Anastasia C. Curwood’s Shirley Chisholm offers a powerful reminder of what true leadership looks like. Chisholm’s unwavering courage and refusal to be sidelined make her a trailblazer we can all learn from, especially in a time when diversity and representation are still battles we’re fighting. Curwood captures not only Chisholm’s political achievements but her relentless spirit, which feels just as relevant today as it did in the 70s.

Reading about Chisholm’s journey, I couldn’t help but think of the challenges we face in leadership roles today—breaking through barriers, demanding a seat at the table, and leading with integrity. Shirley Chisholm isn’t just a biography; it’s an inspiring call to action for anyone determined to create change, especially when the odds are stacked against you.

Such an incredible way to commemorate a truly incredible woman. We are taken through the journey of someone undaunted by the volume and enormity of the work before her.

Shirley Chisholm by Anastation C Curwood is a book that explores the life and legacy of one of the most influential women in American politics. Chisholm was the first Black woman elected to Congress, the first Black woman to run for president, and a champion of civil rights and social justice. The book is not a light read, but rather a scholarly and detailed account of Chisholm’s career and achievements. I found the audiobook version helpful to follow the dense and academic writing style. However, I also enjoyed the book very much, as it gave me a comprehensive and nuanced perspective on Chisholm’s personality, challenges, and contributions. The book does not shy away from acknowledging Chisholm’s flaws and limitations, but also celebrates her courage and vision. Chisholm is an underappreciated figure in history and a hero to many. Her story is one I highly recommend reading.

A wonderfully written biography about a formidable Black woman who paved the way many others to raise their voices for the causes they believe in, and also fight for their right to be in positions of power. I was sad initially that I didn't know much about Chisholm but I'm glad to have gained some knowledge about her through this book,

What a wonderful biography on the great Shirley Chisholm!! The author captures the essential of Shirley Chisholm and what she has meant to so many in this country. While small in statue, she was a mighty force!!! I learned a great deal about her because of reading this biography. The opportunity to read this book was a treat, & I thank NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for this ARC.

This book is well worth the read - the author does a great job balancing Shirley Chisholm's many strengths with her blind-spots and flaws. I recently saw a documentary on her ("Chisholm '72 Unbought and Unbossed" named after one of her memoirs) and have been wanting to learn more about her life and her political rise. She faced many barriers in her rise - from racism and sexism and old boy's clubs tactics of shutting her out, keeping her from the table. She was ahead of her time -- she addressed systemic policy issues head on - including the need for affordable and accessible child care to enable mothers (and fathers) to be able to afford to work. She was one of the first to view issues through an intersectional lens and was able to align with others (NOW, other congress people around the ERA, etc.). She was ambitious and would not settle for being nominated as Vice-President and persisted in running for President even when the majority of her allies did not feel she had a chance. The book observes here that she often did not seek out advice from others - she was very strong-willed which is why she could deal with all she had to put up with for her entire political career. She was estranged from her mother and sister due to squabbles over an inheritance from her father, and ended up marrying twice (both husbands come off very well in this book as huge supporters of hers). The saddest part for me is that some of the very issues and policy changes she fought for we are still fighting for. This book gave me new insights and admiration into Shirley Chisholm as a politician but also as a person. As a nice touch, there is a photo and the end of the book with Shirley Chisholm and the author's parents (her mother had volunteered as the treasurer for her presidential campaign and her dad was a reporter covering the campaign). This book is much needed and overdue!

Thank you to Netgalley and University of North Carolina Press for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you to Netgalley and University of North Carolina Press for an advance copy of this wonderful biography!

I have heard Shirley Chisholm's name for so long but have never spent time with her life and her accomplishments and this book did a wonderful job of describing her life, her work, and the factors motivating her to serve her community. I appreciated how the author worked to balance her work with her life and I especially loved how she described Chisholm's coalition building, the heart of her work.

Chisholm's time as the first female and first black candidate for President is front and center in this book, but the author does a great job of laying the foundation of her service in New York and Congress, allowing the reader space to understand both who Shirley was and the era she was operating in. Its clear Chisholm was a strong leader who knew her worth and knew that even if her causes weren't flashy, they were important to working and impoverished americans.

I appreciate this opportunity to learn more about such an important figure in our country's history.

This book provides a fascinating inside look at a larger-than-life woman. It gives readers a chance to learn about the people and environments that shaped Shirley Chisholm.

My Rating: 4 out of 5 stars.

Received for review: I received an advanced copy of this novel from the publisher in exchange for my honest opinion. I was not obligated to write a good review, nor did I receive any compensation for writing this review.

Why did I decide to turn the pages? I am ashamed to say I didn’t know much about Shirly Chisholm before a few years ago. Since then, I’ve been searching for ways to learn more about her, and so when I saw the opportunity to review this one, I jumped at the chance.

My Overall Thoughts/Impressions: This biography of Shirley Chisholm is LONG OVERDUE! I have been searching for a book like this for a long time, and I haven’t found many options. So I was very excited to read this one.

This one is very dense and very expansive in scope. It seems to cover everything about Shirley—politically and personally. I think some readers may find it a bit dense or a bit intimidating, but I really enjoyed it.

I love that Anastasia Curwood decided to look at the woman behind the myths and discuss flaws and all. I always enjoy when books do that.

If you are looking for an expansive book on Chisholm that also explains the politics and happenings of the time, then this is a great book for you.

So why 4 stars? It was a bit dense at times; however, I found it to be well paced and well written.

Note: it wouldn't let me post on Amazon for some reason. However, I will try again. I'll also post on my blog in advance of Black History Month.

An extensive and essential biography of Shirley Chisholm. I'm sad to say the first I heard of Shirley was while reading Mediocre and I immediately needed to know more. This book gives a thorough history of Chisholms life and work and is well worth a read.

This biography of Shirley Chisholm is long overdue in my opinion. Anastasia Curwood did a magnificent job of making this political powerhouse a relatable woman with flaws like anyone. Very well researched and possibly a bit overwhelming for some, this text covers everything. I recommend taking your time with this one as there is so much information. I approached this book a bit flippantly because Shirley Chisholm is one of my favorite political figures and I know everything there is to know about her; thanks to Anastasia Curwood I can now say that with actual confidence...unless she releases a part 2.

I will definitely be adding this to my personal library.

I have heard and briefly know little of Shirley chisholm.

I enjoyed simultaneously learning about her personal life and political life.

Anastasia C. Curwood Shirley Chisholm Champion of Black Feminist Power Politics University of North Carolina Press 2023.

Thank you NetGalley for providing me with this uncorrected proof for review.

Anastasia C. Curwood’s biography of Shirley Chisholm is extremely dense. It is replete with immense background detail of the American context, the performance and intricacies of the Democratic Party, and gives similarly detailed attention to the way in which Black political movements impinged on Chisholm’s life, political and personal behaviour, and contribution to American, Democratic Party and Black movement politics. This comprehensive attention to the wider context has its positive features. However, it also presents a challenge to presenting a personable and accessible biography of a woman of such enormous significance in personal as well as political terms.

Is it worth the endeavour to find Shirley Chisholm? Or is the wealth of contextual material essential to understanding the woman, the times and the politics? I think that the answer to these are questions is probably different depending on the reader, and important to consider when approaching this biography. I found that I needed to intersperse reading this biography with other reading, but found this approach gave me the impetus to really come to grips with the way in which general detail seemed at times to overcome the Shirley Chisholm’s story.

Curwood describes the difficulty of writing a biography of such a figure and avoiding it becoming hagiography. She refers to Chisholm’s own memoirs and their omissions and inaccuracies and the lack of archival material. This biography is certainly no hagiography, and the contextual material works to overcome the problems presented by the lack of archival material and limited information from the memoirs. The introduction is a fine read, dealing as it does so well with the problems that the writer encountered, and helping me to understand those I found in reading the biography.

The story told at the start of the book is delightful, demonstrating as it does Chisholm’s strength, personable individuality, her concern for others at the same time as making a point, and her dedication to making a pathway for other Black women and men. This story then is well woven into the broader context. This is a pattern that if continued would have enhanced the accessibility of this book, and at times it is replicated to the book’s advantage. There are also some excellent illustrations which help tell the story.

Shirley Chisholm is such a powerful figure in black and Democratic Party politics I would have liked to have felt more closely associated with her story rather than the contextual story at times taking over. However, the other side of this notion is the value of wealth of information that is available through this biography of Shirley Chisholm and story American politics throughout her time, with an emphasis on Black and Democratic Party political endeavours.

Shirley Chisholm is one of my top anticipated reads of 2023 and it did not disappoint. Curwood does a fantastic job of intertwining the different parts of Shirley Chisholm’s personal and political life while keeping a good pace. As someone familiar with Chisholm, I still learned quite a bit from this book. Thank you to Netgalley and UNC Press for the e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

I was so excited to read this book, and it was honestly one of the first books I chose as a request via netgalley! Unfortunately, there is a glitch with the system where I cannot read this item on my iPad through the app, and I don't have an ereader. I have submitted a few tickets about this, and I am really hoping this issue gets fixed so that I can give a proper review in the future. However, I definitely plan to purchase this for our library, and appreciate that I was offered the opportunity for a preview!

This is a very interesting account of Shirley Chisholm. Whatever you think you know about her, please read this book. I found the book to be eye-opening in terms of life and political strategy. There are a lot of nuances that resonate with today's political landscape. This is definitely a biography worth readidng.

This book is one of the most meaningful books I've read in my lifetime and provides an objective and informative overview of the life and career of Shirley Chisholm. This book is extensively researched and there was so much that I learned from reading. For example, I enjoyed reading about how Chisolm nearly succeeded in establishing universal childcare in the US in 1971 and how in 1974 she helped raised the minimum wage and even worked to expand it to more workers.

Chisolm's commitment to Black feminist power politics set the bar for so many of our national leaders today and I appreciate how this book sang her praises and provided an overview of both who she was to her community and what she meant to politics in her time. I am so glad this book exists and it is one I will gift to my daughter when she is old enough to understand the history and heritage she carries as a young, Black woman.

Thank you to the author & publisher for the e-arc copy and thank you ancestor Chisolm!

For readers who don't know, Shirley Chisholm, in 1968 became the first Black woman elected to the United States Congress. She represented New York's 12th congressional district from 1969 to 1983. Further on in 1972, she became the first black candidate for a major-party nomination for President of the United States, and the first woman to run for the Democratic Party's nomination.

Her family was from Barbados and she thought of herself as a Barbadian American. She is one of the most significant historical figures in US history, and too few know her name. Her accomplishments are phenomenal especially given the discrimination she faced as a Black woman.

Although there have been previous biographies of Chisholm, this new offering from Anastasia C. Curwood is more in-depth. From the University of North Carolina Press, and while intended for academic audiences, the book's style is written in an accessible manner so that even people who are not academics can follow along, which is good.

The author breaks down the frameworks that Chisholm fit into, including Black feminist power, and explains why it is critical to remember that.

Readers wanting a more comprehensive look at the political landscape of the 1970s in the US will benefit tremendously from this text while balancing this with things going on in Chisholm's personal life such as her divorce.

The book also details her upbringing, as well as her family's history in Barbados, including her great grandfather, their enslavement, marriage records, and more. Discrimination as well as harmful racist incidents she survived are chronicled here. Interestingly, Chisholm thought that being from the Caribbean meant less racial barriers for her, and less fear of white people. However, she encountered plenty of animosity and this proved an obstacle during her Brooklyn campaigns.

Also chronicled are Chisholm's early educational experiences, her high school career and social clubs, university education including at Columbia University for early childhood education. "She studied while commuting on the subway and earned her degree in 1951 while also teaching."

Then, the book delves into the beginnings of Chisholm's political career, the people who tried to thwart her particularly in the UDC, and leading up to her first significant victory. The impact that her father's death had on her and the rest of her family is also discussed.

The book also provides an analysis of Chisholm's platforms of Black Power with Black feminism, which were revolutionary at the time, especially the intersectional approach to anti-racism and combatting sexism. Through health challenges and demoralization, the book talks about her efforts to fight back and keep on her path.

Other chapters examine her rise to Congress, the work she set about doing, her relationships with other politicians, the rise and fall of Nixon's presidency, and much more.

This text is vital for both public and academic libraries as likely the most comprehensive biographical work on Chisholm's work and life to date.

This is the most extensive biography of Shirley Chisholm to date. It explores her childhood, her upbringing and the source for her values, and her education. Her political life is explored in detail, culminating with her presidential campaign in 1972. There are also details about her political life after that, until her death on New Year's Day 2005. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC.

I was really excited to read a biography of Chisholm; I think she is a great overlooked figure in American history and that she never has been done justice. Curwood corrects that by exploring her life and her politics, showing a woman who stood on her convictions and provided the template for strong female success in male dominated realm.

Through Chisholm's campaigning, Curwood shows the importance of good political organizing, and how it is so influential to being a representative of the people. In looking at Chisholm's presidential bid, Curwood focuses not necessarily on winning (which she clearly states Chisholm knew was not going to happen) but on the goals. She puts the events in the context of the time and looks at the strengths and challenges of running as a woman in the late 1970s. It also is a fascinating insight into personality, as Chisholm's impressions and poetry are used to help readers understand who she truly was.

The book is acutely aware of the intersection of issues surrounding Chisholm, most notably Vietnam and poverty. We often think of this as a civil rights movement issue, but it didn't go away and wasn't confined to King or Malcolm X.

Ultimately, this book informs readers and gives those interested a roadmap with the goal of facing the system and to bring a bigger sense of inclusivity to politics.