A Dirty, Filthy Book

Annie Besant’s Fight for Reproductive Rights

Michael Meyer author

Format:Paperback

Publisher:Ebury Publishing

Publishing:6th Feb '25

£10.99

This title is due to be published on 6th February, and will be despatched as soon as possible.

This paperback is available in another edition too:

A Dirty, Filthy Book cover

London, 1877. A petite young woman stands before an all-male jury, about to risk everything. She takes a breath, and opens her defence.

Annie Besant and her confidant Charles Bradlaugh are on trial for the sordid crime of publishing and selling a birth control pamphlet. Remarkably – forty-five years before the first woman will be admitted to the English bar – Annie is defending herself. Before Britain’s highest judge she declares it is a woman’s right to choose when, and if, to have children. At a time when women were legally and socially subservient to men, Annie’s defiant voice was a sensation. The riveting trial scandalised newspapers, captivated the British public and sparked a debate over morals, censorship and sex.

Drawing on unpublished archives, private papers and courtroom transcripts – and featuring an incredible cast including Queen Victoria, George Bernard Shaw and London itself – A Dirty, Filthy Book tells the gripping story of a forgotten pioneer who refused to accept the role the Establishment assigned to her. Instead, she chose to resist.

Makes the case for Annie Besant as a truly eminent Victorian, as brilliant and fearless as she was beautiful . . . [A] witty and entertaining account * The Times, Book of the Week *
Drawn from newspaper accounts, court records, and Besant's own memoir, Meyer's depiction of Besant fighting for reproductive rights, almost 150 years ago, is truly marvellous . . . Meyer succeeds admirably in his efforts to bring to light the story of a truly remarkable and courageous woman -- Kate Lister * Daily Telegraph *
Michael Meyer deserves hearty congratulations for returning a remarkable woman to centre stage, where she belongs -- Jane Robinson * Times Literary Supplement *
Michael Meyer has mined the rich seams of history and woven together a fascinating and gripping narrative. Beautifully told, it has echoes for today. I don’t know how he does it -- Adam Hochschild, author of KING LEOPOLD'S GHOST
Annie Besant was a freethinker and a half – an indomitable woman who challenged many of the discriminatory views of her day and put all her energies into social change. A great read -- Prof. Helen Pankhurst CBE, Women’s Rights Campaigner

ISBN: 9780753559949

Dimensions: 198mm x 129mm x 35mm

Weight: 500g

320 pages