Books › Invisible Women
Invisible Women
576 pages
An infuriating, deeply validating avalanche of data proving the modern world was literally built around the default male.
What it feels like
Reading this book feels like putting on a pair of glasses that suddenly brings a blurry, frustrating world into sharp, infuriating focus. It is a brisk, relentless drumbeat of evidence that validates every time you have felt a system was not designed for you, because it was not. The prose is sharp and accessible, translating dense statistical research into punchy, conversational arguments that hit with the force of a revelation. You will find yourself gasping, highlighting furiously, and reading passages aloud to anyone in the room. It is an emotionally galvanizing experience, moving the reader from quiet suspicion to righteous, data-backed anger. Perfect for analytical minds and feminist readers who want the hard numbers to explain the invisible friction of their daily lives.
- Mood
- infuriating
- validating
- eye-opening
- galvanizing
- Tone
- analytical
- urgent
- witty
- outraged
- authoritative
- Pace
- brisk
- Themes
- systemic bias · the default male · invisible labor · data gaps · structural inequality
- The writing
- Sharp, accessible, and punchy, translating dense research into compelling, conversational arguments.
- The arc
- Begins with curious disbelief, builds into a steady drumbeat of righteous anger, and ends in a profound sense of validation.
- Who it's for
- Readers who crave hard data to back up their lived experiences of systemic inequality.
Content notes
- systemic sexism
- medical neglect
- maternal mortality
- violence against women
About the book
Data is fundamental to the modern world. From economic development to health care to education and public policy, we rely on numbers to allocate resources and make crucial decisions. But because so much data fails to take into account gender, because it treats men as the default and women as atypical, bias and discrimination are baked into our systems. And women pay tremendous costs for this insidious bias, in time, in money, and often with their lives.
Celebrated feminist advocate Caroline Criado Perez investigates this shocking root cause of gender inequality in the award-winning, Invisible Women. Examining the home, the workplace, the public square, the doctor’s office, and more, Criado Perez unearths a dangerous pattern in data and its consequences on women’s lives. Product designers use a “one-size-fits-all” approach to everything from pianos to cell phones to voice recognition software, when in fact this approach is designed to fit men.
Cities prioritize men’s needs when designing public transportation, roads, and even snow removal, neglecting to consider women’s safety or unique responsibilities and travel patterns. And in medical research, women have largely been excluded from studies and textbooks, leaving them chronically misunderstood, mistreated, and misdiagnosed.
Built on hundreds of studies in the United States, in the United Kingdom, and around the world, and written with energy, wit, and sparkling intelligence, this is a groundbreaking, highly readable exposé that will change the way you look at the world.
Description from Open Library.
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