Isn’t Her Grace Amazing! The Women Who Changed Gospel Music by Cheryl Wills (Amistad, 2022)

—Cathy Ritchie

In the category of “make a joyful noise,” readers won’t go wrong with the 25 stellar solo performers and groups Cheryl Wills profiles in Isn’t Her Grace Amazing! Aficionados of gospel music will enjoy the copious photographs on every page, while interested non-experts will gain useful introductory knowledge thanks to Wills’s brief but informative biographical sketches.

Wills structures her coffee-table-esque book chronologically, beginning with the legendary Mahalia Jackson, who is designated a “Queen Mother” of the field, and concluding with contemporary gospel artist Yolanda Adams, whose story appears in Wills’s final section, “And Still She Sings.” Household names like Aretha Franklin appear, but we also learn of earlier trailblazers: Willie Mae Ford Smith, the Clara Ward Singers, Marion Williams, Sallie Martin, the Barrett Sisters and numerous others.

Basic data on birthdates, hometowns, “notable hits” and “accolades” are offered for each woman or group, followed by several pages of slightly more detailed narrative. People wanting greater depth on the featured women will need to go elsewhere, but Wills provides an excellent jump-start for anyone eager to learn about the genre’s movers and shakers.

The only suggestions I offer for any future editions: a bibliography of additional resources about each woman/group would be welcome. And most certainly, a CD (or some sort of audio recording) with samples of each performer’s voice would be a wonderful supplement. These ladies deserve to be heard as well as described in print. Hopefully, examples of their artistry are readily available on YouTube, but a compilation disc offering one-stop shopping would be a gift.

Nonetheless, there’s much to be gleaned from Wills’s introductory volume on the ladies of gospel, and to be sure: their grace is amazing indeed!