THE INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER! A New York Times Book Review Editor's Pick " Secrets of the
Sprakkar is a fascinating window into what a more gender-equal world could look like and why
it's worth striving for. Iceland is doing a lot to level the playing field: paid parental leave
affordable childcare and broad support for gender equality as a core value. Reid takes us on
an exploration not only around this fascinating island but also through the triumphs and
stumbles of a country as it journeys towards gender equality." - Hillary Rodham Clinton
Iceland is the best place on earth to be a woman-but why? For the past twelve years the
World Economic Forum's Global Gender Gap Report has ranked Iceland number one on its list of
countries closing the gap in equality between men and women. What is it about Iceland that
makes many women's experience there so positive? Why has their society made such meaningful
progress in this ongoing battle from electing the world's first female president to passing
legislation specifically designed to help even the playing field at work and at home? And how
can we learn from what Icelanders have already discovered about women's powerful place in
society and how increased fairness benefits everyone? Eliza Reid the First Lady of Iceland
examines her adopted homeland's attitude toward women-the deep-seated cultural sense of
fairness the influence of current and historical role models and crucially the areas where
Iceland still has room for improvement. Reid's own experience as an immigrant from small-town
Canada who never expected to become a first lady is expertly interwoven with interviews with
dozens of sprakkar ("extraordinary women") to form the backbone of an illuminating discussion
of what it means to move through the world as a woman and how the rules of society play more
of a role in who we view as "equal" than we may understand. Secrets of the Sprakkar is a
powerful and atmospheric portrait of a tiny country that could lead the way forward for us all.
