Untamed Tongues: Wild Words by Wild Women (1993)

Untamed tongues: Wild Words by Wild Women was written by Autumn Stephens and published by Conari Press. Conari Press is committed to publishing books that will make a difference in people’s lives, with women’s and social’s issues being two topics they focus on. This meant Untamed Tongues: Wild Words by Wild Women was a great fit for  Conari press as it is a book on quotes by 200 women which help make a difference to American society. Stephens was born in New Mexico and has had various jobs in her life that helped her write this book. These include; phone sex script writer, composer of fraudulent Tarot prognostications and special investigator" for the State Bar of California. She has wrote several other books similar to Untamed tongues; including Feisty First Ladies and Other Unforgettable White House Women’ which looks at memorable women in the white house and how they did more than just be a dignified background figure.

The book contains quotes from over 200 women who had helped change and improve the American society throughout history.  There are women from all aspects of society whether that me a Hollywood actress or a normal feminist. The book makes sure there is quotes from all perspective of the American society. The quotes are about a range of topics from; sexuality and men to politics and the family. While the women used are also from a wide variety whether it be a Hollywood star or just an everyday feminist. Many of the quotes in the book use a satirical humour to display their view such as the quote by Linda Ronnstadt stating:

“I wish I had as much in bed as I get in the newspapers.”

Using ‘tongue in cheek’ humour she can show the issue of sexualizing and gossip surrounded by women in Tabloids.   It was not just issue which are quoted by women to but also humour statements about their views on the political issues of the time. As seen with Stella Adler quoting:

‘I would live in a communist country providing I was the queen.”

There are many other examples throughout the book varying women’s views from things from Sex to Religion. Sarcasm is also a key tone in many of the quotes in the book and emphasizes the undertone irritation some of the women feel due to the derogating way they are often view. Jean Kerr shows this with

“I’m tired of all this non-sense about beauty being only skin-deep. That’s deep enough. What do you want, an adorable pancreas?”

The book was released in 1993 and shows that at the time women had many views not only on men but also on politics that surround them. It was during the third wave feminism and helped highlight some of the key issues women felt during the time. Not only was it able to show issues but also was relevant to the political era at the time proving women are not only interested in politics but as equal as male to delve into it.