This. Book! I could cry - I loved it so much! How to give a review? Alex is an amazing young woman who struggles with all the hardships life is throwing at her. There are so many parallels to the dragons and what women are going through. This is not really a sci fi story. It’s real life with a bit of magic thrown in and I loved every minute of it! The descriptions of the transitioning from female to dragon are so amazing. The feel of how terrible women were treated back in the 50’s is so frustrating since we aren’t that much farther ahead in the world today. The sisterhood is so sweet. Would love to see more of this story! Please!?!!!

When Women Were Dragons is a book that packs a punch. I normally don't like historical fiction, but paired with LGBT+ characters and dragons - I loved it! There is so much misogyny in this book that made my heart hurt for Alex. Alex lives in a world quite like ours' was, except every so often a bunch of women turn into dragons and the world forgets about it because it is embarrassing. It happens to her aunt, and her cousin becomes her sister. When her mom dies, she practically becomes her sister's mother because her father washes his hands of them. Throughout it all she is a strong, determined, hard-working girl despite what life throws at her. I recommend this to everyone, women, my LGBT+ friends, even men. This book is eye-opening.

Wow! I had no idea what to expect with this book, but it was a fun, angry ride. "When Women Were Dragons" follows the story of the "Mass Dragoning of 1955" in which woman who were VERY TIRED of the world's sexist nonsense transformed into dragons. The main character, Alex, is our lesbian main character in a repressive world. The tone of this one is unrelenting, furious, but not without a sense of humor. Despite its length, the pace of the novel kept things moving and I was always interested. My one complaint is that it felt very focused on white women and their oppression - while black women turning into dragons was mentioned, it felt like the author could have done a little more with the Civil Rights movement being just a few years down the road.

Recommended to anyone who loves fantasies and alternate histories!

The premise sounded really interesting, but the book didn't live up to my expectations. The story felt very choppy and disjointed. Relationships are key to the story, and some of those were well done, but I didn't feel that connected to the storyline or characters. I've never read anything by Barnhill, so perhaps her writing style just isn't for me.

Ever wondered what the world would look like if women suddenly started turning into dragons? Me neither, but once this book asked that question I desperately wanted to know. This speculative fiction novel focuses on the consequences of the 1955 Mass Dragoning through the lens of Alex Green, a young girl already weighed down by the secrets and unspoken rules of her family.

I LOVE the idea for this book, but some aspects of the execution were a bit choppy. The chapters about Alex are followed up with snippets from articles and studies about the phenomenon of dragoning, and while they provided a lot of national and scientific context I personally would have preferred that information to be worked into the narrative itself. I found the constant interjections to be disruptive to my reading experience. Additionally, I wonder if it would have been more emotionally impactful to leave all of this context out of the story so that we experience everything in just the same way Alex does and learn about what's happening entirely through her. I understand the desire to really flesh out the dragoning, but what makes this book special really has nothing to do with the dragons. The relationships at its center are what holds it together (IE: Alex and Beatrice, Alex's cousin-sister-not sister-daughter, good luck).

Finally, it's clear the dragoning is both metaphor and literal, but I think as a literary device it becomes a bit clunky. It begins to represent everything - women's rage, trans issues, sexuality, freedom from oppression, freedom from repression, literal spatial freedom, etc. I don't think that's necessarily bad, but I do think when all of these things get conflated it's harder to zoom in on clarity of meaning. However, some readers may actually love that the metaphor can be a stand in for a number of different things.

A very solid and quick read for me, but I do wish some things were a tad different! I'll check out other fiction by Barnhill in the future.

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<p>Review copy provided by the publisher. Also the author is a local/Twitter pal.</p>
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<p>Throughout history, women have been able to turn into dragons, but in 1955, there was the Mass Dragoning. Thousands upon thousands of women turned into dragons at the same time: wings, fire-breathing, the whole lot. Some of them ate their husbands. Some of them just flew away, to the mountains, the sea, the great beyond.</p>
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<p>This is a metaphor. Also, it isn't, they really do turn into dragons.</p>
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<p>Alex Green has one of the missing dragons-nee-women in her family, and the fallout shapes her entire life. In her proper small Catholic Wisconsin town, no one talks about dragons. No one wants to even acknowledge thinking about them, except for a few brave souls around the edges. Again, this is a metaphor. Also, it isn't, it's about dragons. They have talons, they set buildings on fire, they tear down walls, no really, literal walls. And Alex is fascinated, furious, torn, and her little cousin--now her sister--Beatrice--has a host of outsized emotions all her own that Alex has to help her manage. Because Beatrice and Alex are each all the other one has--that and a fierce librarian, some half-trustworthy pamphlets, and their own determination.</p>
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<p>One of my favorite things about genre books that embrace their own genre nature is that their metaphors can be multi-layered, because they embrace the concrete. <em>When Women Were Dragons</em> is about women's intellect, women's emotions, women's freedoms, and the ways the America of the 1950s and early 1960s stifled all those things. For sure. But also it's about dragons with scales and shiny gold eyes, and the way that it manages its genre nature keeps its ground firm, means that it won't get bogged down in one simple metaphor at the expense of other possibilities. There will be readers who want this book to be about sexuality--homosexuality, bisexuality--and it absolutely is, but not in an easy Dragons = The Gays way. And the same for transgender issues: this is not an easy Dragoning = Transition book. And you can tell that it's not, because The Gays are <em>right here in the book</em>, and some of them become dragons and some do not. And there are trans women in this book, and some of them become dragons, and also some of them don't.</p>
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<p>So as with <em>Tooth and Claw</em> before it, but using a completely different set of approaches to what segment of history and what kind of dragons we're talking about, <em>When Women Were Dragons</em> keeps a firm, sure voice in its period. It has beautifully passionate things to say about gender and sexuality and culture. It also wants to talk about, no shit, really, dragons. And I absolutely love that juxtaposition. This is one of the things genre does best. </p>
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HIGHLIGHTS
~femme rage (and joy) is draconic
~(but boys and trans people can be dragons too)
~too many grown-ups that should fall off a cliff
~suspicious knotwork
~scientists happy to be wrong
~dragons in space

Books that make you feel things are precious, and When Women Were Dragons made me feel so many things.

A lot of rage. (Not at the book!) A lot of joy. (Definitely at the book.)

In Barnhill’s world, women have a long history – stretching back into ancient times – of transforming into dragons when they are either capital-d Done, or filled with too much joy for a human body to contain. By the time the book starts, though, dragons are creatures of myth and legend, and surrounded by powerful taboos – they’re not to be spoken of, at all, by anyone, ever. And anyway, they’re definitely not real.

The Mass Dragoning of 1955 kind of blows that out of the water.

Or, well – you’d think it would. But the USA (and presumably other countries, although we don’t get much info on how the rest of the world reacts) just comes down harder on any mention of dragons, blacklisting scientists who try to study them, bringing journalists and news stations who try to report on them up on deviancy charges, and dragging activists in front of the Un-American Committee. It’s simultaneously extremely odd and extremely believable – on the one hand, it’s difficult to believe an entire country would work so hard, mostly successfully, to ignore the fact that thousands of people turned into dragons; on the other hand, it’s not hard to imagine why they’d want to. Facing the fact that the gender you subjugate could turn into dragons at any moment and flat-out EAT you??? I can see why that would make a lot of people very uncomfortable. And again and again throughout the book, talk of dragons is obliquely likened to talking about menstruation; it’s seen as a super feminine, somehow shameful, somehow gross thing that cis men are allowed to be horrified by. And thinking about how difficult it is to talk about periods even with a doctor…yep, I get it.

So I’m comfortable accepting this premise and moving on.

The Mass Dragoning doesn’t affect Alex the way it does some children – her mother doesn’t turn into a dragon, and doesn’t set fire to or eat her husband, so she doesn’t lose either of her parents. In fact, she gains a sister – Beatrice, the daughter of her aunt Marla (who did become a dragon) who is subsequently adopted by Alex’s parents. From then on Alex’s life revolves around Beatrice, whom she adores, and Math, the only thing she loves as much as her new sister.

It’s very hard to talk about the plot any more than that without getting into spoiler territory, but wow did this book make me feel things!!! Mostly rage, directed at virtually every grown-up in Alex’s life, because the way she’s treated is despicable. Some of it is good old sexism, like her school telling her to let the boys have the spotlight; some of it is horrific parenting; some of it is just not being there, or being useless, when a young girl desperately needs help.

But I also felt complete and utter delight, particularly in the between-chapters snippets discussing dragons in the past (I will never not be a sucker for fabulous worldbuilding) and the struggles of scientists and others who want to study dragons and the dragoning, and are punished harshly for it. Barnhill manages a very good balance between Alex’s story and the story going on in the world, and her dragons are properly magical and inexplicable, if not very clearly described visually. And any wishes I might have had for more dragons were more than granted by the last third or quarter of the book, when the pages become absolutely packed with them!

(Speaking of the worldbuilding, I’m delighted to be able to assure you that Barnhill has not forgotten that sex, gender and dragons are complicated, and both trans women and cis men are specifically referenced as being able to turn into dragons as well, even though society treats it as a cis women-only thing.)

The ending felt a tiny bit rushed to me, but it wrapped up every thread and subverted a few big expectations, which I generally approve of and approved of here! The ending is also satisfyingly perfect – as in, so packed full of wish-fulfillment it’s almost a happily ever after – after the anguish of Alex’s early life. SHE DESERVES NICE THINGS, OKAY? NICE THINGS AND NICE MATHS. In another book it might have felt cheesy; here, it works.

All in all, this is a deeply feminist work about the power in joy and rage, specifically feminine joy and rage, and how a patriarchy works to suppress that power. Conflating the feminine with dragons is a metaphor that will always work for me, and I think it’ll be a long time before I forget the image of women turning into dragons and flying to space to study the stars.

When Women Were Dragons is definitely one of this year’s knock-outs, and you would be very foolish indeed to miss it!

A wonderfully creative takedown of the patriarchy and story about the women's movement, but DRAGONS! Kelly Barnhill is such a creative writer. I found myself highlighting lots of quotes from this book on my kindle.

When Women Were Dragons, by Kelly Barnhill, is a feminist alternate history novel surrounding an event in the 1950’s where many women spontaneously turned into Dragons.
I adored this book—it is original, and interesting, and it’s impossible to stop reading once you start. I especially loved the idea of 1950’s housewives and females turning into actual *dragons* at such a repressed and difficult period in time for women. It was everything I could have hoped for and more, and truly unlike anything I’ve ever read.
I loved reading about Alex, the main character, as she explores the events and questions she has surrounding “The Mass Dragoning”, as well as her own sexuality, and this is definitely a book I know I’ll re-read and recommend far and wide.
I would recommend this book to anyone old enough to read and comprehend it, as it tackles many important issues in a very interesting way.
4/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.
Thanks so much to Doubleday and NetGalley for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

This book was absolutely nothing like I was expecting but I had such a good time reading it. I think my favorite part about this book, other than the amazing world, was the characterization. And the world was fantastic. The setting was atmospheric and descriptive. This book is about forging your own path, using your own choices as your stepping stones and honestly everyone should read it.
Full review to come on YouTube.

Fans of Kelly Barnhill's previous works will not be disappointed in this beautiful, fantastical, feminist alternate history. And anyone who *hasn't* yet had the joy of reading Barnhill's work will instantly fall in love with her enchanting writing style and creativity.

A tale that echoes real life and how American society treats women. This compelling story is one of family, identity, and love. Set in the 1950/60's in Wisconsin, Alex is the devoted daughter who must keep big secrets. Dragons aren't talked about, even though every one knows they exist. This is because all of the dragons are women (born or made). As Alex loses one family member after another, she grows up and discovers what the dragoning really is.

I spent the first half of this book mentally bitching about the heavy handed and belabored metaphor, which was a mistake. In retrospect, it's actually perfect.

This is one more in a recent trend of feminist themed fantasy novels where the women have had enough of being oppressed in a sexist and patriarchal society which doesn't ever let them reach their full potential. It used to be very rare to find a true expression for female rage and even now, it's not something that's well accepted in real life, but I am glad we are getting some narratives which explore this anger. I liked how the author combines a coming of age story with these feminist themes and some fantasy/scifi elements sprinkled throughout.

I am just getting out of a bad reading slump, so I'm glad I found something which made me feel better but I'm upset that I am not really in the right headspace to do a full review. But I hope anyone who likes these kind of stories will give this a try.

When Women Were Dragons is as searing as it is tender, and is altogether nothing short of a masterpiece. Barnhil once again demonstrates her incredible skill at pinpointing the beauties and tragedies of growing up and growing into a brave new world. Perfect for fantasy fans, perfect as a feminist read, perfect for anyone who just delights in a good story well told.

A well-crafted magical take on the rage woman feel under a patriarchal, misogynistic system.

Barnhill excellent writing will have women contemplating their own strength, voice and decisions.

I know that Kelly Barnhill is known for writing SciFi for people who don't think they like SciFi... I still don't like sci fi! I couldn't totally buy into the fact that women were turning into dragons and it made the whole thing schmaltzy for me. I know this will find huge success and we will definitely be stocking it at our store.

I really quite enjoyed this book and appreciated the metaphor of women getting fed up with the sexist 50s environment and trying to go beyond that by "dragoning." They realized that they could do more and live out from under the repressive, patriarchy and closemindedness that the 50s represented. I can't really say that I disliked anything about the book, characters, or plot as it hooked me right away, and I thought it was an interesting premise. I will say that this proof though really needs to go through another edit as it had a number of mistakes throughout.

This is an enjoyable fantasy novel that imagines what the world would be like if women could spontaneously become dragons. Tying "dragoning" to femininity, Kelly Barnhill creates an engaging fable that covers Alex's coming of age in 1950s Wisconsin. With "sources" dating from the middle ages to deepen the work, I enjoyed the way that Barnhill examined the ways that women are held back in service of men's feelings.

I will say that I craved more complexity -- Barnhill doesn't exactly find much nuance -- but for those who loved The Power by Naomi Alderman, this is a really delightful, and more optimistic companion.

Thank you to NetGalley and Doubleday for providing me a free advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This is a great book about anger, power, and resistance. It's beautifully written, as all Barnhill's works are, and it includes some great textual additions of other types of writing aggregated together, like excerpts from legislative testimonies and scientific studies. This novel also helped me realize that, while I can appreciate the goal and execution, I just simply can't LOVE specfic novels centered around oppression and gaslighting, since they so closely parallel real life. I realize this is the core of the premise, so this is a me thing, and the book is still stunning and so well done, but this is why I couldn't rate it as a personal favorite.