Throughout history there have been women, endowed with curiosity and abundant spirit, who stepped out of the cave, cast off the shackles of expectation, and struck out for new territory. In this ode to bold, brash, and sometimes just plain dangerous women, Barbara Holland reanimates those rebels who defied convention and challenged authority on a truly grand scale: they traveled the world, commanded pirate ships, spied on the enemy, established foreign countries, scaled 19,000-foot passes, and lobbied to change the Constitution. Some were merry and flamboyant; others depressive and solitary. Some dressed up as men; others cherished their Victorian gowns. Many were ambivalent or absentminded mothers. But every one of them was fearless, eccentric, and fiercely independent. Barbara Holland evokes their energy in this unconventional book that will acquaint you with the likes of Grace O’Malley, a blazing terror of the Irish seas in the 1500s, and surprise you with a fresh perspective on legends like Bonnie Parker of “Bonnie and Clyde” fame. With wit, wisdom, and irreverent flair, They Went Whistling makes a compelling case for the virtue of getting into trouble.

Celebrates the lives of women whose roles in society were marked by adventure, rebellion, and distinctively non-conforming gender roles including Joan of Arc, Cleopatra, Amelia Earhart, Daisy Bates, and Mata Hari.

HE HAD A WAY OF TALKING. I BRUSHED HIS GAT AWAY FROM MY FACE AND BROUGHT MY CUFFS INTO PLAY. THEY MOPPED AT THE BLOOD ON MY FACE. I PLAYED ONE OF MY TUNES. “SOMEDAY STACEY, WHEN YOU’RE OUT FROM BEHIND THE TIN; OR MAYBE SOME DARK NIGHT IN SOME LONELY PLACE; ONE OF THOSE NIGHTS THAT ARE BAD FOR COPS, I’LL BE THERE. YOU WILL NEVER KNOW WHEN, BUT I’LL BE THERE; UNTIL THEN KEEP LOOKING OVER YOUR SHOULDER.” IT WAS A BIT OF A LONG TALK FOR ME THEN, IN THAT SITUATION. HE REPLIED. “YOU STILL PLAYING THAT WORN OUT SPEECH? IT WAS OLD WHEN YOU PLAYED IT THE FIRST TIME.” THE CONTEMPT IN HIS VOICE FILLED THE INTERIOR OF THE CAR. IT WAS MATCHED ONLY BY HIS DEAD-EYE STARE. I LOOKED BEYOND HIM, BACK AT THE HOUSE; HIS GAZE REMAINED FIXED ON MY FACE. THE COPS AROUND THE HOUSE WERE ALL PRE-OCCUPIED. I SAID TO HIM. “NO TIME LIKE THE PRESENT.” IN THE BARS, BACK IN ATLANTIC CITY, THEY TALK ABOUT SCOTLAND, OVER IN EUROPE. OVER THERE, IN SCOTLAND, THERE IS A LITTLE PLACE ON THE CLYDE RIVER. WELL, IT’S JUST ABOUT THE BIGGEST DARN TOWN IN THE COUNTRY OF SCOTLAND. IN THAT LITTLE PLACE CALLED GLASGOW, A GUY KISSES HIS OPPONENT, TO GET THE UPPER HAND. I GAVE LIEUTENANT BEN STACEY A GLASGOW KISS. AS HE SLUMPED BACK AGAINST THE SEAT I TUMBLED HIS BODY OUT THE OPEN DOOR AND ONTO THE ROADSIDE. I TOOK THE MOTOR OUT FROM THERE, LIKE IT WAS THE START OF THE INDIANAPOLIS 500.

Includes reports from the Chancery, Probate, Queen's bench, Common pleas, and Exchequer divisions, and from the Irish land commission.