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powisamy's review
5.0
One of my favourites of the year so far!
Being a History Student a book like Things A Bright Girl Can Do is clearly something that I would like to read, I mean a YA book about the Suffragettes movement, sign me up. Due to these high expectations, I was quite almost scared to read the book in case it did not reach them, however, I loved Things A Bright Girl Can Do and it quickly became one of my favourite books of the year.
Things A Bright Girl Can Do follows three girl's narratives over the First World War and their involvement with the Suffragettes movement and their varying situations. This was an aspect that I really enjoyed in the book as it showed the various different involvement in the movement due to their situation. Nicholls, therefore, does each narrative justice as all characters plots are interesting and kept me engaged.
Although I did like all three girl's narrative, Evelyn's did stand out for me as I really liked her relationship with Kit especially as he was quite supportive of her during the movement. Her plot also captures the trials of the movement especially force feeding that was quite difficult to read at times.
I, of course, really liked the relationship between May and Nell and it was really nice to see and develop a female-female relationship especially in the context of the period. I also liked the fact that the girls came from different backgrounds and experiences making it an interesting read.
The book also does a good job of pacing the story especially as it is set over the 4 years of WWI and does a good job of showing how this could change was still engaging throughout.
I guess this book did capture my heart in a historic way which is no surprise really as British and Women's History are some of my favourite types that I love to learn about and I just love how it was done and raced through it. It just captured my heart.
This book also has a very social history tone and uses the characters as people who could have been seen in the movement and I do just love this way of viewing history as it does give individuals a voice rather than looking at crowds. The last line of the book also just got me and I do just love this book.
The Verdict:
Things A Bright Can Do is a really great story following the Suffragette movement through the eyes of three different girls and captures the need of believing in something and doing whatever it takes to achieve it.
Being a History Student a book like Things A Bright Girl Can Do is clearly something that I would like to read, I mean a YA book about the Suffragettes movement, sign me up. Due to these high expectations, I was quite almost scared to read the book in case it did not reach them, however, I loved Things A Bright Girl Can Do and it quickly became one of my favourite books of the year.
Things A Bright Girl Can Do follows three girl's narratives over the First World War and their involvement with the Suffragettes movement and their varying situations. This was an aspect that I really enjoyed in the book as it showed the various different involvement in the movement due to their situation. Nicholls, therefore, does each narrative justice as all characters plots are interesting and kept me engaged.
Although I did like all three girl's narrative, Evelyn's did stand out for me as I really liked her relationship with Kit especially as he was quite supportive of her during the movement. Her plot also captures the trials of the movement especially force feeding that was quite difficult to read at times.
I, of course, really liked the relationship between May and Nell and it was really nice to see and develop a female-female relationship especially in the context of the period. I also liked the fact that the girls came from different backgrounds and experiences making it an interesting read.
The book also does a good job of pacing the story especially as it is set over the 4 years of WWI and does a good job of showing how this could change was still engaging throughout.
I guess this book did capture my heart in a historic way which is no surprise really as British and Women's History are some of my favourite types that I love to learn about and I just love how it was done and raced through it. It just captured my heart.
This book also has a very social history tone and uses the characters as people who could have been seen in the movement and I do just love this way of viewing history as it does give individuals a voice rather than looking at crowds. The last line of the book also just got me and I do just love this book.
The Verdict:
Things A Bright Can Do is a really great story following the Suffragette movement through the eyes of three different girls and captures the need of believing in something and doing whatever it takes to achieve it.
philtatosaxiom's review
4.0
This book was brilliant. I just simply loved looking through the eyes of these three unique protagonists who fought in their own ways to be listened. It was a pretty easy read but very intense!
I just loved Nell's charisma and personality: she is for me the one who was THE heroine of the book. She's the one who's evolves impressively from the beginning to the end. I have to admit that at first I had assumptions at how the author was portraying her but I just loved her in the end.
I got annoyed at May's petty and very childish attitude. I think that her naivety just ruined some passages for me, and I would have liked her to really feel how she hurt Nell especially, I did think that their "make-up" was quite quick, unrealistic and a bit fake? Otherwise, May was the perfect example of another face of women's emancipation and I liked that about the book. We had all different kind of behaviours among the movement which brought material and shape to the author's writing.
Evelyn' s story might be the one that I liked the less. I think that I got a bit disapointed for her that she gave up on her convictions so fast and especially, we don't get to know how she reacted when women got the vote. I would have had liked to get her opinion too as the three of them were the only protagonists of this book.
I just loved Nell's charisma and personality: she is for me the one who was THE heroine of the book. She's the one who's evolves impressively from the beginning to the end. I have to admit that at first I had assumptions at how the author was portraying her but I just loved her in the end.
I got annoyed at May's petty and very childish attitude. I think that her naivety just ruined some passages for me, and I would have liked her to really feel how she hurt Nell especially, I did think that their "make-up" was quite quick, unrealistic and a bit fake? Otherwise, May was the perfect example of another face of women's emancipation and I liked that about the book. We had all different kind of behaviours among the movement which brought material and shape to the author's writing.
Evelyn' s story might be the one that I liked the less. I think that I got a bit disapointed for her that she gave up on her convictions so fast and especially, we don't get to know how she reacted when women got the vote. I would have had liked to get her opinion too as the three of them were the only protagonists of this book.
zebac's review
4.0
Sally Nicholls is a super writer, and in May, Nell and Evelyn, she has created three engaging young women who are part of the Suffragette movement just before WW1. The book explores the impact of the War on their lives, and builds an evocative picture of the time. It ends a little abruptly, in something of a rush, but it is the sort of book that would really have enriched my understanding of the period when I was studying A level and churning my way through dates and impact of legislation. At times, structurally it feels a little disjointed, but there are moments of great power and insight.
annauq's review
4.0
Man i was sooooo excited when this came into our bookshop bc QUEER!!! SUFFRAGETTES!!! and i was not disappointed.
This was a really entertaining, lovely way to finish off the year. It’s fresh, it’s gripping, and thoroughly modern ya take on the historical novel. Issues of class and sexuality (race is... conspicuously absent) are explored with surprising depth, in the sense that they were talked about in exactly the opposite way i was expecting. One character cheerfully declares herself a Sapphist to another girl, and they gleefully make out without involving much of the usual angst. A mother is a “bolshevik sympathiser”; Suffragettes and Suffragists are discussed equally and at length; and the impact of world war 1 on women is laid out incredibly nuanced. Oh and there’s a lil bit of stuff about gender identity in it too. And toxic masculinity, and all the other good stuff.
14 year old me would have loved, loved, this book. 22 year old me still very much enjoyed it, and will be recommending it to lots and lots of 13+ year olds.
Mostly tho: QUEER SUFFRAGETTES WHERE HAS THIS BEEN ALL MY LIFE!!!
This was a really entertaining, lovely way to finish off the year. It’s fresh, it’s gripping, and thoroughly modern ya take on the historical novel. Issues of class and sexuality (race is... conspicuously absent) are explored with surprising depth, in the sense that they were talked about in exactly the opposite way i was expecting. One character cheerfully declares herself a Sapphist to another girl, and they gleefully make out without involving much of the usual angst. A mother is a “bolshevik sympathiser”; Suffragettes and Suffragists are discussed equally and at length; and the impact of world war 1 on women is laid out incredibly nuanced. Oh and there’s a lil bit of stuff about gender identity in it too. And toxic masculinity, and all the other good stuff.
14 year old me would have loved, loved, this book. 22 year old me still very much enjoyed it, and will be recommending it to lots and lots of 13+ year olds.
Mostly tho: QUEER SUFFRAGETTES WHERE HAS THIS BEEN ALL MY LIFE!!!
sqiddo13's review
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
pugslikemybooks's review against another edition
3.0
things a bright girl can do is a historical fiction novel set between the years 1914-1918. it follows three young women who all join the suffrage movement, fighting to win women the right to vote. they are each completely different girls who each join for completely different reasons, but are united in their shared dream to have a life of purpose and fulfilment.
the book did an amazing job of familiarising me with the suffragette movement and the lead up to the great war. it gave me a sense of what it may have been to be part of the fight for an independent and free life, and also provided a much needed insight into the part women played in the war. however, overall i was simply hoping for a little more from it.
the emotional power of the novel never really it the mark. this may have been due to the multiple perspectives, because it often felt that the author had to dilute the story slightly to make room for everyone's story. the book was still very impactful, but just not at the level i was hoping for. i also felt that too much of the focus was on the war rather than on the suffragette movement. i realise that this is how things were historically, but the fact that the book focused so much on the war took away a lot of the impact on women's rights it was meant to have. the suffragette theme was lost halfway through and didn't seem to be found again, which was incredibly frustrating because it was very strong in the first portion of the book.
but although this book wasn't perfect, it was a book that was needed. books following the suffragette movement intended for young adults are severely lacking, and i am very glad i read this. it was extremely informative without ever feeling too dense or ever info-dumping. reading about this movement was utterly inspiring and very powerful, even though i had a few complaints. it was informative, it made me think, and it made me very grateful to all these women for fighting this battle for us. it was crazy to read this book as a girl living in 2019, knowing that the level of injustice women faced in this book was accepted as the norm. though, it was also incredibly inspiring to recognise just the amount of change that has occurred over the past hundred years, and made me genuinely hopeful for a future society where men and women may have complete and total equality.
the characters were likeable enough, but weren't anything special for me. two of the main characters never interacted with the other main character, which was a little odd and i felt the story would have benefited if their stories had somehow intertwined. neither storyline felt like it was done full justice and often felt like they were two separate ones. a lot in this book just felt underdeveloped. the characters, the relationships, and the plot lines were all rushed in order to make this book fit four years, making for a patchy read that didn't feel complete.
nell has grown up in poverty and hardship in a large family. she is hard and strong and stubborn in a world that teaches women to be soft and weak and passive. she is also implied to be trans, and it was really great to see that representation in this novel. i liked nell well enough, but she sometimes had a the habit of aggravating me slightly. may, in complete contrast, has grown up fairly wealthy with her mother. her and her mother are both pacificts, quakers, suffragists, and feminists, and both have long campaigned for equality and peace. may is also incredibly stubborn, set in her belief that she is always right. may is a character that a lot of people found annoying, but who i quite liked. i appreciated her character growth and development throughout the book too. the inclusion of two gay suffragettes made my heart incredibly happy, even if their romance was a little too insta-love for my liking. it wasn't my favourite f/f romance out there, but it was very heart warming to see two seemingly unlikely people come together and find comfort and acceptance with one another.
evelyn was a character that i had mixed feelings on. i liked her well enough at the beginning, but i wasn't quite sure by the end. i think my main problem with evelyn was that i couldn't really get a grasp of who she was or what she believed in. this made sense, as evelyn herself seemed to have problems with figuring it out herself. however, it did make it hard to form any kind of connection to her or understand her on a deep level. even her involvement in the suffragette movement felt forced and like something she wasn't entirely sure she believed in. i never felt that she had a strong belief in the cause. evelyn felt like someone who wanted to rebel against the corrupt system more to satisfy her rebellious whims rather than for an actual belief in the cause. during the second half of the book, all thoughts of the suffragettes were pushed aside to make room for a romance that i wasn't even sure if evelyn wanted. even all of her suffering in the prison and everything that came before that was basically hindered invalid, because she almost immediately apologised for and regretted all of it. she ended the book as the housewife that she previously never wanted to be, and that anticlimactic ending for her left a bitterness in my mouth. all of her fights and struggles for freedom were for nothing, and she was left to live out the rest of her days minding over teddy. i had just hoped for more for her. (i would like to note that i have nothing against housewives. my problem lies in the fact that evelyn previously explicitly and frequently stated that she never wanted to be a housewife). she was someone i enjoyed reading about at the start, but not so much towards the end as her focus turned to being a housewife rather than fighting for independence.
as mentioned earlier, although i had hoped that the focus would be on the suffragette movement rather than on the war, i was very pleased the with the discussions of war that the book brought up. it showed the impact that ww1 had on women, men, children, suffragettes, the wealthy, and the poor. it accurately and honestly showed the damage of war and the impact it had on everyone, not pulling any punches on the harshness of war. the conversations on violence and peace were also very well done, exploring both viewpoints effectively.
sadly, i was hoping for more diversity in a book that i would have expected a lot of diversity in already. the f/f relationship representation was great, but i don't recall any active poc characters in the whole book. it was fabulously diverse in it's representation of the lgbtq community and class differences, but severely lacked in the representation of poc characters. the book would have greatly benefited if it had represented all women in the movement, not only white women. the portrayal of a woc and the struggles she would have faced would have truly increased the impact of the book. i also noticed a definite lack of female friendships in a book that i would have expected to be filled with them, which was disappointing too. another complaint of mine was that i would have hoped for there to have been more on page action, rather than being told second-hand what things the suffragettes had done.
things a bright girl can do was an important and powerful book that provided a much needed insight into the fight women went through in order to get the right to vote. it wasn't perfect, but it was moving and insightful. although the ending was quite anticlimactic and slightly disappointing, i can forgive the book because it had a very powerful first half. i enjoyed my time reading this book and would recommend it to anyone looking to gain more knowledge on the suffragette movement!
the book did an amazing job of familiarising me with the suffragette movement and the lead up to the great war. it gave me a sense of what it may have been to be part of the fight for an independent and free life, and also provided a much needed insight into the part women played in the war. however, overall i was simply hoping for a little more from it.
the emotional power of the novel never really it the mark. this may have been due to the multiple perspectives, because it often felt that the author had to dilute the story slightly to make room for everyone's story. the book was still very impactful, but just not at the level i was hoping for. i also felt that too much of the focus was on the war rather than on the suffragette movement. i realise that this is how things were historically, but the fact that the book focused so much on the war took away a lot of the impact on women's rights it was meant to have. the suffragette theme was lost halfway through and didn't seem to be found again, which was incredibly frustrating because it was very strong in the first portion of the book.
but although this book wasn't perfect, it was a book that was needed. books following the suffragette movement intended for young adults are severely lacking, and i am very glad i read this. it was extremely informative without ever feeling too dense or ever info-dumping. reading about this movement was utterly inspiring and very powerful, even though i had a few complaints. it was informative, it made me think, and it made me very grateful to all these women for fighting this battle for us. it was crazy to read this book as a girl living in 2019, knowing that the level of injustice women faced in this book was accepted as the norm. though, it was also incredibly inspiring to recognise just the amount of change that has occurred over the past hundred years, and made me genuinely hopeful for a future society where men and women may have complete and total equality.
the characters were likeable enough, but weren't anything special for me. two of the main characters never interacted with the other main character, which was a little odd and i felt the story would have benefited if their stories had somehow intertwined. neither storyline felt like it was done full justice and often felt like they were two separate ones. a lot in this book just felt underdeveloped. the characters, the relationships, and the plot lines were all rushed in order to make this book fit four years, making for a patchy read that didn't feel complete.
nell has grown up in poverty and hardship in a large family. she is hard and strong and stubborn in a world that teaches women to be soft and weak and passive. she is also implied to be trans, and it was really great to see that representation in this novel. i liked nell well enough, but she sometimes had a the habit of aggravating me slightly. may, in complete contrast, has grown up fairly wealthy with her mother. her and her mother are both pacificts, quakers, suffragists, and feminists, and both have long campaigned for equality and peace. may is also incredibly stubborn, set in her belief that she is always right. may is a character that a lot of people found annoying, but who i quite liked. i appreciated her character growth and development throughout the book too. the inclusion of two gay suffragettes made my heart incredibly happy, even if their romance was a little too insta-love for my liking. it wasn't my favourite f/f romance out there, but it was very heart warming to see two seemingly unlikely people come together and find comfort and acceptance with one another.
evelyn was a character that i had mixed feelings on. i liked her well enough at the beginning, but i wasn't quite sure by the end. i think my main problem with evelyn was that i couldn't really get a grasp of who she was or what she believed in. this made sense, as evelyn herself seemed to have problems with figuring it out herself. however, it did make it hard to form any kind of connection to her or understand her on a deep level. even her involvement in the suffragette movement felt forced and like something she wasn't entirely sure she believed in. i never felt that she had a strong belief in the cause. evelyn felt like someone who wanted to rebel against the corrupt system more to satisfy her rebellious whims rather than for an actual belief in the cause. during the second half of the book, all thoughts of the suffragettes were pushed aside to make room for a romance that i wasn't even sure if evelyn wanted. even all of her suffering in the prison and everything that came before that was basically hindered invalid, because she almost immediately apologised for and regretted all of it. she ended the book as the housewife that she previously never wanted to be, and that anticlimactic ending for her left a bitterness in my mouth. all of her fights and struggles for freedom were for nothing, and she was left to live out the rest of her days minding over teddy. i had just hoped for more for her. (i would like to note that i have nothing against housewives. my problem lies in the fact that evelyn previously explicitly and frequently stated that she never wanted to be a housewife). she was someone i enjoyed reading about at the start, but not so much towards the end as her focus turned to being a housewife rather than fighting for independence.
as mentioned earlier, although i had hoped that the focus would be on the suffragette movement rather than on the war, i was very pleased the with the discussions of war that the book brought up. it showed the impact that ww1 had on women, men, children, suffragettes, the wealthy, and the poor. it accurately and honestly showed the damage of war and the impact it had on everyone, not pulling any punches on the harshness of war. the conversations on violence and peace were also very well done, exploring both viewpoints effectively.
sadly, i was hoping for more diversity in a book that i would have expected a lot of diversity in already. the f/f relationship representation was great, but i don't recall any active poc characters in the whole book. it was fabulously diverse in it's representation of the lgbtq community and class differences, but severely lacked in the representation of poc characters. the book would have greatly benefited if it had represented all women in the movement, not only white women. the portrayal of a woc and the struggles she would have faced would have truly increased the impact of the book. i also noticed a definite lack of female friendships in a book that i would have expected to be filled with them, which was disappointing too. another complaint of mine was that i would have hoped for there to have been more on page action, rather than being told second-hand what things the suffragettes had done.
things a bright girl can do was an important and powerful book that provided a much needed insight into the fight women went through in order to get the right to vote. it wasn't perfect, but it was moving and insightful. although the ending was quite anticlimactic and slightly disappointing, i can forgive the book because it had a very powerful first half. i enjoyed my time reading this book and would recommend it to anyone looking to gain more knowledge on the suffragette movement!
katypotaty0908's review
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
genstrong's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Surprisingly delightful. I enjoyed reading this as an adult. Funny, clever and heart warming. It felt historically accurate while relating to a contemporary reader.
bookish_redpanda15's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25