Equal: Women Reshape American Law

When I started to read this book, I assumed that it was written by a woman especially since the author wrote it with such reverence toward the law as intrepreted by women and for women. I t surprised me to find it was written by a man because he understands the needs of a woman and seems to know what women need.

An excellent account of those women who toiled before it became fashionable for men to want women to be treated equally. We owe them a lot.

Equal is definitely on my Feminist Must-Read Book List. I am a feminist (and a new attorney) but I had no idea how deep institutionalized gender discrimination went mere decades ago. This book was amazing.

Hard to believe a book detailing a series of court cases can have dramatic momentum, but this one does. It's a page turner.

Equal is an important contribution to late 20th Century American history. As one reviewer asked, "Could America really have been so sexist only four decades ago?" The answer is simply astonishing. Strebeigh is a master of non-fiction writing - anyone can enjoy this book - you don't have to be a lawyer. It tells the inspiring story of how (mostly) women lawyers fought tenaciously for 30 years for equal rights for women before (mostly) male judges, and finally achieved (most) of the equality that 50% of our people have always deserved and that we now take (mostly) for granted. It didn't happen without a fight, and the issues are still not completely resolved. You will never think about the Supreme Court or the Constitution in quite the same way again. I'm giving it to my daughters and friends for Christmas.

Excellent book, well researched. Could have been a little more readable, but fascinating.

This is an excellent telling of the stories behind the headlines on some of the most important cases and legislation affecting women's rights. It's a history book that reads as easily as a novel. Well-written, painstakingly researched.