A Life In Motion – Florence Howe

admin — Sun, 04 Sep 2011 20:14:05 +0000

Billed as a memoir of the foundation ofThe Feminist Press and the birth of women’s studies, Florence Howe‘s memoir A Life In Motion is a persuasive and passionate account of a woman’s life, the drive and desire she felt to have an impact upon the lives of people around her, and a testimony to the power of believing in the ability of the things you love to achieve that.
The focus on the early years of Florence Howe’s life and the way in which her early experiences informed and evolved into the foundations of The Feminist Press in the Family Girl section elevates A Life In Motion to the story of a life, rather than a simple factual account.
The founder of the feminist publishing house and emissary for empowerment has certainly led an exciting life, uniting adventure and academia, radical views and writing. Detail of the want and deprivation encountered is at times shocking, the perseverance striking, and the emotional turmoil all very real and it is this detail that enables the book to lift The Feminist Press from the corridors of the University of Chicago into a powerful force.
Much of the support for the book has praised the book’s role in telling a story of social emancipation, global feminism and intellectual development. This is all there, rich in detail, testimony to Miss Howe’s belief that ‘history is still our most important weapon.’
Eleven years in the making, this is an interesting look at a woman’s life and certainly reinforces the belief that for some at least, the personal has had a hugely political impact.
Although it may be verboten as a female writer, I don’t really think of myself as a feminist. The advantage of this of course is that I can review Florence Howe’s A Life In Motion from a literary perspective, rather than through the rosy glasses of a political agenda.
It does however mean that my interest levels began to wane, and I feel the book is a bit long for the casual reader. As such its potential power to spread the word amongst those who are unaware of The Feminist Press, and change the impression of feminism from a bra-burning political version of PMT to a belief system and way of the world, is limited.
http://forbookssake.net/2011/08/31/a-life-in-motion-by-florence-howe/

A Life In Motion – and so she thinks

A Life In Motion – Florence Howe