Obstinate Daughters: The Rebels, Writers, and Renegade Women Who Ignited the American Revolution

The NYT bestselling author of The Girls of Atomic City challenges the traditional mythology of the American Revolution by bringing to light the essential role women played in the fight for independence.

We think we know the history and the figures of the American Revolution—the founding fathers and the great leaders—but we’ve only been told half of the story.

Spanning from early colonial resistance through the founding of the United States, Obstinate Daughters widens the lens through which we've observed the American Revolution by recognizing the women who played a vital part in the fight for our independence. Because without these heroic individuals, armies would not have been funded, bullets not forged, and declarations not signed. Without the stories of these brave humans, history is simply incomplete.

In Obstinate Daughters, readers will meet the woman who picked up a musket and took matters into her own hands; the Cherokee leader who warned settlements of impending attacks; the young women whose ingenuity funded the fight in the South; the newspaper and tavern keepers who kept a fledgling nation informed and motivated; and the woman who fought for her own independence, in a battle within the revolution, to end slavery.

This is the most intriguing, compelling, and long overdue history that’s never been told, and the undersung roles of these characters serve as a touchstone for all of us who feel our contributions go unnoticed. Kiernan masterfully carves out a place in history for impactful females and reminds us that history is always meant to be challenged.