Celebrate Women’s History Month with Karen Kondazian’s novel THE WHIP

March is Women’s History month. One way to celebrate is to read Karen Kondazian’s novel THE WHIP. The novel is about Charley Parkhurst (1812-1879) a much celebrated stagecoach driver (or whip) who in 1849 began driving for Wells Fargo routes from Sacramento to San Fransisco. However, Charley was really Charlotte. Yes, Charlotte. She kept her gender a secret from her friends who did not discover her true gender until her death. To them, she was a whiskey swilling, tobacco chomping, true grit kind of a man. Being a woman disguised as a man, it is believed that she was the first woman to vote for President of the United States. It was the the 1868 presidential election. She voted for Grant, of course.

Historically, there is very little known about Charlotte Parkhurst, so Karen Kondazian skillfully weaves in plausible fictious events with what is known making for an entertaining read that resonates with women—and men too.