Quines by Gerda Stevenson celebrates the women of Scotland

From The National:

The book features portraits in poetry, most in English, a third in Scots, which tell the story of 57 individual women and a football team – the 11 Scottish women who beat England 3-0 in Edinburgh in May, 1881, the first recorded international women’s match, while the second game a few days later in Glasgow was abandoned when male protestors ran on to the pitch.

“I used many sources of information,” explained Stevenson, “especially the Biographical Dictionary of Scottish Women which is a fantastic resource, and googling, and talking to people, and buying second-hand books about these women, many of which are out of print. It’s not that they were written out of history, it’s just that were never written in.”

National columnist Lesley Riddoch’s verdict is straightforward: “Quines is a vivid explosion of thought, description and bold opinion, clothing Scots history at last with the myriad contribution of its women. This is a wonderful, life-affirming book.”