Thursday, May 16, 2013

More Votes for Women Blocks and A Book Review

Jack's Delight: Ridicule as Humor
Still catching up on the Grandmother's Choice: Votes for Women Block of the Week.  These blocks are from January-February. 
I realize that I can either keep up with sewing, keep up with blogging, keep up with reading blogs & social media, or keep up with replying to emails but not all four in the midst of all the myriad of other things in life. 

Modern life is crowded. Isn't it?


Girl's Joy: An Ounce of Persuasion
True Blue: Too Smart
The Carrie Nation Quilt 





I thought it would be fitting to add the latest book I finished to this post since it relates to women's history and the changing role of women in America:  The Girls of Atomic City:  The Untold Story of The Women Who Helped Win World War II by Denise Kiernan.  I highly recommend this book to anyone who is interested in history in general, women's history, World War II history, America during the early to mid-20th-century, social history, or just a really well written book about something that is not well known.  The book was particularly fascinating to me because although I've read a lot of WWII books, I never read a book that focused on the Manhattan Project and development of the atomic bomb.     Most of the books I've read have focused on the beginning of the war or the war in Europe.  This book is more of a social history about the Oak Ridge, Tennessee, development and the workers, particularly the women, who worked there.   Intertwined throughout the book is a discussion of the discovery of fission and development of the bomb to provide context.  In fact, I think I liked this book so much because the author did a great job of putting gender roles, ideas, social mores, this part of the country (the South during Jim Crow), and the time period in context.  Ms. Kiernan also discusses the stories of women from a wide range of socio-economic classes, education, and life experiences and most importantly, includes the stories and experiences of African Americans at Oak Ridge.  In my opinion, this was a fascinating read and it is amazing to think that a place as large as Oak Ridge and the development of atomic bombs could be kept secret for so long, particularly as compared to today's world of everything everywhere being facebooked, instagramed, and tweeted.  If you read this book, let me know what you thought of it.  

If you made it all the way to the end of this post, here's a gratuitous Remy photo just for you!

3 comments:

Stitched With Prayer said...

Oh Gretchen, I love your blocks and I'm absolutely going to get a copy of the book The Girls of Atomic City! I love that kind of book. It sounds a lot like a new series I watched the first season of on Netflix call Bomb Girls. It's not great acting, but the story and topic (women working in a bomb plant during WWII) make it well worth the watching. Thanks for the recommendation...also, thanks for the "gratuitous" picture of Remy!!! I'm sure you knew it would catch my eye and my heart, LOL. Big hugs for you and nice scratches and rubs for all the furry kids (**shhh** and extra one for that handsome devil in the picture **shhh**) *wink

a good yarn said...

It's fascinating to read about the contribution of women in WWII and not just on the home front. Your blocks are wonderful as always as is Remy.

Sew Create It - Jane said...

Those blocks are stunning...I really like the first one!