Book review: All Hail the Queen by Jennifer Orkin Lewis and Shweta Jha

[Ad – review. I was sent a copy of this book for review purposes and all thoughts are my own. This post also contains an affiliate link]

Have I mentioned lately how much I’m loving this boom of inspiring feminist non-fiction? I spent nearly thirty years primarily reading and learning about male leaders, rulers and otherwise inspiring figures and it’s about bleddy time we started celebrating the incredible achievements of women. There are already several books available detailing the lives of women who have made history and All Hail the Queen by Jennifer Orkin Lewis and Shweta Jha is another beauty to add to your collection.

Seriously, would you just look at that cover?! Abrams + Chronicle really do publish the most beautiful and inspiring books.

Here, artist Jennifer Orkin Lewis has illustrated the lives of twenty different female monarchs. With a personal interest in the fashion of their times, each is distinctive in its own way. It’s also a fascinating exploration of rulers you’ve probably never heard of before. For every Marie Antoinette and Queen Victoria there’s a Wu Zetian and Christina of Sweden, women who not only ruled but were true badasses to boot.

From androgynous builder Hatshepsut, to Cleopatra, the most powerful female ruler in the ancient world, these twenty women defied gender and societal norms and expectations to truly make their mark on the world.

Buy it on Amazon