Naomi Baker
@drnaomibaker.bsky.social
Senior Lecturer in English Lit, U of Manchester| Assoc. Editor Literature & Theology
📚Voices of Thunder: Radical Religious Women of the Seventeenth Century (2025)
https://reaktionbooks.co.uk/work/voices-of-thunder
📚Voices of Thunder: Radical Religious Women of the Seventeenth Century (2025)
https://reaktionbooks.co.uk/work/voices-of-thunder
Elizabeth Barton (1506-34) was a servant woman who defied Henry VIII, warning him that to marry Anne Boleyn would incur divine wrath. As I show in “Voices of Thunder”, female mystics were some of the fiercest critics of patriarchal forms of oppression - they posed a real threat to the status quo
November 7, 2025 at 9:20 AM
Elizabeth Barton (1506-34) was a servant woman who defied Henry VIII, warning him that to marry Anne Boleyn would incur divine wrath. As I show in “Voices of Thunder”, female mystics were some of the fiercest critics of patriarchal forms of oppression - they posed a real threat to the status quo
Very grateful to The Broken Compass for highlighting the women whose stories I tell in Voices of Thunder ✨
November 5, 2025 at 8:25 AM
Very grateful to The Broken Compass for highlighting the women whose stories I tell in Voices of Thunder ✨
Voices of Thunder is one of ten books to look out for, according to Mathew Lyons in The Broken Compass 🤩 As he says, these “highly vocal women” have been “drowned out in much of the historiography” and make a “brilliant subject for a book”! 🌟 #earlymodern
November 4, 2025 at 3:32 PM
Voices of Thunder is one of ten books to look out for, according to Mathew Lyons in The Broken Compass 🤩 As he says, these “highly vocal women” have been “drowned out in much of the historiography” and make a “brilliant subject for a book”! 🌟 #earlymodern
Thanks @waterstones.bsky.social Trafford for having me in to sign books today! 📚
October 23, 2025 at 4:54 PM
Thanks @waterstones.bsky.social Trafford for having me in to sign books today! 📚
The History section of @waterstones.bsky.social Trafford has a new Her-story arrival on its shelves 😊🤩 Spotted by a friend - it’s so great to see it out in the wild, and in such fabulous book company 📚
October 20, 2025 at 11:13 AM
The History section of @waterstones.bsky.social Trafford has a new Her-story arrival on its shelves 😊🤩 Spotted by a friend - it’s so great to see it out in the wild, and in such fabulous book company 📚
Library within a library @porticolibrary.bsky.social
October 19, 2025 at 7:08 PM
Library within a library @porticolibrary.bsky.social
It was wonderful to have my book launch last night @porticolibrary.bsky.social. I had such a brilliant time! Thanks so much to everyone who came along - it was standing room only which was incredible. It meant the world to me that so many people want to hear about these amazing women 📚#earlymodern
October 18, 2025 at 8:06 AM
It was wonderful to have my book launch last night @porticolibrary.bsky.social. I had such a brilliant time! Thanks so much to everyone who came along - it was standing room only which was incredible. It meant the world to me that so many people want to hear about these amazing women 📚#earlymodern
It’s PUBLICATION DAY!! 🌟⭐️💫 I’m very happy to see Voices of Thunder going out into the world 📚
October 13, 2025 at 6:19 AM
It’s PUBLICATION DAY!! 🌟⭐️💫 I’m very happy to see Voices of Thunder going out into the world 📚
RIP Diane Keaton, what an absolute star in all senses of the word. I sometimes try to copy her style just a little bit - no-one could come close of course 💔
October 12, 2025 at 12:12 PM
RIP Diane Keaton, what an absolute star in all senses of the word. I sometimes try to copy her style just a little bit - no-one could come close of course 💔
Anne Wentworth (1630-c.1693) endured years of abuse at the hands of her husband. She knew speaking out would alienate her from the Baptist church of which they were both members, but she went ahead and published 4 accounts of the abuse. I tell her remarkable story in Voices of Thunder #earlymodern
October 10, 2025 at 7:16 AM
Anne Wentworth (1630-c.1693) endured years of abuse at the hands of her husband. She knew speaking out would alienate her from the Baptist church of which they were both members, but she went ahead and published 4 accounts of the abuse. I tell her remarkable story in Voices of Thunder #earlymodern
One of the most daring theological works of the C17th, published by Elizabeth Avery in 1647. It reconsiders every mainstream Protestant teaching about the apocalypse, and caused her to be denounced as a heretic, including by her own brother. I tell Avery’s story in Voices of Thunder #earlymodern
October 9, 2025 at 10:26 AM
One of the most daring theological works of the C17th, published by Elizabeth Avery in 1647. It reconsiders every mainstream Protestant teaching about the apocalypse, and caused her to be denounced as a heretic, including by her own brother. I tell Avery’s story in Voices of Thunder #earlymodern
Spotted in the wild for the first time!! 🤩 At Blackwells on Oxford Rd in Manchester - so exciting to see it making its way into the world after so long in my head 🧡
October 7, 2025 at 9:20 AM
Spotted in the wild for the first time!! 🤩 At Blackwells on Oxford Rd in Manchester - so exciting to see it making its way into the world after so long in my head 🧡
Had a great time today chatting with @sixteenthcgirl.bsky.social for the Not Just the Tudors podcast on History Hit. Watch out next week for the episode on Voices of Thunder and radical 17th-century women!
October 6, 2025 at 4:57 PM
Had a great time today chatting with @sixteenthcgirl.bsky.social for the Not Just the Tudors podcast on History Hit. Watch out next week for the episode on Voices of Thunder and radical 17th-century women!
Hester Biddle was a Quaker preacher who was imprisoned 14 times, often simply for preaching. She was enraged by the growing inequalities of C17th London and warned that God would judge those who ignored the needs of those begging for food on the streets. Ch 7 of Voices of Thunder tells her story
October 6, 2025 at 7:55 AM
Hester Biddle was a Quaker preacher who was imprisoned 14 times, often simply for preaching. She was enraged by the growing inequalities of C17th London and warned that God would judge those who ignored the needs of those begging for food on the streets. Ch 7 of Voices of Thunder tells her story
Ch 6 of Voices of Thunder tells the inspiring story of the London lace woman Elizabeth Attaway, the first C17th woman to preach publicly to a mixed-sex congregation. Her Baptist church did not let women preach, but Attaway did not allow her low social status or her sex to be a barrier … 1/2
October 5, 2025 at 7:12 AM
Ch 6 of Voices of Thunder tells the inspiring story of the London lace woman Elizabeth Attaway, the first C17th woman to preach publicly to a mixed-sex congregation. Her Baptist church did not let women preach, but Attaway did not allow her low social status or her sex to be a barrier … 1/2
A serious contender for my favourite woman in Voices of Thunder! Anna Trapnel was a young woman who publicly criticised Oliver Cromwell. A thorn in the side of the authorities, she was accused of being a witch. Trapnel was a true radical, advocating for a fairer society for all. #earlymodern
October 4, 2025 at 8:28 AM
A serious contender for my favourite woman in Voices of Thunder! Anna Trapnel was a young woman who publicly criticised Oliver Cromwell. A thorn in the side of the authorities, she was accused of being a witch. Trapnel was a true radical, advocating for a fairer society for all. #earlymodern
Sarah Wight, a 17th-century London teenager and Baptist who struggled with extreme anxiety, is the subject of Chapter 4 of Voices of Thunder. Sarah co-wrote a searing but ultimately inspirational account of her experiences. She went on to become a well-known spiritual counsellor. #earlymodern
October 3, 2025 at 6:36 AM
Sarah Wight, a 17th-century London teenager and Baptist who struggled with extreme anxiety, is the subject of Chapter 4 of Voices of Thunder. Sarah co-wrote a searing but ultimately inspirational account of her experiences. She went on to become a well-known spiritual counsellor. #earlymodern
I just received the first copies of my book and I have to say it’s looking gorgeous! 😍 Thank you @reaktionbooks.bsky.social for making such a beautiful book #earlymodern
October 2, 2025 at 1:12 PM
I just received the first copies of my book and I have to say it’s looking gorgeous! 😍 Thank you @reaktionbooks.bsky.social for making such a beautiful book #earlymodern
Ch 3 of Voices of Thunder tells the story of the self-proclaimed prophet Elizabeth Poole, one of the only women of her era to intervene in political debate at the highest level. Just weeks before Charles I’s execution, Poole demanded an audience with Cromwell and the council of officers. 1/2
October 2, 2025 at 11:34 AM
Ch 3 of Voices of Thunder tells the story of the self-proclaimed prophet Elizabeth Poole, one of the only women of her era to intervene in political debate at the highest level. Just weeks before Charles I’s execution, Poole demanded an audience with Cromwell and the council of officers. 1/2
Ch 1 of Voices of Thunder tells Rose Thurgood’s story. She lived in Colchester, where she and her children were poor to the point of starvation. As a C17th woman writing from this perspective, her voice in the archive is unique. Her account of her life is in manuscript @thejohnrylands.bsky.social
October 1, 2025 at 1:05 PM
Ch 1 of Voices of Thunder tells Rose Thurgood’s story. She lived in Colchester, where she and her children were poor to the point of starvation. As a C17th woman writing from this perspective, her voice in the archive is unique. Her account of her life is in manuscript @thejohnrylands.bsky.social
Just two weeks until Voices of Thunder is published! If you’re interested in hearing the stories of a dozen radical seventeenth-century women, it can be pre-ordered now ⚡️#earlymodern #womenshistory
September 30, 2025 at 11:39 AM
Just two weeks until Voices of Thunder is published! If you’re interested in hearing the stories of a dozen radical seventeenth-century women, it can be pre-ordered now ⚡️#earlymodern #womenshistory
September 6, 2025 at 6:58 AM
Every time a film of Wuthering Heights yet again reduces Emily Brontë’s radicalism and imagination to something supposedly “relatable” it makes me go back to her poetry and remember how wild and enigmatic she really is. I love this poem on autumn
#EmilyBronte
#EmilyBronte
September 5, 2025 at 7:43 AM
Every time a film of Wuthering Heights yet again reduces Emily Brontë’s radicalism and imagination to something supposedly “relatable” it makes me go back to her poetry and remember how wild and enigmatic she really is. I love this poem on autumn
#EmilyBronte
#EmilyBronte
September 1, 2025 at 8:32 AM
The Pales, the oldest Quaker meeting house in continuous use in Wales. It is in a remote spot because of how intensely Quakers were persecuted in the 17th century - as the stories of the Quaker women in my book “Voices of Thunder” reveal.
The burial ground dates to 1673, the meeting house to 1717.
The burial ground dates to 1673, the meeting house to 1717.
August 28, 2025 at 2:08 PM
The Pales, the oldest Quaker meeting house in continuous use in Wales. It is in a remote spot because of how intensely Quakers were persecuted in the 17th century - as the stories of the Quaker women in my book “Voices of Thunder” reveal.
The burial ground dates to 1673, the meeting house to 1717.
The burial ground dates to 1673, the meeting house to 1717.