Wonder Women: 25 innovators, inventors, and trailblazers who changed history by Sam Maggs; illustrated by Sophia Foster-Dimino

Watching Gal Gadot’s performance in the recent Wonder Woman film, you may have recalled a childhood attraction to talented, strong, and empowered female heroes. Maggs’ book offers brief biographies of little-known real life “wonder women,” who made stunning contributions in the fields of science and medicine, invention, exploration –and even espionage! Learn about the intrepid Annie Smith Peck (1850-1935), who was born and also taught in Providence, fought gender bias to obtain her academic degrees, scaled the Matterhorn and many other formidable mountains right into her 80s, and became an impassioned suffragist. Or Noor Inayat Khan (1914-1944), a gentle and sensitive young woman of Indian-American heritage, who ultimately became an operative for the British SOE using the code name “Madeleine,” bravely transmitting wireless intelligence messages from occupied France until captured by the Nazis and executed in the Dachau concentration camp. Many stories of brilliant and courageous women are to be found in this compact book, illustrated by RISD graduate Sophia Foster-Dimino. Also included are interviews with contemporary women trailblazers, websites of special interest to women in areas such as science, medicine, adventure, and an excellent bibliography for those eager to learn more about the fascinating women in this collection.