Being a woman who is getting older is complicated. You’re supposed to be mature and wise enough to age with grace and dignity, even though the primary women being reflected to you in media are eternally young. Even our icons of older womanhood have been gifted with genetics and wealth to make them certainly appear younger than their age. With an image obsessed culture, women’s intelligence and wit are generally overlooked, and once that face has aged surely, she has even less to offer. Meanwhile, your body betrays you more and more. Your body aches more, minor setbacks like a cold become serious obstacles. To put it bluntly, it sucks and I’ve yet to meet any aging woman immune from this push and pull.
I’m not here to tell you that Sharon Blackie and Angharad Wynne have the answer, but they are certainly offering something with “Wise Women: Tales of Midlife and Beyond.” Blackie and Wynne scoured through myths, fairy tales, folk songs, and more to find noteworthy female characters that aren’t young princesses but grown women. From main character to important background roles, “Wise Women” pulls on sources from Siberia, Germany, Scotland, Croatia, England, Wales, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Russia, France, and more. Given the time and resources, I would have loved to see the countries of Africa represented, or perhaps China, where Westerners are told the elderly are given more respect. However, I won’t be too bitter on representation since this book clocks in at over 300 pages! Perhaps a “Wise Woman” 2?
Most of the stories shared include insights and reflections from the authors afterwards. This is helpful because occasionally I would read a bit and think, that’s awful, but viewed through Blackie and Wynne’s offered perspective I look again to find a story liberating. Sometimes they offered context that is needed to get the most out of it.
What happens if you grow up hearing not just stories of young damsels and princesses, but also clever wives and secretive grandmothers? That’s what Sharon Blackie and Angharad Wynne hope to find out with “Wise Women.” Would we raise children that view women as more whole and complete beings, greater than just a youthful visage? I enjoyed “Wise Women” immensely, and particularly with the holiday gift giving season coming, I recommend it as a gift for most ages. Whether it’s for a parent to read to their child, a women’s reading group, or a grandmother, a teenager, any human!
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