The book, published by Wiley-VCH, looks at the scientific story as well as the personal sacrifices and societal opposition that many of these great women scientists had to overcome to make their mark in the early days of chemistry. The women profiled in European Women in Chemistry range from famous and well-known figures, such as Nobel Laureates Marie Curie, Ada Yonath, Irène Joliot-Curie and Dorothy Crowfoot Hodgkin, to women whose reputations are not so well known, but whose contributions have been vital. The book was conceived by EuCheMS to mark the International Year of Chemistry (IYC2011).