Introduction : "take, for example..." : a brief retrospect on women, theatre, and prizes
Prologue : family ties-a troublesome knot?
The 1920s : those not-so-good old days
Zona Gale and the real village tale
Susan Glaspell : from Iowa village to Greenwich Village
The depression years : gaining despite the losses
Zoe Akins, escape artist
The 1940s : women in a world at war
Mary Chase and her wartime rabbit
The 1950s: an uncomfortable homecoming
Ketti Frings and her stageworthy angel
Being female in the 1950s, '60s, and '70s
Beth Henley's funny-terrible world view
The 1980s : backlash and beyond
Marsha Norman : getting out the truth about family and self
Wendy Wasserstein : Lola's well-rounded daughter
The 1990s : gender crisis at the crossroads (or, wrong turn at the men's movement)
Paula Vogel's winding road to victory
Margaret Edson's advanced course in wit
The early 2000s : "bang, bang-you're American"
Suzan-Lori Parks : putting dirt and deadly games onstage
Also in the winner's circle (the legacy of Black women playwrights)
Epilogue : parting thoughts on family flux and cultural flummery.