Invisible Women

by Caroline Criado Perez

Hardcover, 411 pages

English language

Published by Penguin Random House.

ISBN:: 978-1-78474-172-3

(47 reviews)

Data is fundamental to the modern world. From economic development to health care to education and public policy, we rely on numbers to allocate resources and make crucial decisions. But because so much data fails to take into account gender, because it treats men as the default and women as atypical, bias and discrimination are baked into our systems. And women pay tremendous costs for this insidious bias, in time, in money, and often with their lives.

Celebrated feminist advocate Caroline Criado Perez investigates this shocking root cause of gender inequality in the award-winning, #1 international bestseller Invisible Women. Examining the home, the workplace, the public square, the doctor’s office, and more, Criado Perez unearths a dangerous pattern in data and its consequences on women’s lives. Product designers use a “one-size-fits-all” approach to everything from pianos to cell phones to voice recognition software, when in fact this approach is designed …

Cities prioritize men’s needs when designing public transportation, roads, and even snow removal, neglecting to consider women’s safety or unique responsibilities and travel patterns. And in medical research, women have largely been excluded from studies and textbooks, leaving them chronically misunderstood, mistreated, and misdiagnosed.

Built on hundreds of studies in the United States, in the United Kingdom, and around the world, and written with energy, wit, and sparkling intelligence, this is a groundbreaking, highly readable exposé that will change the way you look at the world.

8 editions

Jens reviewed Invisible Women by Caroline Criado Perez

Review of 'Invisible Women' on 'Goodreads'

No rating

An important and frustrating read, this book had me frowning whenever I picked it up. Which terrible negligence would I encounter in the next chapter?
The gender data gap - the fact that we, as a society, know much less about women and their lives in nearly every aspect - is so unbelievably wide, and discouragingly unknown (or disregarded?) that it was hard to believe this book wasn't written much sooner.
Medicine and employment, taxes and public services, democracy and business - Caroline Criado Pérez shows, after years of meticulous research, just how bad the situation really is for women. The only way out? More research in the short run, and a much better representation of women in all positions of power.

Two aspects made me like this book less than I had anticipated.

- It's frustrating to read because of its content, but also because of its style. Countless sentences begin with variations of the phrase "A study showed that..." or "Women are more likely to...". Which engaging ways would there have been to present this wealth of data? Personally, I would have liked graphs and diagrams to replace some of the text - the way it is now, many chapters felt extremely repetitive, and made reading even more unpleasant.

- There is no mention of queer people, including trans women non-binary people, whatsoever. I do not know why the author chose to exclude these people whose position in society is evidently one of vulnerability because they live outside the criticized "male standard".
For people who are interested in this aspect, I strongly recommend [a:Kevin Guyan|21451111|Kevin Guyan|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png]'s 2022 book [b:Queer Data: Using Gender, Sex and Sexuality Data for Action|60455025|Queer Data Using Gender, Sex and Sexuality Data for Action (Bloomsbury Studies in Digital Cultures)|Kevin Guyan|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1645329183l/60455025.SY75.jpg|90737419], which sheds light on the importance of gathering data on queer people, including trans women, in general. (See my review on Goodreads.)

Robin Syl reviewed Invisible Women by Caroline Criado Perez

Review of 'Invisible Women' on 'Goodreads'

5 stars

This really puts the world in a new perspective I haven't realized before. You'll start to get mad at how the world is designed with bias.

Martuparty8wii reviewed Invisible Women by Caroline Criado Perez

Review of 'Invisible Women' on 'Goodreads'

4 stars

This book focuses on an important data gap, that is present in every subject of human knowledge: the point of view of women. It definitely changed my perspective and how I see the world.

Still, in my opinion "Invisible women" too has an important data gap: since it only considers male and female experiences, it completely ignores the points of view of all Trans and Intersex people, and of everyone who doesn't fit the binary. It was a bit of a disappointment seeing the author missing her own point and excluding the often ignored but very interesting experiences of queer people just because she has not lived through the same discrimination as them.

Valentino reviewed Invisible Women by Caroline Criado Perez

Review of 'Invisible Women' on 'Goodreads'

5 stars

A revealing book which sharply digs into the many distortions induced by the gender data gap, which unfortunately permeates all industries, at every level. This book should be a required reading for everyone.