A wealth of great women writers, from the likes of Charlotte Bronte+a5 to Toni Morrison, is clearly expressed with excerpts from their books to provide readers with a satisfying background on their views of art, growing old, growing up, and power. Original. An indispensable and extremely well-organized treasure map to literature by women. Contains brief reviews of 500 books by women, and seven cross-referenced indexes to identify books by author, title, genre, topic, and even country of book content. Highly recommended! The editors of this work-one is a teacher, one a writer, and one a women's bookstore owner-clearly love to read, are committed to promoting women's writing, and want to provide a useful guide for readers of similar inclination. The editors, along with some 30 contributors, have written brief descriptions (about 200 words) of 500 selected books. To be included, books had to be written by a woman and be in prose, in print, and in English (or in translation). The editors selected books they personally loved that represent multicultural and international perspectives. The entries are arranged thematically, including sections for art, family, identity, work, and 15 additional themes. The selections are somewhat unexpected, but they do include at least one sampling of the most acclaimed women writers (e.g., Angelou, Morrison, Weldon, and Oates). Recommended for public and academic libraries. Denise Johnson, Bradley Univ. Lib., Peoria, Ill. Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc. This lively and entertaining annotated book list would be a perfect gift for any book group member. -- New Orleans Times Picayune 500 Great Books By Women: A Reader's Guide , is a wide-ranging and articulate guide to books by women authors from around the world and throughout history. This unique resource is co-authored by Erica Bauermeister, who has taught at the University of Washington and Antioch University; Holly Smith, the manager of an independent bookstore for over ten years; and Jesse Larsen, a working-class artist and writer now living in Vermont. Joining them are thirty other lovers of words -- from engineers to teachers to mothers to artists -- women writing about books that touched their lives. Each 200-250 word annotation is written to give the reader a sense of the book's style and content. The annotations are organized by theme with seven cross-reference indexes. From the 13th century novel/diary of Lady Nijo to contemporary works by Toni Morrison, Nadine Gordimer, Isabelle Allende and Diane Ackerman, 500 Great Books By Women offers a world of reading to all. Erica Bauermeister is the author of The School of Essential Ingredients and Joy for Beginners . She lives in Seattle with her family.