It's rare for me to enjoy every story in a collection, but I absolutely adored everything about this book.
The stories were easy to read, and the girls were badass, amazing, diverse, RADICAL.
It makes me realize how little I know about girls in other cultures, and it makes me want to read more! I know this is the second in a series, and I haven't read the first yet, so I think I'll have to remedy that.

The concept is fantastic, but I was disappointed that these stories fell flat. The writing was often stiff and affected, and it felt like the stories were being told to me (rather than getting to discover them myself).

This is such a great anthology for young women! Such a lovely companion for A Tyranny of Petticoats. (which is also worth a read if you haven't picked it up yet.)The stories are arranged chronologically so that the reader can travel forward through history looking at the world through the eyes of young women of all backgrounds. I particularly enjoyed the choice to represent women that often do not have a voice.

The anthology starts off strong, with the story of a Jewish girl who is more passionate about learning her religion than she is about learning to be a house wife.

Each story tackles a unique challenge in a young woman's life. Each young woman is strong and opinionated. I loved this collection and fully intend to purchase a physical copy for my own collection.

I loved this anthology, it spans from early 19th century to the 1980s and it paints a vivid mural of such different girls, all of them interesting and unique in their own way.
It's important to note the abundant presence of girls of colour and LGBTQA+ girls, with the presence of a trasgender boy, all depicted with care and sensitivity.
It was a fun read and, given that this book is the second one in a series, I will gladly read the first one.

The Radical Element is the second book in the A Tyranny of Petticoats series. Both books are anthology’s and can be read completely separately. But they both follow the main idea: strong woman in historical settings. I overall quite enjoyed The Radical Element, of course like with every anthology there are stories that completely blow you away and stories that feel like page filling. But overall I thought the idea and the execution of this book was well done. Especially as a non-American citizen I loved learning about the different historical events and social structures in the USA. Really interesting and educational, without feeling like you are getting a history lesson.

The Radical Element contains 12 different stories by 12 different YA authors.
◾Daughter of the Book by Dahlia Adler (1838: Savannah, Georgia): 3.5 stars
I really enjoyed Dahlia Adlers writing style. The story is easy to get into and for me it was a good starter story, because the Jewish community isn't so foreign for me.
Quite an entertaining story that I wish could have been longer. For me this could have been a full story, that I would quite enjoy.
◾You’re a Stranger Here by Mackenzi Lee (1844: Nauvoo, Illinois): 4 stars
I was quite hesitant going into this story, because I really didn't enjoy Mackenzi Lee's A Gentlemen’s guide. But this story pleasantly surprised me. I knew absolutely nothing about Mormons, but I was intrigued by their founding history and how they were treated by others. A cold, very dark story, which I found quite fascinating.
◾The Magician by Erin Bowman (1858: Colorado River, New Mexico): 2 stars
I think this story just wasn't for me. It could have been a really profound story about gender fluid characters, but the overall storyline was boring. I just couldn't keep myself focused on what was happing. (Which wasn't a lot to be quite honest.)
◾Lady Firebrand by Megan Shepherd (1863: Charleston, South Carolina): 4 stars
This story was so much fun! It gave me Zorro vibes for some reason. I really liked that a free black girl and a disabled white girl together formed this real life superhero. This story is so much fun to read, with even a little bit of romance.
◾Step Right Up by Jessica Spotswood: 4 stars
Another story I really loved. I am apparently very keen on circus stories and this story just breathed circus. Another one I would have loved to read the full story of.
◾Glamour by Anna-Marie McLemore (1923: Los Angeles and the Central Valley, California): 2,5 stars
I still don't know what to think about this story. I loved the overall thought behind the story, but I thought it was written quite messy and the huge plot twist in the end was kind of lost to me. I had to go back and reread to connect all the dots. I didn't love it as much as I would have liked to.
◾Better for all the World by Marieke Nijkamp (1927: Washington, DC): 4 stars
I never read an own voice story about an autistic girl before, but I really loved how Marieke Nijkamp brought this story to life. I actually loved that both sides of the story got some screen-time. It showed that everything isn't just black and white.
◾When the Moonlight isn’t Enough by Dhonielle Clayton (1943: Oak Bluffs, Massachusetts): 2 stars
Magical realism, I Always seem to struggle with it. And in this case I really felt the story didn't have the right click. It felt disjointed. Maybe the overall message and the magical element were a bit to much to adapt into a short story?
◾The Belle of the Ball by Sarvenaz Tash (1952: Brooklyn, New York): 3 stars
An overall decent story. It didn't blow me away, but it was ok. The story itself was quite entertaining, but the overall messages was quite bland compared to other stories in this anthology.
◾Land of the Sweet, Home of the Brave by Stacey Lee (1955: Oakland, California): 3 stars
Another part of American history I knew almost next to nothing about. Very interesting to learn more about the Asian-American background in the US and especially Hawaii. I would have rated this story higher if it would have been longer. Again I felt like a needed a little bit more information.
◾The Birth of Susi Go-Go by Meg Medina (1972: Queens, New York): 2 stars
I really disliked this one. The characters felt really inconsistent and the story was way to long. I missed a clear message in this story and I just couldn't figure out why the main character was part of this analogy about brave girls in history.
◾Take Me With U by Sara Farizan (1984: Boston, Massachusetts): 2.5 stars
Well this was quite a bland story. It started off as a really promising concept. But it was very short and it never really took off. It had potential, a shame to see it go to waste.


The Radical Element is an important book. It brings an important message to young people about fighting what you believe in and not being afraid to be who you want to be.

a few of the stories took a while to get into/didn't engage my interest as much but overall, I enjoyed the anthology and appreciated the inclusion of multiple WOC, whose stories were what made the anthology for me.

if there's another anthology like this one I would hope to see Native girls' and trans girls' voices & stories included.

This book was fantastic. It followed the lives of girls who were a force to be reckoned with. It was fascinating to see how much power these girls were able to exhibit in their various situations.

This is a collection of stories that feature girls who live on the margins of society in some way, and rebel against the expectations of society.

I loved the tension and pacing in the stories. They often ended right as something was going to happen, which left me wanting more. I’m going to look up other works by these authors, because they were all great.

One thing that bothered me about these stories was the lack of geographical and racial diversity. The first half of the stories featured white main characters and were set in southern United States. The one main character who was Mexican used her magic to appear white to blend in with the other actresses in early twentieth century Hollywood. Each of the girls had some other way that they stood on the fringe of society, whether in ability, sexuality, or religion but I would have liked to see more races and settings in the stories. The latter half of the book featured more main characters who were women of colour, but I wish they appeared earlier in the book.

Last year I reviewed A Tyranny of Petticoats , which came on my radar because I received it in a Book Mail box from Book Riot. When I saw The Radical Element on NetGalley, I wanted to see how the second volume of this anthology series compared. Thanks to NetGalley and Candlewick Press for the eARC! I adored this book for what it is, and while I didn’t love every story, it was a great end-of-the-week read.

The Radical Element is also edited by Jessica Spotswood, but you don’t need to have read A Tyranny of Petticoats to read this book. All of the short stories are self-contained and separate from the stories of the first book. The concept is much the same, however: the 12 stories herein are all about girls who are in some way “radical” for their time and place, and they typically follow a structure of the girl taking agency over her life and choosing, whether by striking out or striking back or some combination, to stand against society’s constraining expectations for her.

I’m not going to review each story individually, as I did last time. Honestly, the first few stories were OK but didn’t enthrall me. Part of that was just the settings—I have little interest in nineteenth century America, in the so-called “wild west” milieu, so those stories were already at a disadvantage with me. I know it had an effect, because I became much better-disposed towards the stories by the time we hit 1943. And I think the last story, “Take Me With U”, by Sara Farizan and set in 1984 Boston, was my favourite, both because of the time and the plot.

That being said, whatever your mileage on the various stories and their periods, the concept as a whole is well done here. By showcasing a different setting in each story, Spotswood reminds us that women have always fought. Women didn’t suddenly become scrappy, strong, liberation-minded people in the 1920s or 1930s or 1940s or whichever decade you personally want to stick a pin as the “start” of feminism or whatever. Women and girls have always fought for recognition, independence, autonomy, and we do them a disservice if we generalize our history to say, “Back in the ____, women had no power”. It is always, always more complicated than that.

In a similar vein, different stories feature different ways of fighting back. Some of the protagonists are physically combative; they defend themselves and use force, if necessary, to get their way. Some use wit, charm, or reasoning. Others find allies and escape, or simply slip away, an apologetic note all they leave as a trace of their presence. The Radical Element reminds us not to reduce “strong women” down to a single phrase or single idea. There are so many ways to be strong.

Also, this is a very diverse book, both in terms of its authors and its characters. There are Jewish, Mormon, Christian, and Muslim protagonists. There are white girls and Black girls and Mexican girls. There are abled and disabled girls. It’s a refreshing pantheon.

My critiques for the book aren’t really of the book itself, just areas where it doesn’t align with my own particular interests. Like I said above, not huge on some of the historical periods. Not huge on the focus on the United States (but again, that’s just the premise of the whole anthology, so I’m not here to criticize that). I really liked the one or two stories that include a little bit of magic in them, because I found that interesting. Magic always improves my historical fiction! Again, these are all just personal preferences, so if yours differ, you might love this book to bits. Or hate it entirely!

Still, if you at all are interested in 12 dynamic stories featuring 12 diverse girls in 12 different time periods in the United States, then really, you should give The Radical Element a shot. I want to see more books like this, more stories like these ones. Even if they aren’t always to my tastes, I know there are readers out there who will find these stories inspiring and entertaining. These are stories that should be told, and I am here for that.

My average rating was 3.9, so I rounded it up. My ratings were a little all over the place, with my favorites all being right in the middle of the book. It made starting the book and finishing it a little lackluster, but the stories in the middle were magical.

Daughter of the Book by Dahlia Adler - 4 stars. I really enjoyed this one! Rebekah was a lovely protagonist and I would read a whole book about her. A story about a Jewish girl wanting to learn and become a schoolteacher in 1838.

You're a Stranger Here by Mackenzi Lee - 2 stars. It hurts me to rate a Mackenzi Lee story so low, but I just didn't enjoy this one. There was a quote at the end that was really lovely, but it's about the only thing I liked about the story. A story about Mormans being forced out of their homes across the United States, set in 1844 when Joseph and Hyrum Smith were shot.

The Magician by Erin Bowman - 3 stars. I liked this one, but it's not one that's particularly going to stick with me. The plot was boring, but I did enjoy the main character. An orphan who dresses like a boy to get work desperately wants to move to California where she thinks she can find some family, set in 1858.

Lady Firebrand by Megan Shepherd - 3.5 stars. I really liked Rose and Pauline and their friendship. A disabled white girl and her freed slave friend are spies for the Union in 1863. TW: racism.

Step Right Up by Jessica Spotswood - 4 stars. This was the first story to truly grip me and I definitely could've kept reading more. Set in 1905 about a girl who wants to be a tightrope performer. TW: parental figure abuse.

Glamour by Anna-Marie McLemore - 5 stars. Anna-Marie McLemore just instantly elevates every anthology she's in and this was no exception. Her writing remains beautiful and her characters remain incredibly engaging, as always. Graceila Morena glamours herself as Grace Moran in order to be a Hollywood star in 1923.

Better for all the World by Marieke Nijkamp - 5 stars. Nijkamp's writing remains compulsively readable and Carrie was an absolutely wonderful protagonist. Again, like my other favorites, I could've read an entire book about her. Set in 1927, an autistic girl closely follows the Buck v. Bell case. TW: eugenics.

When the Moonlight Isn't Enough by Dhonielle Clayton - 4.5 stars. A really interesting concept and a really lovely main character. Set in 1943, a black family drinks moonlight to become immortal and the daughter wants to help out with the war effort despite the family's "stay out of it" policy.

The Belle of the Ball by Sarvena Ztash - 5 stars. This was really surprising for me, as I ended up really loving this story. It was funny and the main character, Rosemary, was such a standout. Set in 1952 about a girl who wants to write comedy.

Land of the Sweet, Home of the Brave by Stacey Lee - 5 stars. I always enjoy Stacey Lee's writing and this was no exception. Lana was another standout protagonist and I would've loved to keep reading about her. Set in 1955, an Asian-American girl (grandmother is Japanese, mother is biracial, and father is Chinese) auditions to be the new Sweet Maiden.

The Birth of Susi Go-Go by Meg Medina - 3 stars. I've read another book by Meg Medina and something about her writing style just doesn't fully click with me, I'm not sure what it is. This one was okay, nothing bad but nothing particularly great for me either. This follows a Cuban American girl whose grandparents are leaving Cuba to come live with the family in America and she doesn't know how to feel about it. 1972.

Take Me with U by Sara Farizan - 3.5 stars. I wanted a little bit more from this one. I didn't really get that feeling of fulfillment you get when you finish a story. A couple lines made me laugh, but my lasting impression is wanting more. This follows an Iranian girl who ends up joining a band in 1984.

I am often a bit leery of anthologies of feminist historical fiction because so many I have read have been overwhelmingly cis, white, and straight, and lacking in thoughtful consideration of class as well as other axes of oppression. I was encouraged by the list of authors on THE RADICAL ELEMENT (my personal favorite, Anna-Marie McLemore, another favorite Dhonielle Clayton, Dahlia Adler, Meg Medina, Sara Farizan) and I'm happy to say that my trepidation was entirely unnecessary, and this collection successfully leaps over the low hurdle set by white feminism to bring a collection of stories in which race/ethnicity, queerness, and disability are all part of what can be a woman's experience. The only shortcoming to me is that although there are a couple of gender nonconforming characters, at least one of whom may have a genderfluid identity, and there is one trans boy, there are no trans women included. I would have loved to see a trans woman author's take on the anthology's premise, and it sticks out to me as an absence. As far as I'm aware there are no Indigenous authors in the collection either, although Native characters appear in a couple of the stories. Sequel anthology, hint hint?

Anna-Marie McLemore comes through as always with a sweet, romantic story featuring a Latina protagonist and a transgender love interest (historical fiction with trans characters living the lives they want is a personal weakness, as is McLemore's writing). McLemore and Dhonielle Clayton both bring deft touches of magic into their stories, a welcome expansion of the scope of what "historical fiction" is. Dahlia Adler's Jewish story is refreshingly steeped in Talmudic Hebrew and early American Jewish culture. Meg Medina's story of a teenager discovering her Americanness as her parents struggle to bring her grandparents over from Cuba was heartwrenching in the best of ways. My least favorite was probably Mackenzi Lee's, which read as more familiar and hence less exciting than the rest of the collection, but even that was good enough to keep me from skimming it over.

Overall very satisfied with this and will be recommending it to friends and booksellers.

Such a great anthology, I loved these short stories!The stories getting straight to the point so you are not going to find too much depth in them!The short stories manage to make you learn historical details you might not have suspected, especially since the stories of those young women would be stories erased from the records of history.

I was sent this book as an advanced copy by the publisher via NetGalley for review purposes, but all opinions are my own.
This is the second anthology edited by Jessica Spotswood following several fictional women throughout the ages. The stories go from the 1800's to 1980's. I requested this from Netgally mostly because the cover is beautiful, and there are short stories by some authors that I love. I have not read the first collection of short stories in this series, A Tyranny of Petticoats.
I did not read all of the short stories because I am not the biggest fan of anthologies, they are not the best kind of books to binge-read, everytime you start a new story, you have to get accustomed to new characters, different writing styles, I prefer to read at least, a story a day.
I really enjoyed the majority of the stories that I've read, but, because I've not read all of them, I can't really give the book a rating so, I will just leave it to 3 stars.

A wonderful anthology about radical women who pushed the boundaries of society! I loved all the stories and the different feel and tone of each one, connected by the common theme. Would definitely recommend!

Short story collections are often more miss than hit for me, generally because they're...too short. Or they're rushed or packing too much story into too few pages. But when I saw someone mention The Radical Element on Twitter, I was intrigued. What might a YA short story collection be like?

It turns out YA short stories are perfect for me.

There's not a bad one in the bunch. They're self-contained and give us a glimpse into the life of a young woman who's grappling with familial, religious, or societal expectations. A few stories stood out especially.

Dahlia Adler's Daughter Of The Book explores the accessibility of Jewish education to boys and girls. The main character wants to learn, she wants more than what her father and community will allow her and other girls to do. She isn't ready to get married or to start her own family. She simply wants to learn and discuss and debate the Torah the way boys and men do so she asks her friend to help. And even though he has reservations, he agrees and can see how her questions and insights help his own learning. I really felt for her and also felt glad that my education was never called into question by virtue of my gender.

Mackenzi Lee's You're A Stranger Here also explored religion and gender, this time with the Mormon faith. This story had more to do with doubt and what to do when you feel like your faith is propped up on everyone else's. It also dealt with the very real persecution Mormons faced because of their beliefs that caused them to continue moving westward in search of a safe place to land. It has very real applications to what Muslims currently face in the US and we would be wise to remember this.

Anne-Marie McLemore’s Glamour was simply stunning. I loved the way McLemore explored identity and the masks we wear, both literal and figurative, through Grace, a Mexican woman who passed as white in order to work toward her dream of a film career. It also examines societal ideas of beauty and peels back the veil on Hollywood to reveal the racism at work in the 1920s, which is unfortunately still at work today. I loved how the character of Sawyer factored in and where he and Grace are by the end of the story.

My very favorite of the collection was Marieke Nijkamp's Better For All The World. It's an incredible story taking on eugenics with a neurodiverse character and there were just so many great moments and details. It centers around the Carrie Buck case in the Supreme Court and I don't want to say much more than that because I am so deeply amazed by how Nijkamp built the story and I want you to experience it for yourself. I wasn't familiar with the author before this but I promptly put Before I Let Go on hold at the library and I'm so excited to read more of her writing.

There are author's notes at the end of each story and these added another layer of insight. I really appreciated the diversity of the characters, whether religion, race, or sexuality. While there are probably still more white characters than POC characters, this is by no means a WASPy collection. I'm so grateful to have had the chance to read it.

I received this book through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

A friend of mine recommended me the first anthology, so when this one has been added to Netgalley I knew I had to ask for it. If you don't know what it's about, The Radical Element is basically an anthology about all those women who didn't fit in the society they were born in and who had to fight to get a chance to be heard.

It's always so hard to review anthologies, and it's still the case here, but the subject is so important that I can't think of another rating than 4 stars. This book is beautiful and delivers such a strong message: everyone should read it. It really empowered me and made me believe that you should be proud of who you are and fight for your right to be free to be whoever you want to be and already are.

I believe that the representation was good, but you should all look to #ownvoices reviews to be sure of it. It felt so good to read something so diverse because the world is and everyone should be represented in literature.

In the end, I really enjoyed the whole book: I loved some short stories more than others but overall the whole anthology was really good and well edited. I'm really glad that I read it!

To keep things clear in my mind, I'm going to post a little as I finish each story.

Daughter of the Book by Dahlia Adler
I have never read anything else by Ms. Adler before. Daughter of the Book is about Rebekah whose Jewish family lives in Savannah, Georgia. This book deals with Rebekah wanting to learn all the things the males get to learn in regards to their religion, but because she's female she is restricted. So she enlists the help of a boy named Caleb to secretly teach her all the things he is able to learn. This story was really short and quick, but I think the main objective of showing how much Rebekah wanted to learn, but was denied because of her sex, came across flawlessly.

You're a Stranger Here by Mackenzi Lee
So, I loved Mckenzi Lee's The Gentleman's Guide to Vice and Virtue, so I was really looking forward to reading something else by her and I forgot that she had a story in this anthology. You're a Stranger Here focuses on Vilatte who came, with her mother, from Liverpool to Illinois to join the Mormon religion. The story starts after the murder of Joseph Smith, the founder of the Mormon Religion. The story has a lot of upheaval about it as the settlement suffers from questioning who should take Smith's place as head of the religion and violence by people who want to push them out. In the center you have Vilatte who was brought there as a child so without much in the way of being able to voice a decision on the matter, and she starts to question everything that's going on around her. I liked that things are kind of left up in the air. You see a lot of fractures within the community after the death of Joseph Smith, kind of like a new beginning. You wonder what Vilatte will decide for her own life as she gets older.

The Magician by Erin Bowman
I haven't read anything by Erin Bowman, but I'm familiar with her Vengeance Road series. I'd say that The Magician could probably be considered a companion prequel. It deals with a girl hiding herself as a boy named Ray working at a stevedore in the New Mexico Territory on the Colorado River. She's trying to save enough money to head to San Francisco with the hope of finding the family she can't remember. Ray earns extra money by playing cards and being a Magician with the deck. So far, at three stories in, this has been my favorite of the anthology. The ideas of the changing landscape and the struggle with identity that Ray faces was nicely written by Bowman. I look forward to reading her other stories set in the Wild West.

Lady Firebrand by Megan Shepherd
Taking place during the civil war. Deals with two girls who are working as spies for the Union. I really enjoyed this one. I think the secrets and espionage while not outright action-packed still kept me on the edge of my seat waiting to see if they'd be caught. The main heroine, Rose, is wheelchair bound after being thrown from her horse. I loved that Megan Shepherd tackled a story (and she's not the only one in this anthology) about someone with a physical impediment and shows that just because, in Rose's case, they can't walk doesn't mean they can't think or contribute.

Step Right Up by Jessica Spotswood
All Ruby has ever wanted was to join the circus that has come to her town every year since she was five as the apprentice to the tightrope walker. Ruby has never felt like she fits into the same box as other girls her age nor does she want to, but she can no longer deal with the ever increasing abusive household in which she lives now. I like the idea that comes across that there is a place for everyone. Even if you feel like you don't belong in your current place, there is somewhere where people will love and accept you for who you are, and the circus is definitely a good metaphor for this consisting of a group of people with special talents or what many people might consider oddities especially at the time this story is set to take place which is 1905.

Glamour by Anna-Marie Mclemore
Glamour tells the story of Graciela who wants to be a movie star. But in 1923 there aren't really any movie stars that look like Graciela with brown hair, brown eyes, tan skin. So Graciela uses a special glamour taught to her by her great-grandmother that makes her skin creamy, her hair light, and her eyes blue. She becomes Grace. But can she truly be happy as Grace when it's not who she truly is? I loved the use of magical realism in this story. I wasn't expecting it, but I should have known because Anna-Marie Mclemore uses it a lot in her writings. I loved the ideas this represented of being proud of who you are, and the fact that who we are isn't always skin deep, it's often soul deep. It's a really lovely story.

Better for All the World by Marieke Nijkamp
This story so far has been my favorite and unless one of the remaining five knocks it out of the park, this will remain in my favorite spot. This story deals with Carrie who dreams of being a lawyer. Part of how she's learning is that she goes and listens in the gallery at current trials. One of the trials is that of Carrie Buck whom the courts are trying to determine if she should be forcibly sterilized "for the good of the world" due to the fact that she's deemed a "genetic threat to society". Our narrator Carrie shares more with Ms. Buck than just a first name. She also shares what many people might deem "abnormal". Carrie wants to fight for those who cannot fight for themselves. For their rights. It's a beautiful story about how the government shouldn't be able to dictate what happens with our bodies. It's steeped in actual history as Carrie Buck's trial / case is very much real.

When the Moonlight Isn't Enough by Dhonielle Clayton
Moonlight takes place in the midst of World War II in Oak Bluffs, Massachusetts where a family that lives in a mostly African American community feels more safe and protected than they have in their 191 years of existence. Yep, you read that right. Now, with the war going on overseas they want to keep their heads down a just live their lives. This has never been a problem for perpetual sixteen year old Emma until now. Maybe it's the fact that she's been living the same existence for almost 200 years, and she's tired of moving around to keep people from seeing how they don't age, never getting to have friends. But Emma wants to join the war effort much to her mother and father's astonishment. They don't understand why Emma wants to fight for a country that doesn't want to fight for them. It's a beautiful story, enhanced with magical realism.

The Belle of the Ball by Sarvenaz Tash
The Belle of the Ball is about Rosemary who doesn't want to attend the cotillion her mother has planned for her, and doesn't want to marry someone wealthy to live on Fifth Ave. She wants to be a writer. Specifically, she wants to write for comedy television for show like I Love Lucy. Rosemary has always gone along with what her mother wants, but it's time for her to stand up for what she wants. As a fan of I Love Lucy, I really found this one quite endearing. You can't hear Lucille Ball's name and not think trailblazer. I loved that, through Rosemary's story, attention was brought to the writers behind the scenes one of which was a female writer on Lucy that Rosemary wants to emulate. I found it quite telling that the lack of female comediennes is not something that has improved upon much since the 1950's. It's still a predominantly male field.

Land of the Sweet, Home of the Brave by Stacey Lee
Is about Lana Lau who is one her way to audition to be the face of the 1955 Miss Sugar Maiden. Lana is Chinese Japanese American, and in 1955 World War II is not too distant of a memory where the Japanese living on the mainland were persecuted after Pearl Harbor. I liked Lana's attitude. I liked that she's able to stand up for her family and the hard work they've done throughout their lifetimes, yet still be funny and approachable.

The Birth of Susi Go-Go by Meg Medina
Susana barely remembers Cuba as she was just a little girl when she and her mother and father left. While her parents still hold true to what they were taught. Susana struggles with taking on American traditions and fitting in with friends who don't understand what she's gone through. Meg Medina did a great job of really making Susana's struggles feel real.

Overall, I really enjoyed this anthology which covers the time periods from 1838 to 1984. I really liked the idea that we're seeing these young women on the verge of doing something, they're still in the stage where they're hesitant to make a splash or to go against their families's beliefs or what have you, and many of the stories end with them just taking that leap. We don't know what happens after they land, readers kind of get to fill in the rest on their own, but I personally felt like all the stories ended on this almost exciting anticipation of great things to come for these characters. That was something that stuck out for me as I read these wonderful stories. I loved how steeping history all the of the stories were. At the end of each, the author would give background info on the time period and / or historical events that may be happening within the confines of the stories themselves. I found that immensely interesting and thought it helped enhance the story I'd just finished.

I pretty much enjoyed all the stories. The authors who stood out for me were: Marieke Nijkamp, Stacey Lee, Sarvenaz Tash, Megan Shepherd, Erin Bowman, and Anna-Marie Mclemore.

The Radical Element is a collection of short fictional stories that gives unique glances into lives that aren’t usually thought about when one reflects on history. Reading these tales, I found that they both inspired me and made me laugh, which in my opinion are some of the best things that books can do. I’m typically not one to pick up short story collections, so I was surprised to find myself enjoying this book far more than I expected to.
This books consists of 12 short stories from the YA authors Dahlia Adler, Mackenzi Lee, Erin Bowman, Megan Shepherd, Jessica Spotswood, Anna-Marie McLemore, Marieke Nijkamp, Dhonielle Clayton, Sarvenaz Tash, Stacey Lee, Meg Medina, and Sara Farizan,. The earliest story takes place in 1838 with the latest one being in 1984. All of these tales zoomed in on a particular defining moment of their protagonist’s lives.

Here are all of my mini summaries/reviews for each of the stories:

1. “Daughter of the Book” by Dahlia Adler— follows Rebekah, a girl who thrives on learning and wants more than her expected future as housewife in her religious community. Sadly, this first story was my least favorite. It was very telling and the writing wasn’t very engaging.

2. “You’re a Stranger Here” by Mackenzi Lee— is about Vilatte, a young teenager struggling with her identity and beliefs in one of the first Mormon communities. The writing was very compelling and I loved how Mackenzi Lee expressed Vilatte’s struggle and confusion with her beliefs.

3. “The Magician” by Erin Bowman— follows Ray, a skilled cards player, who spends her days pretending to be a boy so she can earn enough money to follow the Gold Rush to California. I thought the character development was written perfectly. This was one of my favorite stories of the collection.

4. “Lady Firebrand” by Megan Shepherd— this story gave me Scarlett Pimpernel vibes and I loved it. I also found it really interesting to get the perspective of a wheel-bound character from the late 1800’s.

5. “Step Right Up” by Jessica Spotswood— this story focus on Ruby and her love of the Archer Brothers, a traveling circus in 1905. It was a compelling read but I felt that it was rushed and the problem was too easily resolved. I wish it had been better fleshed out.

6. “Glamour” by Anna-Marie McLemore— magic and Hollywood, need I say more? No, but seriously, this story was fabulously diverse and held such an important message. This story made me want to pick up more of McLemore’s works.

7. “Better For All World” by Marieke Nijkamp— follows Carrie, an autistic young woman who wants to study law. This story was amazing and the perfect speed. I often feel that short stories rush their plot or don’t cover enough, but this story was superb. I also loved how it was interwoven with a real court case (Buck v. Bell).

8. “When the Moonlight Isn’t Enough” by Dhonielle Clayton— this story was definitely unique. It hones in on Massachusetts during WWII but follows characters that are centuries old. Though it was a really interesting concept and I love fantastical elements, I felt that this immortality attribute hindered the “punch” of the story and weakened the story.

9. “The Belle of the Ball” by Sarvenaz Tash— aaaah, this story was so funny! It follows Rosemary, a high school student who wants to be a comedic writer in the time when women aren’t considered “funny”. Though I enjoyed Rosemary as a protagonist, I wish the story had been developed more. The arc of the story seemed a bit weak.

10. “Land of the Sweet, Home of the Brave” by Stacey Lee— this story follows Lana, an Asian/Hawaiian girl trying out to become the next “Sugar Maiden” (think posterchild for a sugar company). This girl was fierce and a total sass master. I breezed through this story and I was devastated when the story ended and I could no longer read from Lana’s perspective.

11. “The Birth of Susi Go-Go” by Meg Medina— Susana, a young Cuban immigrant, struggles to balance her culture and her family while also finding her identity in New York. This story was mediocre and I felt like much didn’t happened, but I will say that I completely loved the ending.

12. “Take Me With U” by Sara Farizen— the final story of this anthology follows Soheila, a young teenager who comes to live with her aunt and uncle during the Iran-Iraq War in the 1980’s. I loved the prominence of friendship in this tale. I also appreciated seeing Soheila’s development as she learned to stand up for herself. Definitely a solid ending to the anthology!

Honestly, I enjoyed the majority of these stories and considered a lot of them to be worthy of 4/4.5 stars. Truly, there were only a couple of stories that I didn’t enjoy. Overall, my favorites included “The Magician” by Erin Bowman, “Lady Firebrand” by Megan Shepherd, “Glamour” by Anna-Marie McLemore, and “Better For All the World” by Marieke Nijkamp.
Originally when I went into this anthology, I thought that all the stories were going to be purely historical fiction, but I was quite pleased to fine that a good chunk of them contained magical realism or fantastical elements. Other than my individual critiques of the short stories, my only criticism for The Radical Element is that I wish that more of the stories were based on real people. Yes, all of them revolved around real, historical events, but only one story, “Daughter of the Book”, featured a person that actually existed. I felt that this anthology would have had a bigger punch and been more influential if I known that there were badass women that actually did these things throughout history.
Overall, I quite enjoyed this book. I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys historical fiction, short story collections, or simply wants more feminist reads in their lives. I’m definitely intrigued enough to put the first anthology, A Tyranny of Petticoats, on my TBR. The world can never be too full of tales of badass women and I can’t wait to read more!

I give this book a 4.5/5. I gave 6 of the short stories a 5, 5 a 4, and 1 a 3.

My favorite story was Better for All the World by Marieke Nijkamp.

These stories are historical elements, beginning in the 1800's and ending in the 1980's. They follow twelve different fictional girls who stood up for themselves or for something greater in a way that was not the norm for women during their time.

This book was empowering, emotional, and so important to all the girls and women out there. I hope everyone picks this book up, and I can't wait to get my hands on the first anthology since I haven't read it yet.