I struggled with getting into this book so unfortunately, I didn't finish it. Their was a lot of promise that I felt wasn't fulfilled but I'm sure the documentaries are a lot better and easier to follow!

Really couldn't get into this book. It felt incredibly messy and clumsily written. Though it was definitely bringing light to important women's issues, it just didn't feel like a good representation of the huge amount of global women's problems. Perhaps the documentaries are more interesting, I don't know.

Stacey Dooley, a name that is linked with amazing hard-hitting BBC documentaries, ones that you talk about the next day in the office and do some more of your own research on wanting to know more about the subject. The book was no different, I’ll be talking about it tomorrow in the office trying to get everyone to read it!

I remember seeing Stacey when I was younger, she is so relatable and down to earth being honest at every turn. In her documentaries she covers many different topics around the world but in this book she focuses on the women who have been in her documentaries, showing how strong and resilient they are.

The topics she covers are covered in the most part by mainstream media but not in the detail we see in the documentaries and now even deeper in the book as we get Stacey’s thoughts and feelings on each topic explaining more in-depth why some decisions were made.

We think we know what’s happening in some places in the world but we never get the full picture, yes we know there is a horrific horrible unjust war happening in places like Iraq but about the Yazidi women there? I’d never heard of them until the book, there were other groups of women I’d not heard of too such as the transgender women in Brazil that are struggling on the streets as sex workers or the femicide in some countries, it was a real eye-opener to what going on in the world.

It’s brilliant how much of supporter of other women she is, something that isn’t always found in the media, Stacey tries to understand the deep social issues that exist in other cultures and countries all of the topics are so emotive showing her own point of view as an outsider, then the victim of what is happening and in most cases the perpetrator.

The book is great as a stand-alone book, you don’t have to have seen the documentaries to read the book, as each section is explained beautifully, there are some I haven’t seen but still enjoyed the book. It is truly written in her voice, showing how down to earth she is, always asking the questions that you want the answer to but have no way to express them.

I was rather excited to see she had written a book, it was so much more than I was expecting though, I thought it was going to be just a written version of the documentaries but it’s not it is so much more! If anything I would have loved more, a longer book and of course that is never a bad thing leaving a book wanting more!

I’ve followed Stacey’s career from fashion loving teen travelling to India through to the professional journalist she is today, watching and rewatching every documentary each time they’ve aired on television. When I first heard she was releasing a book I was so keen to get my hands on it ASAP. I read the blurb and immediately thought of DVD Special Features. I imagined Stacey’s book as a combination of Deleted Scenes and Director’s Commentary, but it was so much more.

What I love about Stacey’s work with social issues women face around the world is that she gives you information about emotionally loaded topics in a thoughtful and respectful way. You don’t just get to hear her opinion; you learn about people whose lives that issue directly effects as a victim, their family and friends, along with any officials in the area or perpetrators that are willing to be interviewed.

Stacey and her team focus on some locations and issues that I was vaguely familiar with and others that sadly I had practically no knowledge of. In this book Stacey delves into issues relating to prison, immigration, drugs, child abuse, femicide, high-end to low-end prostitution, trans prostitution, abortion, child sexualisation, murder, war and survival. Your heart will be broken and warmed by the womens’ stories. For women who have had to survive such horrendous circumstances in their past and oftentimes present as well, their courage and resilience are extraordinary and inspirational. It’s up to you as the reader to form your own opinions about what’s presented to you and whether that will change your mind or not, but you cannot walk away uninformed. I hope you also walk away with your empathy enlarged.

Whenever someone starts talking politics my brain goes into standby mode so I was really surprised that Stacey could explain political issues to me, including what Obama stood for versus Trump, and I not only heard her but I understood what she was saying. Don’t get me wrong; I’ll never understand American politics. However Stacey explained policies and the way people are affected by them in such a down to earth way that I knew what she was talking about and if she’d done nothing else in this book, she’d deserve a medal for that alone!

Having seen most of the documentaries that Stacey refers to in On the Front Line with the Women Who Fight Back I could picture the people and scenes she was referring to, as well as hearing her voice in my head as I read. I was enjoying reliving some of my favourite documentaries with additional information and insights, yet wondered how well this book would translate to readers who have been living under a TV-less rock and hadn’t seen any Stacey documentaries.

Then I came across a chapter featuring [Shock! Horror!] a documentary I had never seen before! In hindsight I’m pleased about that because not only do I have a documentary to watch in the very near future 😃 but it also gave me another perspective on this book. I found it didn’t matter that I didn’t have previous knowledge of this documentary. The writing sucked me in and in a way I felt like I was watching along as Stacey described what was happening. I understood the need for a documentary on that topic to be made in the first place, the experiences of the people interviewed, information about the political atmosphere at the time in that country and Stacey’s own view.

While watching the documentary prior to reading each chapter is certainly not a prerequisite it is nice to be able to put faces to names. If, like me, you find gaps in your documentary viewing experience I expect that you’ll come away with a viewing list to complement what you’ve read. While there are currently some of Stacey’s documentaries available for viewing on the BBC website I would love to see (if it doesn’t already exist) all of the documentaries mentioned in this book available for viewing at a central location.

I found I liked the same things about Stacey’s approach in her writing that I do when I watch her on television. She’s so down to earth. There’s at once a sweetness and strength to her manner. She knows what she believes but isn’t close minded when she hears opposing opinions; she’ll weigh them against her own to determine if what someone else thinks changes her mind or strengthens her own views. Whether she agrees or disagrees with someone she treats them with respect. She asks the questions you want the answers to but aren’t sure if anyone will have the guts to ask.

She gets to the heart of the issue and the people she’s interviewing. You can tell she has a genuine fondness for the girls she encounters and her friendliness appears to open people up to having real conversations with her about difficult and painful things. Scared or not, she gets on with it. As a viewer and now a reader there’s just something innately likeable and relatable about this woman and when you watch her documentaries it’s easy to think, ‘Yeah, I reckon Stacey and I could be mates if we ever met’.

While you may see the problems presented in this book and feel overwhelmed by their enormity, ultimately this book is a call to action. You are left to consider the power that you have to make a difference. To borrow some of Stacey’s words, what she’s doing in this book and her documentaries is raising awareness and presenting “what’s going on in the world so that people can make up their own minds about how best to fight back.”

Thank you so much to NetGalley, BBC Books and Penguin Random House UK, Ebury Publishing for the opportunity to read this book. I’m left feeling inspired!

I was unable to read on Kindle. so unable yo give review

I remember watching Stacey on her the first BBC programme in which she appeared, “Blood, Sweat and TShirts”. I liked her instantly; her straightforward talking, innocence and naivety. I have watched several more of her documentaries over the years and like how she has retained her own style whilst growing in intelligence and as a woman.
She writes well in her own voice (I assume with the aide of a ghostwriter).
The book documents some of stories of the women whom Stacey has met on her travels with work who have featured in her documentaries. The chapters are broken down into subject areas each covering a topic dealt with in a documentary. Although I have not seen many of the documentaries Stacey talks of, I was able visualise both of the people and the places because of Stacey’s descriptions.
It is a well written, interesting, if a bit short, book which I would highly recommend. Like Stacey, it made me grateful I am a woman living in the UK rather than elsewhere in the world where women are not respected in a way we take here as normal.
Thanks to NetGalley for providing me with a Kindle copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I've watched many of Stacey Dooley's documentaries over the years, from the first appearance in Blood, Sweat and T Shirts to more recent ones on domestic violence against women in Russia. This book serves as almost an accompaniment to several of the series and women featured which gives an even greater insight into their lives and the strength and courage they have against adversity. The introduction by Stacey is written in a way that makes you almost hear her voice through her down to earth, approachable and relatable that is so familiar in her TV work. The effort put in to the documentaries and this book along with the sympathetic (without being patronising) voice all combines to show a more personal approach to what is really going on in the lives of women across the world - rather than shocking headlines of newspapers and tv news - is what makes Stacey Dooley unique.

Sadly I cannot read and review this book as it is epub download only.