Feminist writer and activist Jennifer Baumgardner has been named editor in chief of Women’s Review of Books
Feminist writer and activist Jennifer Baumgardner has been named editor in chief of Women’s Review of Books, the long-running publication from WCW and Old City Publishing that provides a forum for serious, informed discussion of new writing by and about women.
“Jennifer’s feminist writing and spirit of innovation are an ideal match for this important publication,” said Layli Maparyan, Ph.D., Katherine Stone Kaufmann ’67 executive director of WCW. A writer, activist, filmmaker, and lecturer, Baumgardner was most recently the executive director of the Feminist Press — the longest running women’s publisher in the world. She will be the third editor of Women’s Review of Books, after Amy Hoffman and Women’s Review of Books founder Linda Gardiner.
“The institutions of feminism are always important but they are especially critical now, in this moment of great upheaval, movement, and reckoning. Our institutions provide roots—ballast for the tall saplings of new feminist activism and vision,” said Baumgardner. “I felt the depth of these roots when I scanned the list of writers who’ve contributed to WRB over the years. People like Julia Alvarez, Patricia Bell Scott, Dorothy Allison, Susie Bright, Rita Dove, Jo Freeman, Erica Jong, Jack Halberstam, Peggy McIntosh, Barbara Ransby, Adrienne Rich, Grace Paley, and Ursula Le Guin compose the WRB history. I intend for the present incarnation to be infused with the voices we most need to hear within feminism today.”
To get to know her better, Sitara Zoberi ’19, a Wellesley College student and communications assistant at WCW, interviewed Baumgardner this spring for a Q&A article. They discussed the significance of women’s writing, third-wave feminism, and activism. Read the Q&A on our blog.
