Home

Longlisted for the Carnegie Medal
An NPR Book We Love for 2021

Think home ec’s just corn muffins and mangled stuffed animals? The Secret History of Home Economics: How Trailblazing Women Harnessed the Power of Home and Changed the Way We Live, published by W. W. Norton, tells the fascinating and surprisingly feminist story of women who wielded a powerful, scientific and educational vision, and explains why home ec matters today. Order now and subscribe to my email newsletter for updates/extras.

“Deeply researched and crisply written.” ― Margaret Talbot, The New Yorker

“[A] captivating debut…Dreilinger charmed me with her account of home ec’s fascinating past.” ― Barbara Spindel, The Wall Street Journal

“Dreilinger uncovers the complex history beyond the stereotypes of ‘stirring and stitching.’ [Her] lively account offers a thorough look at a profession that allowed women to participate in public life even as they were barred from most jobs and areas of study.” ― Rachel Newcomb, The Washington Post

“Great-Grandma was fierce.” — The Bookworm Sez

Publicity: Erin Sinesky Lovett, W. W. Norton
Literary representation: Jen Marshall, Aevitas Creative Management

p.s. Why “the daily reason”? Comes from a joke with my friend Kate, ca. 2006. It had a nice journalist’s-website sound … and no one can spell “Dreilinger.”