Title: Things a Bright Girl Can Do
Author: Sally Nicolls
Publisher: Anderson Press LTD
Rating: ★★★★☆
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Disclaimer: I received a copy free from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
Things a Bright Girl Can Do follows three young women who join the fight for the vote. Evelyn is seventeen and from a rich background. She is smart and ambitious, but because she is a woman she can’t follow her brother’s footsteps to university. She is expected to marry her childhood sweetheart and settle into the domestic life. Enraged by her lack of freedom, she joins the Suffragettes. May is fifteen and is already fighting for the vote. However, her and her mother are part of the Suffragists who refuse the violence used by the Suffragettes. Nell is a working-class girl who isn’t just fighting for the vote, she wants the freedom to be who she wants to be, and she doesn’t have anything to lose. When May and Nell meet, the two fall in love. Challenges arise, and relationships strain, and the three girls discover just how much they are willing to sacrifice.
While I really enjoyed most of Things a Bright Girl Can Do and it discusses some really important issues concerning women’s rights, social class, and women’s sexuality. I do want to give a trigger warning for trans and non-binary readers as I do feel like there were aspects of this, regarding Nell, that I feel could be harmful to trans and non-binary readers. Things a Bright Can Do was also very white, ignoring the racial struggle and, especially ignoring prominent South Asian women who were also involved in the suffrage movement.
Things a Bright Girl Can Do was an otherwise good read that I enjoyed reading. I particularly enjoyed the fact that different social classes were portrayed. Seeing a working-class m/c is extremely rare, especially in UKYA. I appreciated the nuanced discussions regarding both Nell and May and their outlook on life and how the fight for equality both effects them. May fights for the vote, her family refusing to pay their taxes, and always has a warm meal on the table. Nell, a working-class factory worker, fights for fair wages and to live as she wishes. The two have a romantic relationship which comes under strain when their social classes come between them.
Evelyn came from a privileged background, but she was restricted in what she could do with her life. She wanted to go to University but was expected to just marry her childhood sweetheart Teddy. And while she loved Teddy and did want to marry him, she also wanted to be free to make her own choices. I loved her devotion to the movement, and I especially loved her relationship with Teddy who was supportive of Evelyn and the movement.
Things a Bright Girl Can Do started about the suffrage movement, but later showed that when the war started a lot of middle-class women exited the movement and put their effort into supporting the soldiers. The book also did a good job in portraying the horrors and brutality of the first world war.
Overall, Things a Bright Girl Can Do is an enjoyable and passionate historical fiction which I would recommend.
Advertisements Follow us:Megan (pronounced MEE-GAN bc her Irish grandfather refused to use the English pronunciation) is a 21 year old british blogger, history graduate, lover of books and expert procrastinator. She is anxious and introverted and is currently attempting adulthood. She loves potatoes which is often blamed on her irish heritage and can often eat her weight in food. She predominantly reads and reviews YA which includes historical fiction, science fiction, contemporary, and f/f romance. She loves reading about unlikeable female characters, positive female friendships & relationships, and is a sucker for a pretty cove
