Because I Was a Girl Read online

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  CONTENTS

  TITLE PAGE

  COPYRIGHT NOTICE

  DEDICATION

  THE 1920s–1930S

  DOLORES HUERTA

  BONNIE BARTLETT

  THE 1940S

  GLORIA MOLINA

  SUSAN MORRISON

  WILLIABEL JONES DAVIS

  THE 1950S

  TRISH MCEVOY

  MARGARET SEMRUD-CLIKEMAN

  CHERI STEINKELLNER

  BRENDA BOWEN

  FRANCESCA ZAMBELLO

  BABETTE DAVIS

  HOLLY KNIGHT

  THE 1960S

  MARGARET STOHL

  ANNA PONDER

  JILL LORIE

  KATRINA ADAMS

  LIBBA BRAY

  THE 1970S

  MELISSA DE LA CRUZ

  ABBY FALIK

  REBECCA SOFFER

  TINA HAY

  ANJANETTE JOHNSTON

  ZAREEN JAFFERY

  THE 1980S

  ELIZABETH ACEVEDO

  JENA FRIEDMAN

  EMILY CALANDRELLI

  JANE HAWLEY

  JODY HOUSER

  LORETTA MIRANDA

  LENORE ZION

  KATIE BUTTON

  THE 1990S

  VICTORIA AVEYARD

  JOAN HANAWI

  NOOR TAGOURI

  TILLIE WALDEN

  THE 2000S

  QUVENZHANÉ WALLIS

  ZOEY LUNA

  MATTIE JOHNSTON

  THE 2010S

  NOTES

  CONTRIBUTORS

  SUPPORT GIRLS AND WOMEN AROUND THE WORLD

  SPECIAL THANKS

  ABOUT THE EDITOR

  COPYRIGHT

  Compilation copyright © 2017 by Melissa de la Cruz

  “The studio was dark and small…” © 2017 by Elizabeth Acevedo. “I fell in love with tennis…” © 2017 by Katrina Adams. “Because I was a girl…” © 2017 by Victoria Aveyard. “I grew up in Moline…” © 2017 by Bonnie Bartlett. “My father belonged to the…” © 2017 by Brenda Bowen. “They told me my anger…” © 2017 by Libba Bray. “There have been many moments…” © 2017 by Katie Button. “I was an afterthought…” © 2017 by Emily Calandrelli. “A closed mouth doesn’t get…” © 2017 by Babette Davis. “It was the 1969–1970 academic…” © 2017 by Williabel Jones Davis. “Design-Options, the computer company that…” © 2017 by Melissa de la Cruz. “When I turned twelve…” © 2017 by Abby Falik. “A few months into working…” © 2017 by Jena Friedman. “A few years ago…” © 2017 by Joan Hanawi. “The sweltering heat of our…” © 2017 by Jane Hawley. “More and more, women are…” © 2017 by Tina Hay. “I’m one of the lucky ones…” © 2017 by Jody Houser. “When I was young…” © 2017 by Dolores Huerta. “My parents made it clear…” © 2017 by Zareen Jaffery. “I grew up in a small…” © 2017 by Anjanette Johnston. “I told my mom I couldn’t…” © 2017 by Mattie Johnston. “I came into this world with…” © 2017 by Holly Knight. “As a little girl, I…” © 2017 by Jill Lorie. “High school has been much…” © 2017 by Zoey Luna. “One of my first toys was…” © 2017 by Trish McEvoy. “When the economy…” © 2017 by Loretta Miranda. “We already decided who is…” © 2017 by Gloria Molina. “In the history of the worldwide…” © 2017 by Susan Morrison*. “In the Sterling Memorial Library…” © 2017 by Anna Ponder. “When I was sixteen years old…” © 2017 by Margaret Semrud-Clikeman. “It was a beautiful October…” © 2017 by Rebecca Soffer. “One Saturday afternoon in the…” © 2017 by Cheri Steinkellner. “For sixteen years, I was a…” © 2017 by Margaret Stohl. “Growing up, it had been…” © 2017 by Noor Tagouri. “I started figure skating when…” © 2017 by Tillie Walden. “No one has ever told me…” © 2017 by Quvenzhané Wallis. “I have spent forty years…” © 2017 by Francesca Zambello. “The school psychologist sat quietly…” © 2017 by Lenore Zion. All rights reserved. *A version of this story first appeared in WellSprings, A Journal of United Methodist Clergywomen.

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  First hardcover edition, 2017

  eBook edition, October 2017

  eISBN 9781250154477