Anne Perkins
@annegperkins.bsky.social
Historian and higher education scholar. Author of Yale Needs Women: How the First Group of Girls Rewrote the Rules of an Ivy League Giant.
This is the line of cars at the food pantry where I volunteer. We haven't even opened for the day yet. And meanwhile, the president builds his gilded ballroom.
October 31, 2025 at 1:47 PM
This is the line of cars at the food pantry where I volunteer. We haven't even opened for the day yet. And meanwhile, the president builds his gilded ballroom.
Breaking my own rule—no more interviews until I’ve finished the rough draft of my book—I just did my first interview in over a year. It was too important to wait, I told myself. And it was remarkable. I feel so honored to be trusted with the stories of the women in my book.
October 14, 2025 at 6:51 PM
Breaking my own rule—no more interviews until I’ve finished the rough draft of my book—I just did my first interview in over a year. It was too important to wait, I told myself. And it was remarkable. I feel so honored to be trusted with the stories of the women in my book.
It’s Banned Book Week! And here are four banned books I’m reading. Who knew the day would come here when reading was an act of rebellion?
October 6, 2025 at 10:43 PM
It’s Banned Book Week! And here are four banned books I’m reading. Who knew the day would come here when reading was an act of rebellion?
Afternoon tea and great conversation at the Boston Public Library with Elizabeth “Betty” Spahn, one of the stars of Yale Needs Women. So wonderful to see her again.
October 2, 2025 at 1:27 PM
Afternoon tea and great conversation at the Boston Public Library with Elizabeth “Betty” Spahn, one of the stars of Yale Needs Women. So wonderful to see her again.
Hazel, my closest friend since we met as twenty-two-year-olds, is five years cancer free today. What a gift.
September 23, 2025 at 6:46 PM
Hazel, my closest friend since we met as twenty-two-year-olds, is five years cancer free today. What a gift.
I’m still my harshest editor. (And yes, I sometimes write on my bed.)
September 9, 2025 at 3:40 PM
I’m still my harshest editor. (And yes, I sometimes write on my bed.)
We have had a string of perfect summer days here in Massachusetts, and I have spent them at my desk, writing. Next summer when my manuscript is done, I tell myself, I will go blueberry picking every day.
August 27, 2025 at 12:40 PM
We have had a string of perfect summer days here in Massachusetts, and I have spent them at my desk, writing. Next summer when my manuscript is done, I tell myself, I will go blueberry picking every day.
I'll admit, I'm tempted. I mean, how cool would it be to be on a dragon boat team?
August 20, 2025 at 2:42 PM
I'll admit, I'm tempted. I mean, how cool would it be to be on a dragon boat team?
Seagulls—the bullies of Boston Harbor. Turn your back for a minute and they’ll swoop down and steal your sandwich.
August 6, 2025 at 3:13 PM
Seagulls—the bullies of Boston Harbor. Turn your back for a minute and they’ll swoop down and steal your sandwich.
I used to grow mostly vegetables—corn, garlic, carrots, you name it. But here’s the truth: I get more pleasure from a jar full of cut flowers than a plate of green beans. This year, the zinnias have edged out the eggplant.
July 17, 2025 at 11:08 PM
I used to grow mostly vegetables—corn, garlic, carrots, you name it. But here’s the truth: I get more pleasure from a jar full of cut flowers than a plate of green beans. This year, the zinnias have edged out the eggplant.
My sticker chart—one heart for every chapter I finish. It’s ridiculous how happy I feel every time I get to add a new sticker.
July 9, 2025 at 10:24 PM
My sticker chart—one heart for every chapter I finish. It’s ridiculous how happy I feel every time I get to add a new sticker.
11 months until my book manuscript is due. Nine chapters drafted, nine to go, plus a big list of interviews that I'd still like to do. It feels like it's going to be a sprint to the finish.
July 1, 2025 at 1:36 PM
11 months until my book manuscript is due. Nine chapters drafted, nine to go, plus a big list of interviews that I'd still like to do. It feels like it's going to be a sprint to the finish.
One of my favorite parts of Massachusetts summers: blueberries. They're not ripe yet, but soon ...
June 25, 2025 at 5:16 PM
One of my favorite parts of Massachusetts summers: blueberries. They're not ripe yet, but soon ...
I'm in Oxford, England for a short visit. I haven't been here since I lived in Oxford in the early 1980s. It's good to be back.
June 9, 2025 at 12:20 PM
I'm in Oxford, England for a short visit. I haven't been here since I lived in Oxford in the early 1980s. It's good to be back.
A robin is nesting on our window sill. The eggs are such an incredible color.
May 23, 2025 at 4:00 PM
A robin is nesting on our window sill. The eggs are such an incredible color.
A Yale student who’s the 1st woman in a high-profile role there sent me an email after finishing Yale Needs Women. She writes, “It's been so powerful to read about the generations of women before me.” I love how history can lift us up when what we are doing is hard.
May 15, 2025 at 4:25 PM
A Yale student who’s the 1st woman in a high-profile role there sent me an email after finishing Yale Needs Women. She writes, “It's been so powerful to read about the generations of women before me.” I love how history can lift us up when what we are doing is hard.
Yes, I am my own toughest editor. Good thing I'm thick-skinned.
May 6, 2025 at 1:24 PM
Yes, I am my own toughest editor. Good thing I'm thick-skinned.
The Massachusetts food pantry where I volunteer is serving 30% more people than this time last year. Lots of hungry old folks. Lots of hungry little kids. And last month, Trump cut $3.4 million from MA food bank funding.
April 23, 2025 at 2:23 PM
The Massachusetts food pantry where I volunteer is serving 30% more people than this time last year. Lots of hungry old folks. Lots of hungry little kids. And last month, Trump cut $3.4 million from MA food bank funding.
Sunrise over the Atlantic, Myrtle Beach State Park, SC. Turns out it was good to have a break. Headed back home to MA now. On to writing Chapter 6!
April 2, 2025 at 11:35 AM
Sunrise over the Atlantic, Myrtle Beach State Park, SC. Turns out it was good to have a break. Headed back home to MA now. On to writing Chapter 6!
I have a calendar on my wall where I get to put a sticker whenever I finish the rough draft of a chapter. Silly, yes. But it makes me happy.
March 18, 2025 at 7:21 PM
I have a calendar on my wall where I get to put a sticker whenever I finish the rough draft of a chapter. Silly, yes. But it makes me happy.
This is about the time of year when even us hardy Massachusetts types long for the colors of spring. Still, the February light is beautiful.
February 26, 2025 at 5:25 PM
This is about the time of year when even us hardy Massachusetts types long for the colors of spring. Still, the February light is beautiful.
Beverage of choice while writing? English Breakfast Tea. Milk, no sugar. “How many cups of tea do you drink each day?” my son Mac once asked me. “You don’t want to know,” I told him.
February 11, 2025 at 7:48 PM
Beverage of choice while writing? English Breakfast Tea. Milk, no sugar. “How many cups of tea do you drink each day?” my son Mac once asked me. “You don’t want to know,” I told him.
And now the big moment...I've got a publisher! Very excited to be on this journey. @kensingtonbooks.bsky.social
January 15, 2025 at 4:57 PM
And now the big moment...I've got a publisher! Very excited to be on this journey. @kensingtonbooks.bsky.social
So about this 2nd book. Curiosity is to blame. In researching my 1st book, I’d listened to stories, too many stories, of 1970s women college students who were sexually harassed and assaulted. And so I wanted to know: when did women find a way to fight back? When did it all start to shift?
January 14, 2025 at 12:48 PM
So about this 2nd book. Curiosity is to blame. In researching my 1st book, I’d listened to stories, too many stories, of 1970s women college students who were sexually harassed and assaulted. And so I wanted to know: when did women find a way to fight back? When did it all start to shift?
I didn’t think I’d write a 2nd book. My 1st one came out when I was 59, & it did all I wanted it to do—told an important story that had been overlooked, profiled some remarkable women, even won a prize! But then a new story tapped me on the shoulder…
January 6, 2025 at 12:57 PM
I didn’t think I’d write a 2nd book. My 1st one came out when I was 59, & it did all I wanted it to do—told an important story that had been overlooked, profiled some remarkable women, even won a prize! But then a new story tapped me on the shoulder…