"Sara Veale tells the stories of three generations of modern dance matriarchs.By situating each within the context of contemporary social structures, expectations, and movements, Veale illustrates how these artists influenced and were influenced by these forces, and how they in turn subverted ideas of what a woman or dance artist should be."--Courtney Escoyne, Dance Magazine "With evocative prose, Veale vividly highlights how famous and lesser-known female dancers remade an often exclusionary art form while expanding the ways that art can be used to pursue sociocultural change. It's a captivating chronicle."--Publishers Weekly starred review "Opening a door into the rich world of modern dance.Enthusiastic profiles of dancers set within insightful social history."--Kirkus starred review "A love letter to modern dance and the women who spearheaded it."--Library Journal "These female dance makers, whose works emerged from an age of hopefulness, are brought back to life, and are an inspiration for the future.

"--Sarah Crompton, Spectator "Compelling."--Harper's Bazaar "A refreshing blend of biography, criticism and social history."--Zuzanna Lachendro, New Statesman "Written with love.this pithy, passionate volume is a hymn to the American female dancers from the early 1900s on.a valuable and often fascinating document."--Mark Monahan, Sunday Telegraph "[An] ardent debut . Rigorous research matches with a zesty turn of phrase . while broader insights emerge organically into how a person might move through the world with authentic grace.

"--Hephzibah Anderson, Observer.