Women of the Pandemic
Lauren McKeon
Throughout history, men have fought, lost, and led us through the world's defining crises. That all changed with COVID-19. In Canada, women's presence in the response to the pandemic has been notable. Women are our nurses, doctors, PSWs. Our cashiers, long-haulers, cooks. In Canada, women are leading the fast-paced search for a vaccine. They are leading our provinces and territories. At home, they are leading families through self-isolation, often bearing the responsibility for their physical and emotional health. They are figuring out what working from home looks like, and many of them are doing it while homeschooling their kids. Women crafted the blueprint for kindness during the pandemic, from sewing masks to kicking off international mutual-aid networks. And, perhaps not surprisingly, women have also suffered some of the biggest losses, bearing the brunt of our economic skydive.
Through intimate portraits of Canadian women in diverse situations and fields, Women of the Pandemic is a gripping narrative record of the early months of COVID-19, a clear-eyed look at women's struggles, which highlights their creativity, perseverance, and resilience as they charted a new path forward during impossible times. (From McClelland & Stewart)
Lauren McKeon is also the author of the books F Bomb: Dispatches on the War on Feminism and No More Nice Girls. Her writing has appeared on CBC, Toronto Life, Hazlitt and Chatelaine.
- 53 works of Canadian nonfiction coming out in spring 2021
- The CBC Books spring 2021 reading list
- How understanding women's pandemic experiences can help build a better post-COVID world
