what: how much has life really changed for women during the last decade? Has the women’s movement affected women’ lives all over the world? Has it changed women’s relationships with men?

Nikki van der Gaag answers these questions with hard, sometimes disturbing, evidence. Many women have made huge leaps forward - in legal rights, political representation, employment, education, health -but beneath the surface the statistics are shocking. Vivid testimonies from women and men around the world explain why, especially in this post-feminist age, women’s rights are still very much an issue for men and women alike.

who: Nikki van der Gaag is a feminist and a freelance writer, journalist and editor, specialised on development issues. She has written on many subjects including women, nation-states, Iraq, and human rights. Most recently, while editorial director of the Panos Institute and co-editor of New Internationalist, she has written a number of books, magazines and articles on gender.

why: this new series simply tries to makes sense of the most complex global issues. The books include many graphs and charts and provide a quick introduction to key subjects. All are written in plain language, and are ideal for students and libraries.

publisher: Verso (meaning in printers' parlance 'the left-hand page') was founded in 1970 by the London-based New Left Review, a journal of left-wing theory with a worldwide readership of 40,000. The company remains independent to this day. The company's head office is located in London, where a staff of twelve produces a program of 60 new titles each year.

Originally trading as New Left Books, the company developed an early reputation as a translator of classic works of European literature and politics. More recent translations include, among others, the work- of Norberto Bobbio, Guy Debord, Gilles Deleuze, Jürgen Habermas, Gabriel García Marquez and Paul Virilio.

sustainability features: Refreshing and enjoyable, the author “made a special effort to correct many of the misconceptions and biases related to the feminist movement, to link the liberation of women who constitute half of society to the liberation of men and to the dispossessed majority living on the earth.”- wrote Nawal El Saadawi, introducing the guide.