One of the leading intellectuals of first-wave feminism, Charlotte Perkins Gilman [1860-1935] was a prolific socialist writer and lecturer. Nearly forgotten in the years following her death, she has been the subject of renewed interest and appreciation in recent decades. Drawing from her previous two-volume edition of The Diaries of Charlotte Perkins Gilman, editor Denise D. Knight here makes available a streamlined version of Gilman's extensive personal diaries and journals, with representative selections from various periods of her life.

Included in this single volume are entries written between 1 January 1879 and 12 March 1935. These selections illustrate Gilman's development from a restless, high-spirited, and opinionated young woman to a mature, internationally-known author and lecturer whose words touched thousands as she worked to effect social change.