From the courage and beauty of Esther (5th century B.C.) to the fierce battle tactics of Boudicca (A.D. c. 62) to the reforming spirit of Catherine the Great (1729-1796), here are ten essays about the personal and political natures of ten queens by an author who has been called "arguably the best writer of social history for children and adolescents ever." Most of these queens were, by today's standards, astonishingly young. Some were schooled to rule, others not. But all were ambitious, passionate, and determined to hold power. And all, in their successes and failures, ideals and compromises, assumptions and privileges, present interesting contrasts with the lives of modern women. Ten Queens was celebrated as a Booklist Editors' Choice, a Notable Children's Trade Book in the Field of Social Studies, an International Reading Association's Teachers' Choice, and a Bank Street College Best Book, among many other citations.