A fun collection of portraits and essays about women who were, indeed, unwed and unbothered. These are impactful and interesting women. If Duval’s short biographies are enough to pique your interest, there’s a bibliography in the back for further reading.

Some chapter designations or essay placements felt arbitrary. Many of these remarkable women could easily fit in 3 or more of Duval’s designations.

A reoccurring theme is ‘born of wealth and privilege’ and ‘status afforded her the ability to shirk norms.’ History decides whose stories it tells and many of these women had an advantage in making their way into history. More rose from poverty and obscurity as society shifted to allow that to happen but the further back you go, the more names you recognize.

I enjoyed the art style used for the portraits. It was disappointing not every woman was afforded that representation on page. I’m curious what went into that decision.

If you know a woman who is tired of explaining why she wants neither a spouse nor a child, she’ll enjoy this. 4/5

Thanks so much to NetGalley for the free Kindle book. My review is voluntarily given, and my opinions are voluntarily given.

This was an amazing book, filled with short life stories of women who chose to remain single, like Susan B. Anthony, Louisa May Alcott and Dr. Margaret Chung. Many I had heard of, but even more I had not. I especially loved that there was a full-color illustration for each person, not just one or two.

I would like to add that Emma Duval should be credited here as the author and illustrator. I am guessing that was just an oversight, as other sites said she is an author and illustrator.

Firstly, I would like to extend my thanks to Andrews McMeel Publishing, Emma Duval, and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I really liked this book. Unwed & Unbothered is a beautifully illustrated guide that profiles single women across the world throughout history and explores the many reasons they chose to remain unmarried.

The author does a great job of showcasing a wide range of women from different cultures and eras, not just the usual Western names, and I really appreciated that effort. I also liked how the book was structured, I felt the short, one-page entries made it easy to read through, and the decision to group women by their reasons for staying single gave the book a sense of purpose beyond celebration. The illustrations were a lovely touch too, very warm and well-done.

If I had to nitpick, I would say there were a few moments where I felt the author made assumptions about how certain women felt or why they made certain choices, perhaps projecting more modern ideals onto them, when the historical evidence provided did not seem to support it outright. It didn’t ruin the book, but it was noticeable and slightly took away from the objectivity in a few spots.

Overall this was a warm, well-crafted, clearly well-researched, diverse, affirming read and I would recommend this to anyone with any sort of interest in the topic. I learned a great deal and I walked away really happy to have been exposed to so many women I had heard nothing about.

What does one do on her 100th birthday? And what can you accomplish in your seventies with limited lung capacity? How much of an impact can a cookbook have?
According to the women featured in Unwed & Unbothered, quite a lot, actually.

This book is a collection of both lesser known and famous female figures who accomplished something remarkable - while being single and firmly sticking to it. I appreciated that not only were the women highlighted here from different time periods but also from a geographically more diverse area, something that isn't necessarily a given when we see female historical figure.
As for the thematic grouping - I see the point, I just forgot which particular group I was reading fairly soon so it probably didn't have the intended effect for me.
The stories featured were often impressive and moving even, considering how much these women accomplished in spite of them often going against the flow. However I feel like the shortness of many of these was actually an issue for me - I would have loved to read more about those for whome more material was available. My guess is that it was a 100% conscious choice to keep everything to a certain length to not make the book unbalanced.
Finally, a small note on the experience of reading on the Netgalley app: the tiny letters and full screen images concept really didn't work well for me as someone who absolutely hates using her phone in landscape mode, so it's really a testament to this book that I didn't quit right after chapter one 😅

All in all, this an interesting collection of single women who - for one reason or another - chose not to marry, yet accomplished great things in various areas of life. It's not an in-depth look into any of their lives, so if you're looking for that, you'll have to take the time to do your own research (or perhaps follow the sources at the end of the book) but it works nice as a little book-shaped "hall of fame" for our single ladies who did amazing work.


Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read an advance copy.

Note: Free ARC provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

What a delightful romp into feminist history seen through the lens of singlehood. Duval’s extensive knowledge of historical women unburdened by restraints of marriage and motherhood is educational without being overwhelming. Jane Austen, Florence Nightingale, and Greta Garbo are all discussed, along with some perhaps not as familiar ( but equally impressive) women. If you are looking for a brief but detailed account of unmarried ladies and their legacies, start here! You will not be disappointed. I will be the first to admit that nonfiction is not typically my favorite genre, but I am so glad to have been given the opportunity to read this hidden gem of a book.