A funny and bold account of how women fought their way into the water, and of what they did once they got there

Fascinating and full of possibility, it is also properly snort-with-giggles-on-the-commute funny. * Alexandra Heminsley * If you love swimming you'll love this. If you hate swimming, you'll still love this. From over-upholstered matrons gingerly climbing down the steps of wheeled bathing huts, to young girls swimming jawdropping distances up The Thames, this captivating book bowls along with wit and charm. * Jo Brand * A brilliantly funny book that made me feel part of a proud and intrepid community of amphibian women * Josie Long * If this marvellous watery odyssey charting women's swimming history doesn't make you want to jump in, I will eat my woollen bikini. * Doon Mackichan * A wry and inspiring mix of memoir and social history * Melissa Harrison * Very disappointed. I thought this was going to be a pictorial history of the bikini. * John O'Farrell * Swell is part personal memoir, and part social history. Even if you aren't as wildly enthusiastic about swimming as the author, you'll find her book written with humour and fondness * Lifeboat Magazine * As we jump into the waves with glee, Jenny Landreth asks us to consider 'swimming suffragettes' who kicked hard for change in the once male-dominated world of swimming, less than 100 years ago. Written through the prisms of memoir and social history, it's the quest for equality that rises to the top of a poignant narrative. * Coast * Billed as being the true story of the `swimming suffragettes', this book - both funny and informative - follows the fearless women who battled for access to beaches, pools and lakes, and reveals the author's own `waterbiography' * Townswoman * Even if you're not particularly interested in swimming, this book will delight you. * Daily Mail * Swell has the air of one long stand-up routine, a larky dash through the modern history of female swimmers * New Statesman * A clever, intimate history of personal and female liberation, viewed through a well-fitting pair of swimming goggles ... Swell is a standout addition to a crowded pool of waterlogged memoirs. * Kinamara.com *

Jenny Landreth is a script editor and writer. She has written two guide books - on the great trees of London, and on the best places to swim in the capital. Jenny was the main contributor to the Guardian's weekly swimming blog, writing on everything from pool rules, to swimming with children, and where to swim in New York. She lives in London. @jennylandreth