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pocketvolcano's review against another edition
5.0
The first (to my knowledge) book to take a stab at detailing the history of women's wrestling in America (as well as highlighting the history in Japan as well as looking at Mexico, Australia and the United Kingdom), LaPrade and Murphy knocked it out of the park. They do an amazing job of telling how women's wrestling came to be, the major stars that helped it's rise, the dry spells throughout as well as the combination of factors that forced WWE to change it's own women's division. They make sure to give both sides of the story on the "Fabulous" Moolah (a controversial subject in her own right), as well as spotlight the women who made their own marks outside of Moolah's grasp. The chapter on Japan was an eye opener for someone like me who wanted to know more about the history of Joshi wrestling but can't read Japanese. And I loved the sub-chapter on intergender wrestling, how LuFisto made history changing the laws in her own land, and the defense of it from the writers as well as quotes from women within wrestling.
The only criticism I would have is to have ended the book with a focus on Stephanie McMahon. There's no doubt she has had a hand in how WWE has changed it's presentation of women in WWE, but I believe two factors caused Vince McMahon (who holds the ultimate say in everything on the main roster) to finally start changing things: the rise of female athletes in sports outside of wrestling as well as inside it - the independents were where serious female wrestling was to be found in the mid-2000s; and the fans ourselves who, knowing what the women in the company were capable of, demanded change. This isn't to diminish anything Stephanie has done (after all, having 3 daughters of your own can certainly change your perspective, especially working in a male dominated environment like wrestling), but as a fan it has been aggravating how she has been shoe-horned into being the "face" of the revolution within WWE.
Aside from this minor criticism, if you are looking for an easy, compelling read on women's wrestling in America, this is it. If anything, I would hope that others might be inspired to build on this work and write books focused on women's wrestling in Japan (more extensive than what was detailed here), Mexico, Canada, the United Kingdom and elsewhere. The herstory of women's wrestling is fascinating.
The only criticism I would have is to have ended the book with a focus on Stephanie McMahon. There's no doubt she has had a hand in how WWE has changed it's presentation of women in WWE, but I believe two factors caused Vince McMahon (who holds the ultimate say in everything on the main roster) to finally start changing things: the rise of female athletes in sports outside of wrestling as well as inside it - the independents were where serious female wrestling was to be found in the mid-2000s; and the fans ourselves who, knowing what the women in the company were capable of, demanded change. This isn't to diminish anything Stephanie has done (after all, having 3 daughters of your own can certainly change your perspective, especially working in a male dominated environment like wrestling), but as a fan it has been aggravating how she has been shoe-horned into being the "face" of the revolution within WWE.
Aside from this minor criticism, if you are looking for an easy, compelling read on women's wrestling in America, this is it. If anything, I would hope that others might be inspired to build on this work and write books focused on women's wrestling in Japan (more extensive than what was detailed here), Mexico, Canada, the United Kingdom and elsewhere. The herstory of women's wrestling is fascinating.
jessuponatime's review against another edition
5.0
Loved this book! So much history and interesting stories about women wrestlers over the years as well as current wrestlers from different promotions. The pages (including photos) are in black and white but there is a small section in the middle of the book with really nice photographs in color that I loved.
theartolater's review against another edition
4.0
As a wrestling fan, the rising prominence of women's wrestling has been a welcome occurance, and this book lands at nearly the perfect time. A history of women's wrestling, mostly United States-based, this attempts to be as clear and direct about the personalities as possible.
The pros are how comprehensive the stories are about the important players, including people on the independent scene. The major con, however, is that the book is less about "the history and rise" of wrestling, but instead acts as a vehicle for capsule biographies of any important women involved. It becomes less a story about women's wrestling and more about "these are the people you should know from this era."
A better narrative makes this a five-star affair, but otherwise, a solid read.
The pros are how comprehensive the stories are about the important players, including people on the independent scene. The major con, however, is that the book is less about "the history and rise" of wrestling, but instead acts as a vehicle for capsule biographies of any important women involved. It becomes less a story about women's wrestling and more about "these are the people you should know from this era."
A better narrative makes this a five-star affair, but otherwise, a solid read.
capellan's review against another edition
3.0
I would have preferred a greater proportion of the page count to have been spent on the history of the industry - the rise and fall of certain styles, growth and decline of particular promotions - rather than the many, many profiles of individual performers, but on the whole this is a solid introduction to the world of women's professional wrestling.
spazzaferro's review against another edition
4.0
As an encyclopedic resource, this is a very solid book. It is not perfect, as other reviewers have pointed out. There is a lot of assumed information or information out of order. There's also a good amount of overlap that could use some additional editing. Readers would have benefited from an introductory chapter outlining a history of women's wrestling (and the all-female federations and promoters) before going into biography. At times I found myself putting the book down to google someone who had never been mentioned in previous pages.
There is also a bit of an unintentional bias that rears its head from time to time. There's a sentence about WWE's first female trainer Sara Amato that reads: "In fact, she's so good at what she does that she now not only trains women, but men as well." A word of advice-If you're writing a book about women's wrestling, how about not demeaning the women's division by pointing out that someone is a good enough trainer that they can work with men. I don't think this was malicious, but it is sloppy for a book like this.
I'm nitpicking a bit, but when your subject is women's wrestling, it would have been nice to have a woman on the writing team. That omission likely speaks more to wrestling fandom than to the author's knowledge of the subject. On that point they are very informed on the subject and I absolutely learned a lot from this book. I will certainly refer to it often, and think future volumes could (and should) follow. It's biggest shortcoming is not anyone's fault but time. This book was released in 2017, just one year before the women's division of WWE exploded with an all-women's royal rumble, an all women's pay per view, and the first ever women's match in the main event at Wrestlemania 35. It is optimistic about possibilities, but so close to missing the coverage of them. Perhaps future editions can include an extra chapter on this exciting period of women's wrestling and fandom.
Overall, this is a great introduction to the subject, but there is a lot missing from the story, and hopefully a lot more to be written by the athletes and fans in years to come!
There is also a bit of an unintentional bias that rears its head from time to time. There's a sentence about WWE's first female trainer Sara Amato that reads: "In fact, she's so good at what she does that she now not only trains women, but men as well." A word of advice-If you're writing a book about women's wrestling, how about not demeaning the women's division by pointing out that someone is a good enough trainer that they can work with men. I don't think this was malicious, but it is sloppy for a book like this.
I'm nitpicking a bit, but when your subject is women's wrestling, it would have been nice to have a woman on the writing team. That omission likely speaks more to wrestling fandom than to the author's knowledge of the subject. On that point they are very informed on the subject and I absolutely learned a lot from this book. I will certainly refer to it often, and think future volumes could (and should) follow. It's biggest shortcoming is not anyone's fault but time. This book was released in 2017, just one year before the women's division of WWE exploded with an all-women's royal rumble, an all women's pay per view, and the first ever women's match in the main event at Wrestlemania 35. It is optimistic about possibilities, but so close to missing the coverage of them. Perhaps future editions can include an extra chapter on this exciting period of women's wrestling and fandom.
Overall, this is a great introduction to the subject, but there is a lot missing from the story, and hopefully a lot more to be written by the athletes and fans in years to come!
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