Katharine, the Wright Sister by Tracey Emerson Wood. I made this list alphabetical, but am very happy to end with a sister!

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Phew. That’s a lot of books and a lot of American women. The British part of me is wondering what a list of novels published about notable British women in the last year might look like, and I honestly have no clue, but perhaps I’ll start keeping track of those too. It’s fascinating to look at this list and consider who has been written about, what fields they made their mark in, and what aspects of their lives and achievements these authors (all women also) have chosen to focus on.

But I do have to circle back to sister stories and just do a quick round-up for March. In case you missed it, I wrote about Big Things in Small Packages about two ‘little ladies’, the Adams sisters from Martha’s Vineyard. I also recommended Shred Sisters by Betsy Lerner, a sister novel I really enjoyed in February.

This month in sister fiction I’ve read:

The Martha’s Vineyard Beach and Book Club by Martha Hall Kelly

We Could Be Rats by Emily Austin

Blood on Her Tongue by Johanna Van Veen

Blood on Her Tongue was one of my favorite reads in another excellent reading month for me. You can check out all the novels I enjoyed over on Instagram.

Next month I will be back talking about sisters in the art world, but for at least this week I’m turning my attention to my own upcoming sister novel, THE PEOPLE NEXT DOOR. While lots of substacks are offering paid subscriptions, I’m determined to keep mine free and open to anyone who is interested in books and women’s history. You can support me, however, by buying, reviewing, and recommending my novels! So here’s another link to the new book, and yes, I will be bothering your inboxes later in the week with a post specifically about THE PEOPLE NEXT DOOR, including a behind the scenes look at the sister stories that drive the plot!

Wishing everyone a happy April!

Kate