feminist essay books

Join Discovery, the new community for book lovers

Trust book recommendations from real people, not robots 🤓

Blog – Posted on Monday, Oct 12

50 best feminist books to dismantle the patriarchy.

Throughout its turbulent history, feminist books have stood at the cutting-edge of feminism. Contemporary readers of landmark texts, such as The Feminine Mystique or Sister Outsider , found themselves swept up in a revolution, pioneered by radical female writers wielding a pen. Decades later, and joined by a legion of diverse new feminist voices, these fearless and passionate texts still feel like a call-to-arms — a rallying cry to all women trying to find their place or fight for liberation. 

Whether you’re a fan of fiction or nonfiction books , memoirs, poetry, essays, or novels, the feminist books on this list will guide you along the winding path of the feminism — as experienced by women from all walks of life, of all races, ages, and identities — and into the 21st century. 

1. The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood

A gold-standard of feminist fiction and now a critically acclaimed TV series, The Handmaid’s Tale follows Offred, a member of the fertile, female servant class that is treated as breeding stock by an oppressive, near-future society — all in the name of replenishing the diminished population. At a time when the reproductive rights of women are still politically contentious, this dystopian novel is a disturbing reminder of what society often considers a woman’s worth.

2. Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

When Alcott told the story of Jo, Beth, Meg, and Amy in 1868, she may not have intended to write a feminist book; nevertheless, Little Women has danced its way into the hearts of feminists for generations. Certainly, in the 2019 film adaptation it’s given new feminist fire, as Greta Gerwig shows how Alcott’s bold, loving, unconventional sisters can teach us there are many ways to be a woman. Read the book. Watch the film. Do both — in any order. Just make sure you consume Little Women .

3. The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath

Plath’s seminal novel tells the story of Esther Greenwood’s descent into mental illness in astute and haunting prose. An aspiring writer whose dreams are stifled by her misogynistic society, Esther’s story encapsulates the desire and disillusionment of being a young woman — which is why it has become a quintessential novel for young feminists. The Guardian has called The Bell Jar a ‘tormented footnote to Plath’s tormented poetry’; but it is also a work of undoubted literary brilliance that stands alone as a classic feminist book.

4. The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison

Morrison’s debut novel immerses us in the tragic, torn life of Pecola Breedlove — a poor, young black girl living in 1940s Ohio. Internalizing the ugliness put on her by society, Pecola longs for blue eyes; and it’s this impossible desire that drives her to the point of breakdown. The Bluest Eye forces us to confront how damaging racialized notions of beauty can be and makes race (and youth) central to the discussion of gender disparity. Of course, it’s couched in what became the signature poetic prose of this Nobel Prize-winning author.

5. The Awakening by Kate Chopin

Restless, twentysomething Edna is summering at a resort on the steamy coast of Louisiana when she catches the eye of the resort owner’s son — it’s the perfect backdrop for a romantic comedy, except this story of personal discovery and sexual intrigue has a dangerous undercurrent. Edna is a Victorian mother and wife, who had resigned herself to a languid life before the summer of her awakening. Now, she vibrates with the desire to have a room of her own, to smash a vase, to break the rules. Although The Awakening was published on the turn of the 20th century, this feminist book still hits its mark. A desire to smash the patriarchy? Relatable.

6. Wayward Girls & Wicked Women by Angela Carter

This marvelous collection of short stories was edited by titan of feminist books Angela Carter, and reflects her deliciously anarchic taste. From authors including Jamaica Kincaid, Katherine Mansfield, and Ama Ata Aidoo, every one of these subversive tales extols the female virtues of discontent, disruptiveness, and general bad-manners, and restores wayward girls and wicked women to their rightful position as role models. Because who wants to be ‘nice’ when you can be clever, cunning, and interesting?

7. The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman

Another early feminist classic with enduring appeal, Gilman’s 6,000 word masterpiece tells the story of a young woman whose husband confines her to a nursery as treatment for postnatal depression. With a strict ban on reading, painting, and, if it can be managed, thinking (her secret diary being her only outlet), the narrator’s ravenous imagination is at the mercy of unnamed terrors. 

Frighteningly, The Yellow Wallpaper was based on the author’s own experiences, and in 1890 its story caused feminist fireworks among women forced to be docile. But today, it takes on a new urgency, speaking to the current discussion of gaslighting and coercive control.

8. The Color Purple by Alice Walker

Set in segregated Georgia, The Color Purple follows Celie, a young black woman born into poverty. As mother, sister, and wife, Celie suffers from unimaginable hardship, until she meets singer and magic-maker Shug Avery, who teaches her to harness the power of her own spirit and take control of her destiny. In this haunting and lyrical novel, Walker, who calls herself a ‘womanist’, portrays the oppression and triumphs of black women, the horrors of physical and sexual abuse, and the ongoing struggle to overcome the double jeopardy of racism and sexism.

9. Circe by Madeline Miller

An ancient Greek myth gets a fresh coat of feminist paint in this thoroughly modern retelling of Circe’s story. A player in the lives of both heroes and gods, Circe is a figure apart, a character steeped in magic and mystery, a source of fascination — and yet, one of the ancient world’s most deeply misunderstood deities. Until now. Madeline Miller, bestselling author of The Song of Achilles, returns to breathe new life into Circe, giving her the power to command her own story, and translating yet another male-centred myth into something startlingly feminine.

10. The Vagina Monologues by Eve Ensler

Keeping with the theme of the untraditional, Eve Ensler’s The Vagina Monologues is an episodic play that gathers the stories of real women — from different ages, races, identities, and experiences — to explore female sexuality in all its complexity. Delving into topics as deeply essential as sexual consent, body image, sex work, and reproduction, Ensler’s work has become a major feminist touchpoint since its debut in 1996. Come for the incredible title, and stay to hear the eloquent and hilarious voice of womankind.

11. The Bloody Chamber by Angela Carter

From ancient myths to fairytales, a feminist take on a ‘tale as old as time’ will always be welcome on our shelves; and Angela Carter’s 1979 collection of darkly erotic stories contains some of the most fiercely imaginative examples of the style. In The Bloody Chamber you’ll find all the bedtime stories of your childhood newly configured as gothic tales of sex and violence. Their heroines — a murderous Red Riding Hood, a beastly Belle, a vampiric Sleeping Beauty — struggle out of the straitjackets of history and ideology, and turn the tables on tradition.

12. The Golden Notebook by Doris Lessing

Though Lessing insisted The Golden Notebook was never intended to be a “weapon in the sex war”, her epic of the female experience spoke to the women’s movement of the 1960s with a visionary fire, and has since been hailed as a landmark feminist book. 

Living in 1950s London, Anna Wulf is a divorced single mother, and a novelist struggling with writer’s block . Fearing chaos, formlessness, and mental collapse, she separates her life into four notebooks; but it is the fifth, the golden notebook, that will pull the wayward strands of her life together and open the door to freedom.

13. The Witch Doesn't Burn in This One by Amanda Lovelace

Amanda Lovelace calls all women to arms in her fiery poetry collection encouraging strength and resilience among women, and empowering them to reclaim their minds, their bodies, and their stories. In a world where women are still marginalized and oppressed, The Witch Doesn’t Burn in This One provides a much needed rebellious spark. So give it a read; then tell all your friends to give it a read. This is the self-love potion we didn’t know we needed, but absolutely do.

14. The Complete Poems of Emily Dickinson

Though exciting new voices like Amanda Lovelace are exploding onto the poetry scene, the poems of Emily Dickinson are as refreshing and relevant today as they were in 1840. Still one of the most daring voices ever to craft a couplet, Dickinson used her poetry to rebel against the dreariness of everyday life, and to rupture the boundaries between male and female writing styles. In doing so, she inspired generations of young women and laid the groundwork for a host of contemporary women writers . If you don’t want to read all of Emily Dickinson’s poems (though we can think of worse ways to spend our time), we’d recommend My Life had stood- a Loaded Gun .

15. The World's Wife by Carol Ann Duffy

Ask who was at the shops in the run up to Christmas and you might hear “Oh, the world and his wife”. But poet laureate Carol Ann Duffy challenges this patriarchal language picture with three simple words, the title of her 1999 collection, The World’s Wife . The cheeky, exuberant, subversive poems in this anthology hand over to the women behind the scenes, behind the throne, behind history. From the adoring Queen Kong to the lascivious Frau Freud, from the angry and ignored to the sure-footed and sexy, Duffy’s irresistible collection proves that behind every famous man there is in fact a great woman.

16. Dialectic of the Flesh by Roz Kaveney

Dialectic of the Flesh is a beautiful and intimate exploration of queer and trans existence through verse. Though Roz Gaveney’s collection is pocket-sized (31 poems in all), her poems run the gamut of emotions: elegies of abandonment and loss traverse pathways dark and guttural, while celebrations of love and sex are witty, exuberant, and wistful. Gaveney also showcases her versatility by dancing between carefully-constructed sonnet variations and villanelles, and free verse narratives. A collection not to be missed!

Young Adult Fiction

17. asking for it by louise o'neill.

Asking For It is the kind of book you devour, but not the kind you enjoy. Not because it isn’t well written — Louise O’Neill is fearless and moving — but because it tells a devastating story about rape culture and victim blaming that is uncomfortable and heart-breaking to read (while still incredibly important). Its discomfort is in part due to the fact that O’Neill doesn’t write about a sweet girl in the wrong place at the wrong time. Asking For It is about Emma O’ Donovan, a nasty, shallow girl, a bully, liar, and cheat, and even the reader can’t help but wonder, if only for a terrible, fleeting moment, whether she was at fault on the night she was assaulted.

18. Things a Bright Girl Can Do by Sally Nicholls

Nicholls breathes new life into the story of the Suffragette and Suffragists movements in her historical YA novel, Things a Bright Girl Can Do . She sees the rallies and marches, the freezing prison cells, the East End slums, and the stifling drawing rooms of Edwardian Britain through the eyes of three courageous young women who join the fight for the vote. Though they come from different walks of life, they all dream of a world where women are considered equal. Nicholls imbues this exhilarating era of change with gripping drama that brings the past fiercely to life.

19. Furious Thing by Jenny Downham

If Before I Die did not cement Downham’s reputation as an influential voice in young adult fiction , then this explosive novel certainly will. Furious Thing follows Lexi, a girl who is angry for reasons she cannot understand. Though she tries to swallow her temper, it simmers below the surface just waiting to erupt. What will happen if Lexi decides to take up space and make herself heard? 

A sensitive and thought-provoking narrative about modern issues, including anger-management and gaslighting, Furious Thing roars with anger at an unfair world that is constantly letting girls down.

20. Sister Outsider by Audre Lorde

In recent years, the call for intersectional feminism has been louder than ever, with an increasingly diverse range of voices contributing to the ongoing conversation. A lot of that is down to the work of writers like Audre Lorde, whose iconic collection of essays and speeches is considered a cornerstone of intersectional feminism. Sister Outsider reflects on sexism, racism, class, and homophobia; it also discusses the use of anger, the problems inherent in white feminism, and her own experience as a Black lesbian; but ultimately, Lorde’s message is one of hope.

21. Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert

Millions of women have fallen in love with this story, whether because of Julia Roberts’ winning smile, or Gilbert’s writing, which propounds a kind of literary incarnation of a best friend. An intimate memoir of breakdown and recovery, Eat Pray Love follows Gilbert on a voyage to find her true self: from her bathroom floor and the end of a perfect marriage, to Italy, India, and Indonesia, three beautiful backdrops against which she explores aspects of herself that have been missing. Pleasure in Italy, devotion in India, and balance in Indonesia — a powerful trinity for the 21st century woman.

22. A Room of One's Own by Virginia Woolf

Virginia Woolf’s transgressive and mischievous essay is now a landmark work of feminist literary critique, but it started life as a series of lectures given to Cambridge’s female colleges. Woolf takes on the established thought of the time — that women are inherently lesser writers — by asserting women’s creative originality and pointing to the systemic education and economic failures that stifled them. Her analysis is light, glancing, and even funny, despite its urgency and passion. At a juncture in her argument she offers the key to female creative liberation: A Room of One’s Own.

23. Men Explain Things to Me by Rebecca Solnit

If you’ve ever used the term “mansplaining” to describe the condescending efforts of a man to explain something to a woman, then you’ve got Rebecca Solnit to thank. Her collection of hilarious, rage-inducing essays, Men Explain Things to Me , not only coined this iconic term, but has also come to be considered as one of the best feminist books. 

Solnit delves into some of the biggest themes of the modern feminist experience, including marriage equality, the erasure of women from history, and the titular topic of having your expertise explained to you, often in patronizing terms. According to Solnit, it’s due to a combination of “overconfidence and cluelessness”. I think we all know a guy.

24. The Second Sex by Simone De Beauvoir

Published in 1949, The Second Sex began as an autobiographical essay in which author and philosopher Simone De Beauvoir explored why she had always thought of herself as a woman before anything else. As she combined personal observation with critical theory, it grew into a groundbreaking study of the unequal treatment of women throughout history, and “the problem of woman,” which, as De Beauvoir put it, “has always been the problem of men.” The Second Sex is an essential feminist book.

25. The Feminine Mystique by Betty Friedan

Betty Friedan confessed in 1973 that until she started writing The Feminine Mystique , she wasn’t even conscious of “the woman problem”: “I thought there was something wrong with me because I didn’t have an orgasm waxing the kitchen floor,” she said. In fact, many American women felt the same, and just as writing this book opened Friedan’s eyes, the women who read it were swept up in a new wave of feminism. The Feminine Mystique captured the frustration of middle-class American housewives afraid to ask themselves the question “Is this all?”, and exhorted them to make change happen for themselves.

26. Women, Culture, and Politics by Angela Y. Davis

A scholar and an activist, Angela Davis earned herself a place among the most important feminist voices of our era with her brilliant, biting prose, and Women, Culture and Politcs is perhaps her best feminist book. A collection of speeches and essays penned in 1989, it addresses the political and social shifts of the late 20th century, and the ways in which they changed conversations around the struggle for racial, sexual and economic equality.

27. This Bridge Called My Back

This Bridge Called My Back is a collection of personal essays, criticisms, poetry, and visual art from radical women of colour, including influential feminist writers such as Naomi Littlebear Morena, Audre Lorde, and Barbara Smith. Together they explore the intersections between gender, race, sexism, and class, and how these intersections influence the way they understand the world, as well as how the world understands them. This anthology is considered one of the landmark texts of Third Wave feminism, and continues to shape today’s feminist landscape.

28. The Female Eunuch by Germaine Greer

When Greer’s landmark feminist book, The Female Eunuch, hit the shelves in 1970, it immediately made waves with its shocking conclusion: that the traditional nuclear family is a tool of female oppression, and that the key to female liberation is sexual liberation. Erudite, outrageous, and sensible, Greer’s unflinching polemic transformed women’s lives. Sure, her call for women to taste their own menstrual blood might not have caught on, but if you’re asking whether The Female Eunuch still speaks to the modern feminist — the answer is yes.

29. Redefining Realness by Janet Mock

One of America’s most recognizable trans activists, Janet Mock relays her experiences growing up as a multiracial, poor, trans woman in her brave and moving autobiography, Redefining Realness. Though this is undoubtedly an account of one woman’s experience of womanhood, and her own quest to a sense of self, Mock manages to break ground for anyone and everyone who is marginalized and misunderstood, and is fighting to define themselves on their own terms.

30. Gender Outlaw by Kate Bornstein

In a society that insists we be either ‘man’ or ‘woman’, Kate Bornstein describes herself as a “nonbinary transfeminine diesel femme dyke”. On the surface, Gender Outlaw is the story of her transformation from being viewed as a heterosexual male to realizing she was a lesbian female; but below the surface, Bornstein never stops questioning our rigid expectations of a gender binary, and gently pushing us towards the furthest borders of the gender frontier. Though Gender Outlaw is a provocative and radical investigation into the notions of ‘man’ and ‘woman’, it is also funny, fearless, and wonderfully scenic.

31. The Madwoman in the Attic by Sandra M. Gilbert

Gilbert and Gubar’s The Madwoman in the Attic is a classic feminist book of literary criticism that looks at the portrayal of female characters by Victorian women writers. By applying a feminist lens to these 19th century novels, the authors not only change the way we think about the books themselves and their female characters, but also force us to look again at the grandes dames of English literature, whom, they suggest, have distinctly feminine imaginations. Originally published in 1979, The Madwoman in the Attic continues to tread the path for scholars some four decades later.

32. Colonize This!

It has been decades since women of color first turned feminism on its head, calling out the movement of the 70s for being white and exclusive. Colonize This! offers a much-needed refresh in its gripping and intimate portraits of American life, as seen through the eyes of young women of color. Daisy Hernandez and Bushra Rehman have gathered a brilliant and diverse  group of young feminist voices who speak to the concerns of a 21st century feminism — one that fosters freedom and agency for women of all races.

33. On Intersectionality by Kimberlé Crenshaw

As well as looking forward to the feminism of the future, sometimes it is just as important to look back at key turning points in its history. In 1989, Kimberlé Crenshaw coined the term intersectionality — a hugely influential approach to understanding discrimination in a society whose members experience bias in any combination of ways, as a result of race, gender or sexuality. In this collection of Crenshaw’s writing, readers will find essays and articles that provide a comprehensive and accessible introduction to a brilliant theorist and her critical work.

34. Headscarves and Hymens by Mona Eltahawy

Egyptian-American journalist and activist Mona Eltahawy is a fearless fighter for women’s rights. After making headlines in 2011 when she was arrested, beaten and sexually assaulted during the Egyptian revolution, she wrote a brave and impassioned article titled “Why Do They Hate Us?” — where “they” is Muslim men and “us” is women. Headscarves and Hymens is a book-length expansion of this article, in which she takes aim both at religious misogyny in the Middle East and at western liberals who mistake this misogyny for cultural difference. This fearless roar-to-arms sets her own experiences alongside those of dozens of other women, giving a laceratingly honest account of what it’s like to be a woman in the Muslim world.

35. Down Girl: The Logic of Misogyny by Kate Manne

What is misogyny? Who deserves to be called a misogynist? How does misogyny differ from sexism? Kate Manne explores all these questions in her forensic analysis of the logic of misogyny; but her guiding question, more straightforward and more troubling, is “Why is misogyny still a thing?” 

Manne argues that we should put individual men to one side, that we should stop treating hostility towards women as a psychological characteristic, and that we should put the focus on how women who challenge male dominance are policed by society. Down Girl is an essential feminist book for the #MeToo era.

36. Notorious RBG by Irin Carmon and Shana Knizhnik

When it comes to modern feminist icons, few spring to mind more readily than Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Even those of us who were born long after her appointments to the Supreme Court have fallen in love in recent years with her tenacious spirit, drive for equality, and sharp humor. In Notorious RBG , Carmon and Knizhnik bring what was once a playful Tumblr blog into a fully realized portrait of this fiercely inspiring woman. Through a fascinating combination of narrative, photographs, interviews, and even Justice Ginsburg’s own dissents, this book shows you a beloved icon in a new light — one that paints her as, somehow, even more remarkable than we already knew she was.

37. I Am Malala by Malala Yousafzai

These days, it’s hard to imagine that one person has the power to change the world, but reading I am Malala may just leave you feeling hopeful. This personal and deeply inspiring tale recounts Malala’s fight for a proper education — a fight she never should have had to enter into, but one that she braved with such fierce determination that her name is spoken with reverence in all corners of the globe. Through her own words, Malala recalls the now infamous shooting, her recovery, and the unparalleled journey of advocacy and feminist championing that followed.

38. Bossypants by Tina Fey

Endlessly talented and wickedly funny, Tina Fey has been entertaining and inspiring women for years. From her often-too-relatable portrayal of Liz Lemon to her years mixing it up on SNL, it seems there’s no comedy role that’s beyond her. Now, in Bossypants , we get a glimpse behind the many faces she’s worn over the years and discover, to our delight, that she’s every bit as amazing as we were always hoping she would be. Full of behind-the-scenes insight into all our favorite Fey moments, Bossypants will delight from first page to last.

39. Everyday Sexism by Laura Bates

Perhaps one of the most frustrating things to explain about sexism is that it doesn’t always come in the overt, chauvinist-pig wrapper that society likes to wrap it in. In fact, it normally hits us in quiet, everyday sort of ways that are almost impossible to explain, but that every woman knows. Started as a website in 2012, Everyday Sexism is one woman’s attempt to gather what it really looks like, through shared anecdotes of women from all walks of life, who’ve been told in subtle and pervasive ways that they’re “less than.” Both eye-opening and all too familiar, this book is not to be ignored.

40. This Will Be My Undoing by Morgan Jerkins

We all know that living with a marginalized identity is hard. But try combining those identities — in Jerkins’ case, being both Black and a woman — and suddenly the ante is raised even higher. With aggressions coming at you from all sides, the simple act of living your life becomes political. In this interconnected series of essays, Jerkins takes you through the raw reality of her life, exposing the double standards, hypocrisy, and demonization Black women face every day. This Will Be My Undoing is a vital piece of writing, and one that feminists, especially white feminists, should be sure to pick up and take to heart as they strive to build a better world for all women.

41. Gender Trouble by Judith Butler

Judith Butler is synonymous with the feminist movement: since the 1970s, the trailblazing philosopher has written over 20 influential books that challenge traditional gender conventions and defy gender performativity. Though each is a must-read, we recommend that you start with Gender Trouble: Feminism and the Subversion of Identity . A foundational work in feminist and queer theory, Gender Trouble disrupts the gender binary, arguing that “gender” itself is a performative construct. Written in 1990, its groundbreaking arguments are as important — and relevant — to understand now as they were then.

42. The Beauty Myth by Naomi Wolf

Called the “most important feminist publication since The Female Eunuch ” by Germaine Greer, The Beauty Myth tackles the perennial question of beauty, which was complicated further in the 1990s by the rise of mass media. Though it’s slightly dated by now, this is nevertheless a classic and masterful deconstruction of the myth of beauty in the context of the patriarchy: an important read for anyone who wants to understand the increasingly complex intersection between female identity, beauty, and society.

43. Bad Feminist by Roxane Gay

In an essay for The Guardian , Gay writes: “I am failing as a woman. I am failing as a feminist. To freely accept the feminist label would not be fair to good feminists. If I am, indeed, a feminist, I am a rather bad one.” In this modern day and age, what makes a “good enough” feminist? Bad Feminist is Gay’s critically acclaimed, witty, and powerful exploration of this very question. Covering a broad range of topics from politics to race and entertainment, this is a future classic that’s instrumental in the complicated and evolving conversation regarding what it means to be a feminist.

44. Feminism is for Everybody by bell hooks

As the modern feminist movement rose in profile in the 21st-century, it also gained its fair share of detractors, who decried its supposed “anti-male” stance. It is this crowd that hooks aims to address in Feminism Is For Everybody , published in 2000. With steady candor and precision, she dispels the myths most commonly associated with feminism and compellingly argues why feminism is for everyone — yes, for you, too.

45. A Vindication of the Rights of Woman by Mary Wollstonecraft

For those who want to start at the very beginning of the movement, start with A Vindication of the Rights of Woman . Written by the brilliant author-activist Mary Wollstonecraft — now acknowledged as one of the founding feminist philosophers — A Vindication of the Rights of Woman is one of the earliest works of feminist theory. A commanding manifesto that birthed the tenets of modern feminist thought, it defied the prevailing notion at the time that women were naturally inferior to men, arguing instead that education for women (or the absence thereof) was a key inhibitor to equality. Today, it reminds us of the distance we’ve traveled since 1792 — and the work that is still to be done.

46. Fat Is A Feminist Issue by Susie Orbach

Originally published 40 years ago, Fat is a Feminist Issue is one of the first revolutionary anti-diet books to address body image and body variance. Less a critique and more a step-by-step guide on overcoming emotional eating, it was ahead of its time when it was published. And much of it is still relevant today, in a society that is only becoming more obsessed with the “ideal” body.

47. We Should All Be Feminists by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

In December 2012, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie delivered an explosive TEDx talk entitled “We Should All Be Feminists” that generated 6 million views and ignited a worldwide conversation. This personal essay, which covers similar ground, is as much a must-read as the TEDx talk is a must-watch. With characteristic poise and wit (Adidchie is also a bestselling novelist and the recipient of the 2008 MacArthur Genius Grant), she distills the definition of modern feminism in clear prose, and delivers perhaps one of the most convincing arguments for why it would do all people good to rally around the movement.

48. The Future is Feminist

The Future is Feminist presents a stunningly empowering collection of essays that tackle feminism from all angles (including an entire essay on resting bitch face). As provocative, smart, and funny as its star-studded cast of diverse authors, this book is easily one of the most accessible introductions to feminism out there. Perhaps most importantly, it will offer inspiration and fire moving forward, as its authors from the past and the present — including Salma Hayek, Mindy Kaling, Sojourner Truth, and Mary Wollstonecraft — give us a glimpse of a more equal future.

49. Marxism and the Oppression of Women by Lise Vogel

If you stand at the cross-section of Marxism and feminism, Marxism and the Oppression of Women is essential reading. Whether you’re a Marxist wanting to venture into feminist thought or a feminist wanting to venture into Marxist theory, Vogel offers a concise overview on the topic that breaks down key Marxist concepts in clear, digestible prose. But she remains focused on the main critique at the core of the book: an analysis of the material basis of women’s oppression within a Marxist framework, and why Friedrich Engels and Karl Marx failed in that regard to account for it in their foundational Marxist texts.

50. Moving Beyond Words by Gloria Steinem

One of America’s greatest feminist icons, Gloria Steinem delivers yet another defiant and powerful essay collection. Building on Steinem’s past experience spearheading the American feminist movement in the 1960s and 1970s, these six essays move fluidly between the personal and the critique, all the while challenging societal notions of femininity and gender norms. If you’re short on time, you might want to skip to the “What if Freud were Phyllis?” essay: a brilliant take-down of sexist Freudian philosophies that re-imagines Freud as a woman.

Hungry for more? Check out this list of inspirational books for women .

Continue reading

More posts from across the blog.

50 Christmas Stories for the Holiday Season

It’s the most wonderful time of the year — to bury yourself in a good book, that is. With the winter winds howling and the fire crackling, there’s no better season to just curl up and read the day away. And what’s nice...

The 30 Best Mystery Books of All Time

The best mystery books are those with sprinklings of clues that brings out the inner detective in you, and here are 30 that you should not miss out on.

A Day in the Life of a Book Reviewer

In this guest post, Kirkus's Myra Forsberg shares book reviewing tips from four veteran indie critics.[typeform url="https://form.typeform.com/to/Nxdee45u" heading="Should you become a book reviewer?" subheading="Find out the answer. Takes 30 seco...

Heard about Reedsy Discovery?

Trust real people, not robots, to give you book recommendations.

Or sign up with an

Or sign up with your social account

• Submit your book
• Reviewer directory

We made a writing app for you

Yes, you! Write. Format. Export for ebook and print. 100% free, always.

40 Essential Feminist Books to Read for Women's History Month

This is one of the 305 lists we use to generate our main The Greatest Books list.

Hood Feminism by Mikki Kendall

This book provides a critical examination of mainstream feminism, highlighting how it often overlooks the needs and issues of marginalized women, particularly women of color and those from low-income communities. The author argues that feminism must address a wide range of basic survival issues such as food insecurity, access to quality education, safe neighborhoods, and healthcare that disproportionately affect marginalized populations. By sharing personal experiences and examining the intersection of race, class, and gender, the book calls for a more inclusive and intersectional feminist movement that advocates for the rights and needs of all women, not just a privileged few.

Whipping Girl by Julia Serano

In this thought-provoking work, the author explores the intersection of feminism and trans issues through a collection of personal essays. She delves into societal perceptions of femininity and critiques the way trans women are often marginalized, even within feminist circles. The book argues against the common conflation of gender and biological sex, and it challenges the stigma associated with femininity. It's a call to embrace diverse expressions of gender and to recognize the impact of transmisogyny on both trans individuals and society at large. The author's insights are grounded in her experiences as a trans woman, making it an influential contribution to gender studies and feminist discourse.

Freedom Is A Constant Struggle by Angela Davis

This book is a collection of essays, speeches, and interviews that delve into the interconnectedness of struggles against state violence and oppression throughout history and around the world. The author, a prominent activist and scholar, draws parallels between various movements for social justice, including the civil rights movement in the United States, the fight against apartheid in South Africa, and the Palestinian liberation struggle. She emphasizes the importance of collective action and the need for solidarity across different causes, arguing that the fight for freedom is an ongoing and universal endeavor that requires persistence and an understanding of the historical and global contexts of resistance.

Essential Labor by Angela Garbes

This book delves into the often overlooked but critical work of caregiving, examining its historical undervaluation and the way it underpins society. The author, drawing from personal experience and extensive research, argues for a reevaluation of labor hierarchies, spotlighting the emotional, physical, and economic challenges caregivers face. Advocating for systemic change, the narrative weaves together feminist theory, socio-economic analysis, and cultural commentary, offering a powerful case for recognizing caregiving as fundamental to our collective well-being and pushing for policies that honor and support this indispensable work.

Revolting Prostitutes by Molly Smith , Juno Mac

This book offers a comprehensive examination of the sex work industry from the perspective of those within it, advocating for the decriminalization of sex work as a means to improve the safety and autonomy of sex workers. It explores the complexities of the trade, challenging common misconceptions and moralistic views, and delves into how laws and policies around the world impact the lives of sex workers. The authors argue for a nuanced understanding of sex work, emphasizing the need for labor rights and social justice to address the systemic issues that sex workers face, including violence, stigma, and discrimination.

A Kick In The Belly by Stella Dadzie

The book explores the often-overlooked role of women in the resistance and rebellion against the transatlantic slave trade. It highlights the resilience and agency of enslaved African women in the face of brutal oppression, documenting their various forms of resistance, from everyday acts of defiance to outright revolts. Drawing on a wealth of historical sources, the narrative reveals how these women were not just passive victims but active participants in the fight for freedom, shaping the course of history with their courage and determination. The book also examines the impact of gender and power on the experiences of these women, offering a nuanced perspective on a dark chapter in history.

My Body by Emily Ratajkowski

The book is a candid memoir and essay collection where the author reflects on feminism, sexuality, and the commodification of the female body within the entertainment industry and society at large. Through personal anecdotes and critical analysis, the author explores her experiences as a model and actress, dissecting the power dynamics and exploitation that often underlie the surface glamour. The narrative delves into themes of consent, body image, and the complex relationship between self-empowerment and the objectification inherent in her line of work. The book serves as both an intimate autobiography and a thought-provoking critique of contemporary culture's obsession with female beauty and the cost it exacts on women's lives.

Feminism For The 99% by Cinzia Arruzza , Tithi Bhattacharya , Nancy Fraser

This book is a passionate call to action for a new wave of feminism that is inclusive and intersectional, aiming to address the needs and struggles of the vast majority of women rather than a privileged few. It critiques mainstream feminism for its focus on individual success and empowerment within a capitalist framework, arguing instead for a movement that fights against economic inequality, environmental destruction, and neoliberal policies. The authors advocate for a feminism that is anti-racist, anti-capitalist, and aligned with labor and social movements worldwide, seeking to transform society to achieve justice for the 99% of women whose lives are impacted by systemic oppressions.

A Vindication of the Rights of Woman by Mary Wollstonecraft

This influential work from the late 18th century argues passionately for the education and societal recognition of women. The author asserts that women are not naturally inferior to men, but appear to be only because they lack education. She suggests that both men and women should be treated as rational beings and imagines a social order founded on reason. The book is considered one of the earliest works of feminist philosophy.

A Room of One's Own by Virginia Woolf

This book is an extended essay that explores the topic of women in fiction, and the societal and economic hindrances that prevent them from achieving their full potential. The author uses a fictional narrator and narrative to explore the many difficulties that women writers faced throughout history, including the lack of education available to them and the societal expectations that limited their opportunities. The central argument is that a woman must have money and a room of her own if she is to write fiction.

Feminism Is For Everybody by bell hooks

This book serves as an accessible introduction to feminist theory, aiming to dispel the misconception that feminism is only for a select group of women. It argues that feminism is a movement to end sexism, sexist exploitation, and oppression, advocating for a collective understanding and embrace of feminist thought. The text examines various aspects of society, including race, class, work, and relationships, through a feminist lens, encouraging readers to consider how these interconnected issues affect everyone, regardless of gender. The author emphasizes the importance of love and acceptance in promoting feminist principles and envisions a world where equality and justice are paramount for all.

Gender Outlaw by Kate Bornstein

This book is a groundbreaking work that challenges traditional notions of gender and identity. Through a combination of personal narrative, theory, and performance, the author deconstructs the binary understanding of gender, presenting a radical and inclusive framework for thinking about gender identity and sexuality. The work is both a candid memoir and a thought-provoking treatise that invites readers to question the societal norms that dictate how individuals should conform to predetermined roles based on their gender. The book is a call to embrace a more fluid and individualistic approach to gender expression, advocating for the freedom to define oneself beyond the constraints of traditional labels.

Bad Feminist by Roxane Gay

In "Bad Feminist," the author presents a collection of essays that explore the complexities of modern feminism and the challenges of being a woman in today's society. With wit and candor, the book delves into topics such as politics, culture, race, and gender, scrutinizing the often contradictory expectations and ideals imposed on women. Through personal anecdotes and critical analysis, the author confronts the idea of a "perfect" feminist, advocating instead for the acceptance of feminism as a fluid and inclusive movement that acknowledges the diverse experiences and imperfections of those who participate in it. The book is a reflective and thought-provoking commentary on the role of feminism in contemporary discourse, making a case for embracing our flaws while still striving for equality and justice.

Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

This classic novel follows the lives of the four March sisters - Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy - as they navigate the challenges and joys of adolescence and adulthood in 19th century New England. As they grow, they grapple with issues of poverty, gender roles, love, and personal identity, each in her own unique way. The story is a testament to the power of family, sisterhood, and female resilience in a time of societal constraints.

Men Explain Things To Me by Rebecca Solnit

This book is a collection of essays that delve into the issues of feminism, gender inequality, and the pervasive problem of men dismissing and undermining women's voices. It opens with a now-iconic essay that recounts a personal experience where the author was patronizingly lectured to about her own book by a man who failed to recognize her as its author. The essays explore the cultural phenomenon where women's knowledge and expertise are often questioned or ignored, leading to broader discussions about power dynamics, violence against women, and the struggle for women's rights. Through incisive commentary and sharp wit, the book examines the silencing of women and calls for a more equitable social discourse.

Redefining Realness by Janet Mock

This book is a powerful and candid memoir that charts the journey of a trans woman growing up in America. It delves into her experiences of developing self-awareness, grappling with her gender identity, and navigating the challenges of transitioning, all while confronting the multilayered difficulties posed by society's expectations and norms. The narrative provides an intimate look into the life of someone who has battled with the complexities of identity, love, and acceptance, ultimately emerging as a strong advocate for the trans community and offering an inspiring testament to the resilience of the human spirit in the face of adversity.

Sister Outsider by Audre Lorde

"Sister Outsider" is a collection of essays and speeches that delve into the complexities of intersectional identity, exploring themes of racism, sexism, and homophobia. The author, a black lesbian poet and feminist writer, challenges the marginalization of minority groups and critiques the lack of inclusivity within feminist movements. Through personal narratives and powerful prose, the work confronts social injustices and calls for the recognition and celebration of differences as a means to drive political change and dismantle systemic oppression. The book is a seminal text in intersectional feminist thought, advocating for solidarity and the importance of communication across diverse communities.

The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath

The novel follows the story of a young woman who wins a guest editorship at a magazine in New York City and, after a series of personal and professional disappointments, suffers a mental breakdown and returns to her family, where she continues to struggle with depression and suicidal thoughts. The protagonist's experiences in psychiatric institutions and her attempts to reclaim her life are depicted with brutal honesty, making it a poignant exploration of mental illness and the societal pressures faced by women in the mid-20th century.

The Bloody Chamber And Other Stories by Angela Carter

"The Bloody Chamber and Other Stories" is a collection of short stories that reimagines and deconstructs traditional fairy tales. The narratives are filled with strong female characters, sexual exploration, and violent and gothic themes. Each story presents a unique spin on classic tales, such as Little Red Riding Hood, Beauty and the Beast, and Bluebeard, challenging the typical gender roles and expectations found in the original stories.

This Bridge Called My Back by Cherríe Moraga , Gloria Anzaldúa

This seminal anthology is a groundbreaking collection of essays, personal reflections, poetry, and critical analysis from a diverse group of women of color. It explores the complexities of their intersectional identities, focusing on the challenges and experiences they face due to their race, gender, class, and sexuality. The work serves as a foundational text in feminist theory, providing a platform for voices that had been marginalized within the feminist movement. It delves into themes of social justice, cultural identity, and political activism, calling for solidarity and empowerment among women of color as they navigate the overlapping oppressions of a patriarchal and racist society.

The Female Eunuch by Germaine Greer

This book is a seminal feminist text that explores the oppression of women in society. It critiques the traditional roles and expectations of women in the mid-20th century, arguing that societal norms and conventions force women into a secondary, submissive role, effectively castrating them. The book encourages women to reject these norms and to embrace their own sexual liberation, arguing for the need for a revolution in the way women perceive themselves and their place in society.

The Vagina Monologues by Eve Ensler

This groundbreaking work is a series of poignant, powerful, and at times humorous monologues based on interviews with a diverse group of women. The piece delves into the mystery, humor, pain, power, wisdom, outrage, and excitement buried in women's experiences. Through its exploration of the female body, the work confronts issues of sexuality, violence, and the social stigma surrounding women's bodies and women's rights. It has become a dynamic movement to support women's empowerment and raise awareness about violence against women, transforming the monologues into a worldwide phenomenon.

In Search of Our Mothers' Gardens: Prose by Alice Walker

This book is a compilation of essays that explores the struggle of African American women throughout history, as well as the author's personal journey as a writer. The author uses the metaphor of a garden to represent the creative spirit of African American women, which was often suppressed or ignored due to racial and gender discrimination. The essays discuss a wide range of topics, including civil rights, literature, and the author's own experiences, providing a powerful examination of African American women's history and culture.

The Feminine Mystique by Betty Friedan

This groundbreaking book is a sociological examination of the dissatisfaction felt by American housewives in the mid-20th century. The author argues that women are not naturally fulfilled by devoting their lives to homemaking and child-rearing, challenging the widely accepted belief of the era. It explores the idea of the "problem that has no name" - the widespread unhappiness of women in the 1950s and early 1960s. The book is considered one of the catalysts of the second-wave feminist movement.

The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood

Set in a dystopian future, this novel presents a society where women are stripped of their rights and are classified into various roles based on their fertility and societal status. The protagonist is a handmaid, a class of women used solely for their reproductive capabilities by the ruling class. The story is a chilling exploration of the extreme end of misogyny, where women are reduced to their biological functions, and a critique of religious fundamentalism.

The Second Sex by Simone de Beauvoir

This influential work explores the treatment and perception of women throughout history, arguing that women have been repressed and defined only in relation to men. The author presents a detailed analysis of women's roles in society, family, work, and in the creation of their own identities. She discusses the concept of 'the other' and how this has been used to suppress women, while also examining the biological, psychological, and societal impacts of this oppression. The book is a seminal text in feminist theory, challenging traditional notions of femininity and calling for equality and freedom for women.

Women, Culture & Politics by Angela Davis

In "Women, Culture & Politics," the author, a prominent activist and scholar, presents a collection of speeches and essays that delve into the intersections of gender, race, and class within the context of social justice movements. The book explores the role of women in cultural and political spheres, advocating for the empowerment of marginalized communities through solidarity and activism. It addresses issues such as reproductive rights, the prison-industrial complex, and the impact of racism and sexism on women of color, offering critical insights into the struggles and contributions of women in shaping a more equitable society.

The Golden Notebook by Doris May Lessing

The novel centers around a woman named Anna Wulf, a writer who keeps four notebooks, each representing a different aspect of her life: her experiences in Africa, her current life in London, a novel she is writing, and her personal experiences. As Anna's mental state deteriorates, she attempts to unify her fragmented self in a fifth notebook, the golden notebook. The novel explores themes of mental breakdown, communism, the changing role of women, and the fear of nuclear war.

Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston

This novel follows the life of Janie Crawford, a young African-American woman, in the early 20th century. She embarks on a journey through three marriages and self-discovery while challenging the societal norms of her time. The narrative explores her struggle for personal freedom, fulfillment, and identity against the backdrop of racism and gender expectations, ultimately emphasizing the importance of independence and personal growth.

The Vegetarian: A Novel by Han Kang

This novel tells the story of Yeong-hye, a dutiful Korean wife who, after having a disturbing dream, becomes a vegetarian, a decision that disrupts her marriage and sets into motion an increasingly grotesque chain of events at home. As her rebellion manifests in ever more bizarre and frightening forms, Yeong-hye spirals further and further into her fantasies of abandoning her fleshly prison and becoming - impossibly, ecstatically - a tree. The book is a darkly allegorical, Kafkaesque tale of power, obsession, and one woman’s struggle to break free from the violence both without and within her.

The Argonauts by Maggie Nelson

"The Argonauts" is a genre-bending memoir that chronicles the author's romantic relationship with her fluidly gendered partner, their journey to become parents, and their experiences with queer family-making. The narrative intertwines personal anecdotes with critical theories on gender, sexuality, and identity, challenging traditional notions of family, motherhood, and love. It offers a powerful exploration of desire, limitations, and the possibilities of language, pushing the boundaries of what memoirs can do and be.

The Awakening by Kate Chopin

"The Awakening" is a novel set in the late 19th century New Orleans, which explores the life of a young woman trapped in societal and marital expectations. She embarks on a journey of self-discovery and independence, defying the norms of her time. The protagonist challenges the traditional roles of women as she seeks personal fulfillment, experiences sexual awakening, and struggles with her desires and responsibilities. The book is a critique of the repressive social norms, particularly regarding women and marriage, of the Victorian era.

Parable Of The Sower by Octavia E. Butler

In a dystopian future where society has collapsed due to environmental and economic crises, a young woman named Lauren Olamina possesses a unique ability to feel the pain and pleasure of others. As she witnesses her community being torn apart by violence and religious fanaticism, Lauren embarks on a perilous journey to find a new safe haven and establish her own religion based on empathy and survival. Through her thought-provoking narrative, the book explores themes of resilience, spirituality, and the power of human connection in the face of adversity.

Citizen: An American Lyric by Claudia Rankine

"Citizen: An American Lyric" is a compelling and thought-provoking exploration of racial prejudice in contemporary America. The book, written in a blend of poetry, prose, and visual images, delves into the everyday experiences and microaggressions that people of color face. It also addresses larger events from the news that have impacted the Black community. The book is a powerful commentary on race, identity, and belonging, challenging readers to confront their own biases and perceptions.

Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys

This novel is a postcolonial prequel to "Jane Eyre," exploring the life of Mr. Rochester's mad wife, Bertha. Set in Jamaica during the 1830s, it follows the story of Antoinette Cosway, a white Creole heiress, from her youth in the Caribbean to her unhappy marriage and move to England. Caught in a society that both rejects and exoticizes her, Antoinette is ultimately driven into madness by her oppressive husband and the haunting legacy of colonialism.

Women Who Run With The Wolves by Clarissa Pinkola Estés

This book is a collection of myths, stories, and folklore from various cultures, aimed at exploring the instinctual nature of women. Through the interpretation of these tales, the work delves into the female psyche and emphasizes the importance of embracing one's wild and natural self. The author, a Jungian psychoanalyst, uses the concept of the "Wild Woman Archetype" as a metaphor for the innate force that women possess. She encourages readers to reclaim their power and creativity, which may have been stifled by societal expectations or personal challenges, and to reconnect with the transformative wisdom that these ancient stories carry.

Diving Into The Wreck by Adrienne Rich

"Diving Into The Wreck" is a collection of poems that explores the complexities of identity, feminism, and the journey of self-discovery. Through vivid imagery and powerful language, the poet delves into the depths of the human experience, examining the wreckage of societal expectations and personal history. The titular poem serves as a metaphor for this exploration, with the speaker donning the gear of a deep-sea diver to investigate a sunken ship, symbolizing the search for truth and meaning amidst the ruins of tradition and past roles. The anthology is a profound reflection on transformation, the struggle for equality, and the courage required to navigate the treacherous waters of change.

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou

This memoir recounts the early years of an African-American girl's life, focusing on her experiences with racism and trauma in the South during the 1930s. Despite the hardships she faces, including sexual abuse, she learns to rise above her circumstances through strength of character and a love of literature. Her journey from victim to survivor and her transformation into a young woman who respects herself is a testament to the human capacity to overcome adversity.

Know My Name by Chanel Miller

The book is a powerful and transformative memoir by a young woman who reclaimed her identity after being known to the world as "Emily Doe" in a highly publicized sexual assault case. With unflinching honesty and profound eloquence, she shares her harrowing experience of trauma and the grueling path through the criminal justice system. Her narrative goes beyond the assault and its aftermath, delving into the societal attitudes toward sexual assault and the personal journey of healing and empowerment. Her story is a testament to resilience, a call to change the culture that shames survivors, and an inspiration for others to assert their own identity and tell their truth.

Herland by Charlotte Perkins Gilman

"Herland" is a utopian novel that depicts an isolated society composed entirely of women who reproduce via parthenogenesis. The result is an ideal social order, free of war, conflict, and domination. The story is told from the perspective of a male sociologist who, along with two other men, stumbles upon the society. They are initially imprisoned, but as they learn about the society, they are gradually integrated. The novel explores themes of gender, motherhood, and how environment influences behavior and societal structure.

Harpers Bazaar , 40 Books

Harpers Bazaar list of the 40 essential feminist books. Here's the description from their website:

a list of thought-provoking books that cover everything from reproductive justice and economic equity to domestic labor and sex work. Whether you're looking to brush up on the early days of the movement, be inspired by modern-day feminist heroes, or witness how far we've come (and how far we still have to go), these are the perfect books to pick up for Women's History Month—and every other time of year.

This list has a weight of 4% . To learn more about what this means please visit the Rankings page .

• List: only covers very niche books
• Voters: 3-5 people voted
• List: criteria is not just "best/favorite"
• Voters: are mostly from a single country/location
• Voters: restricted to a distinct criteria(race, gender, etc)

If you think this is incorrect please contact us .

Purchase this book

Edit profile.

40 Essential Feminist Books to Read for Women's History Month

The perfect picks for this—and any—time of year

Carmel Snow, the legendary fashion editor who helmed Harper’s Bazaar from 1934 to 1958, once famously remarked that this publication is a hub for “well-dressed women with well-dressed minds.” Her words ring even truer today as readers face a literary scene inundated with countless spectacular works of fiction, theory, and criticism all about feminism.

Here, we rounded up a list of thought-provoking books that cover everything from reproductive justice and economic equity to domestic labor and sex work. Whether you're looking to brush up on the early days of the movement, be inspired by modern-day feminist heroes, or witness how far we've come (and how far we still have to go), these are the perfect books to pick up for Women's History Month—and every other time of year.

Hood Feminism: Notes from the Women That a Movement Forgot by Mikki Kendall

Today’s cadre of politically palatable feminists are coming up short on issues that should require their urgency, as Kendall so clear-sightedly points out in her bestselling book. Through a series of essays that touch on everything from reproductive rights to pop culture, the activist and thinker searingly critiques mainstream feminism’s tendency to cater to a specific type of privileged woman while also neglecting the material needs of others—especially as they pertain to income, housing, violence, education, and healthcare. In attempting to answer who, exactly, this movement serves, Kendall calls on readers to reconsider their priorities according to a genuinely inclusive and compassionate worldview.

Whipping Girl: A Transsexual Woman on Sexism and the Scapegoating of Femininity by Julia Serano

Since its publication in 2007, Serano’s masterful Whipping Girl has laid the foundation for so many thinkers and scholars attempting to understand the disproportionate scale of violence waged against transgender women. In this manifesto, she connects the dots between the epidemic of misogyny and transphobia, as well as debunks prevailing mainstream myths about what it means to exist as a transgender person in Western society.

Freedom Is a Constant Struggle by Angela Davis

Essential Labor: Mothering as Social Change by Angela Garbes

What does it take to raise a child? In Essential Labor , Garbes interrogates the expectations and assumptions that come with motherhood, revealing the ways in which American society depends on yet so often overlooks the integral contributions of mothers and domestic caretakers. Combining memoir with cultural analysis, the first-generation Filipino-American writer develops a new way of looking at domestic work in a hyper-capitalistic civilization.

Revolting Prostitutes: The Fight for Sex Workers’ Rights by Molly Smith and Juno Mac

Much has been said about the state of sex work and what to do about it, but the voices of actual sex workers often get lost in the shuffle. In Revolting Prostitutes , Molly Smith and Juno Mac—both sex workers themselves—are bringing their perspectives to the forefront of the conversation. By looking at different legal models and identifying the ways that migration, race, and feminism come into play with their industry, the duo make a compelling case for full decriminalization, arguing that prohibitive laws harm sex workers more than they empower them.

A Kick in the Belly: Women, Slavery and Resistance by Stella Dadzie

In this enlightening work of nonfiction, British-Ghanaian activist and historian Dadzie unearths the forgotten histories of enslaved women who played a key role in resisting and fighting back against slavery in the West Indies. In addition to chronicling the devastating conditions of life on a plantation and the cruel conduct of slave captors, Dadzie also brings to light the small but critical gestures of defiance activated by enslaved women, re-centering them as agents of their own destiny in the historically white-washed movement for abolition.

My Body by Emily Ratajkowski

In this collection of essays, Ratajkowski uses her career as one of the most sought-after models today as a framework to contend with the ways in which women’s bodies are commodified. Armed with a lifetime of exploitative experiences dealing with skeevy agents and abusive photographers, Ratajkowski taps into the emotional whiplash of being a woman—on the one hand, desired and lusted after and, on the other, viewed as a contemptuous inferior.

Feminism for the 99%: A Manifesto by Cinzia Arruzza, Tithi Bhattacharya and Nancy Fraser

This trio of authors, who helped organize the International Women’s Strike in the U.S., attempt to reorient the priorities of mainstream liberal feminists in this powerful manifesto. By invoking different international movements focused on ending economic, environmental, and racial injustices, they call upon readers to image a more revolutionary version of feminism that serves more than the women who already sit at the top of the global world order.

A Vindication of the Rights of Woman by Mary Wollstonecraft

First published in 1792, proto-feminist Mary Wollstonecraft took inspiration from the revolutionaries of her time who demanded greater rights for mankind, to advocate for an even more socially maligned group: women. Independent, educated, and intellectually esteemed, Wollstonecraft has been called one of the mothers of feminist theory, posing the idea of women as the natural and intellectual equals of men, and deserving of equal treatment and opportunities nearly a hundred years before the term feminist even existed.

A Room of One’s Own by Virginia Woolf

Published in 1929, Virginia Woolf’s essay took on the established literary criticism of the time, which claimed women were inherently lesser writers and creators by virtue of their gender. Instead, Woolf pointed to the vast, systemic education and economic failures that stifled women writers of the time. As one of the foundational pieces of feminist literary critique, you might expect that Woolf’s words lost their potency over the years, but her clever, incisive perspective remains just as inspiring today as it was when it was published.

Feminism Is for Everybody by bell hooks

Suffice it to say that feminist theory can be a bit dense for some. That’s why beloved feminist author and cultural critic bell hooks set out in 2000 to create an educational text for those whose understanding of feminism comes from passing TV references and outdated ideas about “feminazis.” A passionate treatise for the lay-feminist, hooks’s read explains and examines inclusive feminism and the practical application of it in a way that is both entertaining and informative.

Gender Outlaw by Kate Bornstein

Though nonbinary may be a relatively new term to mainstream readers, nonbinary people and writers have been discussing the complexities of gender fluidity for decades. Originally published in 1994 and recently revised and updated, self-described “nonbinary transfeminine diesel femme dyke” Kate Bornstein explores the layers of cultural, political, and social factors that inform and shape gender performance, calling out the rigid expectations of a gender binary as harmful to people of all presentations.

Bad Feminist by Roxane Gay

In the age of “problematic faves,” cultural critic Roxane Gay embraces and advocates for the idea of imperfect feminism in her collection of funny, honest essays. Pointing out the irony of holding our icons up to impossible-to-meet standards of thought and behavior, Gay takes on trigger warnings, the complications of loving catchy songs despite their degrading lyrics, and the ways in which tokenism in media negatively impacts women and people of color.

Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

Though feminism may not have been on her mind when she wrote the story of the intrepid March sisters in the 1860s, Louisa May Alcott has influenced numerous generations of bold, loving, and unconventional women. Following Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy as they grow, find love, pursue their art, and endure loss, Little Women shows the many ways to be a woman and has earned a place in the hearts of feminists of all stripes.

Men Explain Things to Me by Rebecca Solnit

Best known for popularizing the term mansplaining, Rebecca Solnit wrote a collection of personal yet decidedly un-saccharine essays that delve into big themes of the modern feminist experience with clarity and humor. From having your own interests explained to you to the #YesAllWomen movement to marriage equality, Solnit’s pieces are a relatable—often secondhand rage-inducing—look into gender in the 2010s.

Redefining Realness by Janet Mock

As one of America’s most recognizable trans activists, Janet Mock has made a name for herself by breaking ground for underrepresented women. Her autobiography, following her growth as a multiracial trans woman from a poor background to one of the country’s most respected advocates, offers a brave and moving look into the search for self and the manifold ways in which one experiences womanhood.

Sister Outsider by Audre Lorde

Intersectional feminism has raised its profile in recent years, with a more diverse range of voices participating in the conversation than ever before. Much of that is owed to work by writers like famed poet and author Audre Lorde, who brought a Black, queer, feminist perspective to the forefront of the cultural discussion in this iconic collection of essays and speeches on racism, sexism, and homophobia.

The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath

The semi-autobiographical story of one woman’s descent into mental illness in the 1950s, The Bell Jar has become a quintessential coming-of-age story for young feminists. Moody and sometimes terse, the prose beautifully encapsulates a moment in the female experience—the desire, disillusionment, and fear of being young, confused, and stifled by the role that society has prescribed.

The Bloody Chamber by Angela Carter

If you've ever enjoyed a feminist retelling of a classic fairy tale, you owe a debt to Angela Carter, whose 1979 collection of short stories birthed a subgenre all its own. The tales—which include murderous Little Red Riding Hoods, vampiric Sleeping Beauties, a Beauty who becomes the Beast and the wife of Bluebeard turning the tables—remain some of the rawest and most clever examples of the style, and everlasting proof of Carter’s talent.

This Bridge Called My Back by Multiple Writers

This anthology series features personal essays, criticism, poetry, and even visual art made by more than a dozen feminist women of color. It explores the ways their intersecting identities—gender, race, sexuality, class—shape the ways in which they relate to the world and the way the world, in turn, relates to them. Though originally published in the ’80s, the issues they present, and the perspectives they stand for, remain as pertinent to today’s feminist landscape as they were more than 30 years ago.

Lauren Hubbard is a freelance writer and Town & Country contributor who covers beauty, shopping, entertainment, travel, home decor, wine, and cocktails.

Keely Weiss is a writer and filmmaker. She has lived in Los Angeles, New York, and Virginia and has a cat named after Perry Mason.

As an associate editor at HarpersBAZAAR.com, Chelsey keeps a finger on the pulse on all things celeb news. She also writes on social movements, connecting with activists leading the fight on workers' rights, climate justice, and more. Offline, she’s probably spending too much time on TikTok, rewatching Emma (the 2020 version, of course), or buying yet another corset. 

Art, Books & Music

Curator Mashonda Tifrere Is Here to Build a Legacy

Jennie Gets Sporty in New Adidas Sneaker Campaign

The Queer Awakening of “Bridgerton”

Nikole Hannah-Jones’s New Black Literary Salon

The 16 Best Queer Books for Pride Month and Beyond

Victoria Monét Has Come to Save Summer

Penn Badgley Stars in Ariana Grande’s New Video

Raye’s “Genesis” Is More Than a Song

All About Sabrina Carpenter’s “Short n’ Sweet”

Gabriel Moses Puts Out a Daring New Art Book

The Marías Aren’t Afraid to Cry

15 Feminist Books Every Woman Should Add to Her Reading List

Even better if you get your male friends to read them.

Nine out of 10 times, people who are hesitant to label themselves as a feminist don't know the true definition of feminism—which, to put it simply, is the belief in the equality of men  and  women. The perfect reason why we should all be feminists (for more on that, see the book of the same name, below). The next time it feels like we're at a standstill on our progress towards women's rights, look to these 15 feminist texts for inspiration—and, more importantly, a powerful reminder that we're in this together.

Mikki Kendall's Hood Feminism, out next month, is the wakeup call we all need when discussing feminism. Too often food insecurity, access to quality education, safe neighborhoods, a living wage, and medical care aren't part of the conversation, which comes at the expense of white privilege. Hood Feminism brings it all to light.

Amanda Lovelace's The Witch Doesn't Burn in This One, part of Lovelace's "Women Are Some Kind of Magic" series, is a refreshing collection of poems that empowers women to take control of their minds and bodies.

ICYMI: Louisa May Alcott's beloved Little Women was adapted into a movie by Greta Gerwig at the end of 2019. While Alcott didn't necessarily set out to write a feminist novel in 1868, Gerwig's adaptation certainly makes it like she did. Do yourself a favor and read the book, then watch the film.

Audre Lorde's Sister Outsider encompasses 15 essays and speeches dated from 1976 to 1984 on sex, race, ageism, homophobia, and class. The collection is considered a classic with Lorde's dedication to exploring identity and change, specifically among African American women.

Being labeled a feminist can get complicated—especially when society encourages you to act or behave a certain way. In Bad Feminist, author and cultural critic Roxane Gay explores how to overcome these labels through her own personal experiences.

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, one of Barack Obama's favorite authors, makes a compelling argument for why everyone should embrace equality of the sexes, based off of her viral 2012 TED Talk of the same name. Fun fact: Part of Adichie's speech was included in Beyoncé's 2013 song, "Flawless."

Following the success of her first poetry collection, Milk and Honey, Rupi Kaur's second heart-tugging collection, The Sun and Her Flowers, reminds us of the strength and power of women. Its five sections—Wilting, Falling, Rooting, Rising, and Blooming—are filled with relatable moments of love, healing, growth, and learning to accept who you are while still challenging the world around you.

Jessica Valenti, one of the most well-known modern feminists of our time, and other icons, including Salma Hayek, Chelsea Handler, and Mindy Kaling, bring their whip-smart perspectives to this new collection, The Future Is Feminist. The essays explore what it means to be a feminist yesterday, today, and tomorrow. One very important topic of discussion? Resting bitch face, or as some may know it, RBF.

In Morgan Jerkins' collection of essays, This Will Be My Undoing, the acclaimed writer brilliantly describes life as a Black feminist in a white America, and how she and other Black women are fighting to navigate their way through the white feminist movement that continues to dominate our country.

Now's probably the time you regret just reading the Cliff's Notes of Kate Chopin's The Awakening in English Lit class. The classic (first published in 1899!) is the best-known example of early feminism. The main character, Edna, struggles with her family's views on femininity and motherhood. Relatable.

Thank Rebecca Solnit for creating the popular term "mansplaining," which originated from her hilarious essay on what happens when men assume women don't know what they're talking about. According to Solnit, it's due to a combination of "overconfidence and cluelessness."

Pulitzer Prize-winning author Toni Morrison's debut novel, The Bluest Eye (1970), explores society's long-problematic beauty ideals through its main character, Pecola—a young black girl mocked for the color of her skin. After her traumatizing experiences with sexual assault and bullying, she must confront what it means to conform to the world around her.

How to cope with the overbearing patriarchy currently fueled by the Trump administration? Read Rebecca Traister's Good and Mad, which illustrates how women have channeled their rage through historical events like the Women's March and the #MeToo movement—sparking a timely debate of what it means to be an "angry woman" today.

Now a popular TV show, Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale takes us through a dystopian world where women, known as Handmaids, are assigned to have children for elite couples. There's absolutely no freedom, and the women are controlled by the Commander they're forced to have sex with. It's a haunting reminder of how society can view a woman's worth.

Feminist icon Gloria Steinem wants you to know that you aren't confined to female stereotypes in her highly-praised 1995 collection of essays, Moving Beyond Words. Over the years, she's used her own experiences as a woman to help propel the movement towards equality. ••• For more stories like this, including celebrity news, beauty and fashion advice, savvy political commentary, and fascinating features, sign up for the Marie Claire newsletter. SUBSCRIBE HERE

Stay In The Know

Marie Claire email subscribers get intel on fashion and beauty trends, hot-off-the-press celebrity news, and more. Sign up here.

Rachel Epstein is a writer, editor, and content strategist based in New York City. Most recently, she was the Managing Editor at Coveteur, where she oversaw the site’s day-to-day editorial operations. Previously, she was an editor at Marie Claire , where she wrote and edited culture, politics, and lifestyle stories ranging from op-eds to profiles to ambitious packages. She also launched and managed the site’s virtual book club, #ReadWithMC. Offline, she’s likely watching a Heat game or finding a new coffee shop. 

Imagine all the people........

By Iris Goldsztajn Published 24 June 24

"Prince Louis’ future memoir on why he left The Royal Family will center around being left out of The Eras Tour."

By Danielle Campoamor Published 23 June 24

The model is taking a page straight out of Rihanna's pregnancy style guide.

The actress and best-selling author spoke to editor-in-chief Nikki Ogunnaike for 'Marie Claire' podcast "Nice Talk."

By Sadie Bell Published 20 June 24

The author and showrunner discusses turning her acclaimed 2019 novel into a Hulu miniseries.

By Quinci LeGardye Published 7 June 24

From boy-meets-girl beach reads to queer retellings of classic lit.

By Andrea Park Published 6 June 24

You won't be able to put down these moving memoirs and touching romances.

By Bianca Rodriguez Published 3 June 24

Consider them a form of self-care.

By Rachel Epstein Published 28 May 24

The forthcoming book from 'We Are Not Like Them' authors Jo Piazza and Christine Pride asks the question: Who gets to make the choice to be a mom?

By Danielle McNally Published 28 November 22

"When you are craving a loveable story with depth and true character development—this should be your next read."

By Brooke Knappenberger Last updated 3 October 22

Read an excerpt from Danielle Prescod's new memoir, here, then dive in with us throughout the month.

By Brooke Knappenberger Last updated 27 September 22

• Contact Future's experts
• Advertise Online
• Terms and conditions
• Privacy policy
• Cookies policy

Marie Claire is part of Future plc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Visit our corporate site . © Future US, Inc. Full 7th Floor, 130 West 42nd Street, New York, NY 10036.

18 Essential Feminist Reads, According to 6 Feminist Authors

As the great bell hooks stated, “feminism is for everybody.” Indeed, every person on earth is affected by the patriarchy in some way—though certainly, some more so than others. Thanks to the work of renowned professor Kimberlé Crenshaw, society has begun to understand the myriad ways in which race, class, sexual orientation, and other individual characteristics intersect to aggravate oppression. But the point is, we are all tasked with the responsibility of creating a new, just reality in which sexism and oppression have no place.

So where to begin when seeking to learn the ins and outs of the feminist movement? And what books can someone turn to when yearning to go deeper into its implications? To help us chart a way forward, we asked six feminist authors—across a wide array of backgrounds and literary genres—to share a few of the books they regard as essential reading for understanding both the myriad manifestations of the female experience and the sustained importance of feminism. Here are their suggested must-reads —in their own words.

Kate Baer, Author of What Kind of Woman and I Hope This Finds You Well

Bad Feminist by Roxane Gay : By now, most have heard of writer, feminist, and cultural critic Roxane Gay. Known for her funny, insightful, and moving essays, her reach is ever expanding and necessary. This book in particular has become my go-to recommendation for anyone searching for memoir, humor, or essays on intersectional feminism. Gay also stands out for her acceptance of imperfection, noting, “I am a bad feminist. I would rather be a bad feminist than no feminist at all.” [It’s a] phenomenal read.

Feminism Is for Everybody by bell hooks: This book should be required reading for every high school student, every first-time mother and father, every woman, and every man. Pair it with Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s We Should All Be Feminists , and you’ll find the perfect place to start if you’re interested in feminist studies and [desire to be] well-read on the subject. This book is literally for everyone.

Diving Into the Wreck: Poems 1971-1972 by Adrienne Rich: Reading any Adrienne Rich is like taking a shot of feminine rage—it leaves a burning in your belly and a face flushed with indignation. This collection in particular calls the reader to examine how both men and women contribute to a harmful patriarchy. “You worship the blood you call it hysterical bleeding / you want to drink it like milk / you dip your finger into it and write / you faint at the smell of it / you dream of dumping me into the sea.” To know Rich’s poetry is to know the power of language.

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou: Angelou’s 1969 autobiography turned American classic is perhaps one of our country’s most important reads on racism, sexism, and identity. Not only is this book a master class on prose, it gives readers a poignant and nuanced look into the upbringing of a remarkable American woman. Incredible and worth a reread if it’s been a decade or two.

Leah Thomas , Author of The Intersectional Environmentalist

All About Love by bell hooks: This is one of the most transformational books I’ve read, which explores the question “What is love?,”—love for ourselves, for others, for society. For Black women living in a patriarchal society built on racism, learning to love ourselves is a revolutionary act. Taking the time to assess generational trauma and unhealthy relational dynamics, [working toward] receiving healthy love between ourselves, our communities, and others is crucial to promoting a society rooted in love vs. oppression. bell hooks is a feminist icon, and this book demonstrates how love can be a healing tool for not only ourselves, but society as a whole.

Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston: Black feminism flows throughout this book, even though it’s not explicitly stated. But the experiences of the main character, Janie, demonstrate the struggles of Black women navigating both gender-based and racial discrimination and their ongoing quest for respect, rights, and dignity in the U.S. It also touches on colorism and lateral oppression, dynamics that occur within a minority group; through Janie’s struggles and experiences, she gets closer and closer to expressing her independence and finding empowerment in a patriarchal and racist society.

Rebecca Solnit, Author of Men Explain Things to Me and Recollections of My Nonexistence

Women and Power by Mary Beard: Mary Beard’s “The Public Voice of Women” [from] her small volume Women and Power is a great summary of the history of the problem of unequal voices—unequal in who is allowed to speak, who is listened to, who is believed and respected—all central to questions of inequality.

Woman and Nature: The Roaring Inside Her by Susan Griffin: Susan Griffin’s furious, lyrical Woman and Nature: The Roaring Inside Her still gives us valuable ways to think about gender in relationship to speed, technology, violence, domestic animals, to all the metaphors and analogies that stitch our world together in often-constricting ways.

How to Raise a Feminist Son by Sonora Jha: I love Sonora Jha’s How to Raise a Feminist Son because it addresses something really important, that how we raise children to see themselves, others, and the world is a central act in making a better world, and so feminism is taking place in a billion tiny acts every day, everywhere.

Know My Name by Chanel Miller: Chanel Miller’s memoir Know My Name describes how an act of violence and violation against an individual can ripple through dozens of lives, how the legal system often serves as a long episode of punishment and degradation following the original attack, and how a young woman can find her voice and use it to define herself, reach out to others, and claim the power she deserves.

Gabriela García, Author of Of Women and Salt

The Selected Works of Audre Lorde edited by Roxane Gay: I first encountered Audre Lorde’s essays and speeches as a young woman coming into my own feminist politic, particularly Sister Outsider , often quoted but sometimes divorced of its radical underpinnings. But I’d never read her essays alongside her poetry as in this new collection, and I was struck by the resonances between them—how theory grounded in the communal makes way for poetics of yearning, seething, loving that is painstakingly personal yet grounded in collaborative liberation and care.

Diving Into the Wreck by Adrienne Rich: I turn to Adrienne Rich’s poems often, and almost half a century after its publication, Diving Into the Wreck still strikes me as an utterly relevant exploration of both patriarchal power and mythology, and the complicated contours of feminine interiority. Rich explored varied territory–motherhood, the figure of daughter-in-law, the mechanical processing of a sexual assault by a cop–with language that was precise, incisive, and nuanced; the poems in this collection yield new insights each time I revisit.

Angela Garbes, Author of Like a Mother: A Feminist Journey Through the Science and Culture of Pregnancy and Essential Labor: Mothering as Social Change (Forthcoming May 2022)

Minor Feelings by Cathy Park Hong: Reading Minor Feelings in early 2020, just after it was published, I experienced the rare, intense pleasure of realizing, with each page, that it would be canonical to me. Here was the confusion, hypervigilance, desire, and pride and painful self-awareness that defines my (I thought) illegible, private journey into consciousness excised and biopsied with microscopic precision. Each essay is specific to Hong's experience as a Korean American woman, but as a Filipina American I am equally included and implicated. Here too, is anger—anger Asian women are not publicly entitled to, that increasingly threatens to consume us—finally directed outward, sublimated into powerful, destabilizing art.

“Welfare is a Women’s Issue,” essay by Johnnie Tillmon: Since the 1960s, mainstream American feminism has preached satisfaction and self-expression through work outside the home, a “lean-in” approach that values personal growth and gain. The beneficiaries have primarily been white women, as this empowerment has relied on outsourcing domestic labor to women of color at low wages. We hear a lot about Betty Friedan and The Feminine Mystique but far less about women such as Johnnie Tillmon and the National Welfare Rights Organization who, working at the same time, developed a platform for a Guaranteed Adequate Income to benefit all Americans. This essay, published in Ms. Magazine in 1972, shows that true feminism—inclusive and aimed at capitalist patriarchy’s root—can change everything. That, in Tillmon’s words, “Maybe it is we poor welfare women who will really liberate women in this country.”

“Uses of the Erotic: The Erotic as Power,” from Sister Outsider , by Audre Lorde: “ As women, we have come to distrust that power which rises from our deepest and nonrational knowledge,” Lorde writes. “Uses of the Erotic” instantly clarified something I had always suspected as a young woman: that the feeling of being “too much,” too emotional, too dark, too big, too sensitive, was not actually a problem. That it may actually be my great power. This essay is a loving, sensual invitation for all of us to see that we are not in conflict with ourselves, but with a culture that insists we'd be better off without our bodies. It’s true that all of Sister Outsider is essential reading, but I recommend doubling down and going deep on “Uses of the Erotic,” a short essay so densely packed with provocations and dares to live a full, embodied, and pleasurable physical life that I still marvel at it—and Lorde’s power—with every reading.

Zaina Arafat, Author of You Exist Too Much

Master of the Eclipse , Etel Adnan: The stories in Lebanese poet Etel Adnan’s Master of the Eclipse subversively resist an ingrained patriarchy through romantic relationships and female friendships. What results is a cauldron of displacement, nostalgia, love, and loss, all manifested in the trajectories of empowered female characters.

Meaty: Essays by Samantha Irby: This book, like so much of Irby’s work, delves into the unruly and at times uncooperative female body, along with love of food. By unabashedly displaying societally deemed “shameful” acts and realities, Irby empowers us to do the same, and to embrace our own bodily chaos and appetites.

Chloe Caldwell, The Red Zone: A Love Story (forthcoming April 2022): The necessity and urgency of The Red Zone made me wonder how I—or any woman—had lived so long without it. Through the lens of PMDD [premenstrual dysphoric disorder] and the female body, Caldwell refracts every issue imaginable, from relationships to hormones to queerness to stepmotherhood to blended families, all with hilarity, intimacy, and depth. Feeling seen by this book is an understatement; it’s a survival guide.

The 29 best feminist books and novels to read in 2021

When you buy through our links, Business Insider may earn an affiliate commission. Learn more

• Diverse feminist literature is critical to the progression of intersectional feminism.
• I talked to two women's and gender studies professors to get some feminist book recommendations.
• The list includes books by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Roxane Gay, Margaret Atwood, and more.

Feminism is a powerful social and political movement that calls for economic, cultural, social, and political equality for women. As such, the movement makes its greatest strides when it's intersectional — which is why books that explore feminism across class, race, gender identity, ability, and sexuality help foster greater inclusion and change. 

To gather most of these best feminist book recommendations, I spoke to Dr. Sara Matthiesen and Dr. Barbara LeSavoy for their scholarly expertise in feminist theory. Dr. Matthiesen is an Assistant Professor of Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies and History at The George Washington University. Her expertise is in feminist theory and US social movements. Dr. LeSavoy is an Associate Professor in the Department of Women and Gender Studies at SUNY Brockport. Her scholarly expertise is in feminist theory as well as intersectionality and gender equity. I also added a few popular feminist titles — personal favorites with many positive reviews on Goodreads and Instagram book reviewers.

By learning about the history of feminism and striving for intersectionality in all forms, the feminist movement gets vastly closer to a future of true equality. 

29 great fiction and nonfiction feminism books, according to professors

• Essay collections

A feminist manifesto charged with hope

"Dear Ijeawele, or A Feminist Manifesto in Fifteen Suggestions" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

A few years before the publication of this book, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie received a letter from an old friend, asking how to raise a baby girl as a feminist. Written as a letter in response, this book outlines 15 vital suggestions from open conversations about sexuality to debunking historical, misogynistic myths. This manifesto is short but powerful — and necessary in helping define how we create a feminist future and what it may look like.

Memorable quote: "Your feminist premise should be: I matter. I matter equally. Not 'if only.' Not 'as long as.' I matter equally. Full stop."

A historical look at the relationship between women and power

"Women & Power: A Manifesto" by Mary Beard

Mary Beard is an English scholar of Ancient Roman civilization. In this book, she retraces the origins of misogyny to explore how women have been denied, mistreated, and silenced throughout history. She includes her own reflections and narrations as well as examples from Homer to Hillary Clinton to illuminate the centuries-long tumultuous relationship between women and power. LeSavoy recommended this manifesto, saying that she's drawn to books "that have historical roots because [she likes] to look at how we accumulated the inequalities that we experience right now."

Memorable quote: "You cannot easily fit women into a structure that is already coded as male; you have to change the structure."

A feminist manifesto that uses personal storytelling

"See No Stranger: A Memoir and Manifesto of Revolutionary Love" by Valarie Kaur

This part-memoir, part-manifesto is written by Valarie Kaur, a renowned Sikh activist, filmmaker, and civil rights lawyer. Kaur tells her story of growing up as a Sikh woman in America spurred to fighting injustices after learning of xenophobic reactions to 9/11 and healing after her own traumatic experiences. She uses her personal history to call readers into action, demonstrating how using love as a revolutionary force can create new possibilities and opportunities that can quite literally change the world.  

Memorable Quote: "Deep listening is an act of surrender. We risk being changed by what we hear."

A manifesto that highlights critical feminist issues

"Feminism for the 99%: A Manifesto" by Cinzia Arruzza, Tithi Bhattacharya, and Nancy Fraser 

"Feminism for the 99%" uses a few pages to make a simple case: That feminism does not exist to simply fight inequality in the workplace, but must start at the bottom and address healthcare, housing, and poverty disparities. This is one of LeSavoy's favorite recommendations, expertly critiquing "the ways capitalism and materialism envelop inequalities."

Memorable quote: "We have no interest in breaking the glass ceiling while leaving the vast majority to clean up the shards."

A queer, observational manifesto

"Whipping Girl: A Transsexual Woman on Sexism and the Scapegoating of Femininity" by Julia Serano 

Julia Serano is a lesbian, transgender activist and professional biologist whose experiences both before and after transition offer observations into the ways in which negative societal attitudes towards feminity shape our reactions to trans women. Serano's writing reflects her exceptional intelligence, using acute arguments to prove that deep-rooted cultural beliefs connecting fragility and femininity are misogynistic misconceptions that must be dismantled in order to empower women to embrace femininity. 

Memorable quote: "The hardest part has been learning how to take myself seriously when the entire world is constantly telling me that femininity is always inferior to masculinity."

Essay Collections

A feminist collection to remind us of the essential work of the combahee river collective.

"How We Get Free: Black Feminism and the Combahee River Collective" by Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor

Through interviews with founding members of the Combahee River Collective and contemporary activists, scholar Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor revisits the Collective's "A Black Feminist Statement." The 1977 manifesto demonstrated the interlocking systems of oppression against which movements must fight, stating that "If Black women were free, it would mean that everyone else would have to be free." This book is recommended by Matthiesen, who says it "anticipates intersectionality [before we had a name for it] and provides a roadmap for how to build solidarity across difference."

Memorable quote: "Always ally yourself with those on the bottom, on the margins, and at the periphery of the centers of power."

A foundational feminist text

"This Bridge Called My Back: Writings by Radical Women of Color, Edited" by Cherríe Moraga and Gloria Anzaldúa

This classic anthology of essays, poems, interviews, visuals, and criticism written by radical women of color, originally published in 1981, is considered a foundational text of feminism. Recommended by Matthiesen, who likes this collection because it "centers the experiences of women of color," this book uses first-person narratives to define feminism that embraces and encourages the complexity of race, class, gender, and sexual identities — and reject the idea of one singular idea of womanhood.

Memorable quote: "...It is not really the difference the oppressor fears so much as the similarity."

Funny and thoughtful essays on the evolution of one woman's feminism

"Bad Feminist: Essays" by Roxane Gay 

In her collection of critical essays on politics and feminism, Roxane Gay grants us insight into the evolution of her identity, culture, feminism, and place in the world. She offers the reflection that we become what we consume, we all carry racism, and how we still need to be better. Recommended by LeSavoy, Gay's essays are moving, uncomfortable, and encouraging all at once. Readers of all kinds will undoubtedly find an essay that resonates and calls for self-reflection of our feminism and accountability. 

Memorable quote: "I embrace the label of bad feminist because I am human."

The collected writings of a prominent historical woman

"The New Woman of Color: The Collected Writings of Fannie Barrier Williams, 1893-1918" by Fannie Barrier Williams, edited by Mary Jo Deegan 

LeSavoy recommends reading Fannie Barrier Williams, whose writing and speaking brought light to the difficulties African American women experienced in the Progressive Era and helps us "return to some of these early thinkers who were overlooked by white dominance." Highly influential and successful, Fannie Barrier Williams spent the entirety of her life fighting for change and equality preserved in this collection of speeches and essays. Though this book may be difficult to find online today, it's available in many libraries. 

Memorable quote: "The fixed policy of persecution and injustice against a class of women who are weak and defenseless will be necessarily hurtful to the cause of all women."

Essays that illuminate a powerful voice

"Sister Outsider: Essays and Speeches" by Audre Lorde 

Audre Lorde was a profound, distinguished feminist and civil rights activist, dedicating her life to addressing inequality and injustice. Recommended by LeSavoy, this collection of essays and speeches is from 1976-1984, where Audre Lorde wrote and spoke about her beginnings in empowerment movements and the importance of increasing the visibility of minority women. Audre Lorde advocated the necessity of distinct representation within feminism, anticipating intersectionality years before the word was coined. Her writing demands to be not only heard but consumed and carried, becoming an essential part of readers' feminist journeys. 

Memorable quote: "Your silence will not protect you."

A collection from a world-renowned scholar

"Freedom is a Constant Struggle: Ferguson, Palestine, and the Foundations of a Movement" by Angela Y. Davis

In this educational collection of interviews, essays, and speeches, Angela Y. Davis discusses the importance of illuminating historical movements of liberation to connect the history of international oppression to the feminist revolutions of today. Without honoring the legacies of injustices, the journey towards gets inevitably longer and more difficult. But if we can face long-lasting issues, such as the prison-industrial complex, then we can draw the connections that will create pathways to an inclusive, feminist future. 

Memorable quote: "Whenever you conceptualize social justice struggles, you will always defeat your own purposes if you cannot imagine the people around whom you are struggling as equal partners."

A memoir that redefines motherhood

"Waiting in the Wings: Portrait of a Queer Motherhood" by Cherrié Moraga 

Recommended by Matthiesen for its "beautiful reflection on life and death as well as the necessity of queer kinship," "Waiting in the Wings" is a memoir from Cherrié Moraga, a Chicana lesbian writer and activist. This story resonates with all women for the fears and miracles of pregnancy and the trauma of the near-loss of her son. However, Moraga's story is one of lesbian motherhood amidst the AIDS crisis and legal uncertainty for the "queer family." Moraga's memoir explores the ways in which a family is not only dependent on shared genetics.

Memorable quote: "I am trying to write about the impossible. The ordinary beginning and ending of a life."

A memoir of life beyond disability

"Don't Call Me Inspirational: A Disabled Feminist Talks Back" by Harilyn Rousso 

Harilyn Rousso is tired of being patronized as a woman who is so much more than her disability, yet it seems to be the only thing the world sees about her. Her memoir is vulnerable and honest, managing to capture a breadth of emotions on the journey that is the relationship between her and her disability. This novel is a celebration of life, growth, and overcoming the prejudice surrounding disabilities. 

Memorable quote: "As a visual artist I think about a book as a collage or a series of images about my life rather than a formal portrait."

A bestselling memoir from the daughter of Asian American immigrants

"Minor Feelings: An Asian American Reckoning" by Cathy Park Hong

The 2021 National Book Critics Circle Award Winner for Best Autobiography, Cathy Park Hong's "Minor Feelings" is a combination of memoir, cultural criticism, and history together in an essay collection about being a Korean American daughter of immigrants. The "minor feelings" that Hong felt arose when she believed the lies she was told about her racial identity. Hong's essays span her relationships with the English language, depression, her family, and other women. "Minor Feelings" validates the experiences of Asian American people — especially women — who have faced racism and invalidation throughout their lives by bringing racial consciousness to the forefront. 

Memorable Quote: "I have struggled to prove myself into existence."

An Indigenous woman's memoir told in comedic essays

"Bury My Heart at Chuck E. Cheese's" by Tiffany Midge

This collection of essays from Tiffany Midge encapsulates the life and identity of Native women in America, a distinct voice that's been missing from the comedy landscape. Her short, stand-alone essays are mostly either humorous social commentary or autobiographical musings and confessions, using her identity and voice to disrupt the common narrative and offer a unique perspective on culture, media, and feminism from an indigenous, female lens. 

Memorable quote: "Being that so many white people believe that Indians practice magic, you'd think they'd try to be nicer to us."

Analytical Nonfiction

A contemporary, intersectional read.

"Hood Feminism: Notes from the Women That a Movement Forgot" by Mikki Kendall 

In "Hood Feminism," author and activist Mikki Kendall spotlights the blind spot of modern feminism: failing to meet the basic needs of survival for women of color and instead focusing on increasing the privilege of the few. LeSavoy recommends this book because it addresses "the issues of white feminism excluding women of color," offering practical ways to becoming greater allies. By recognizing white, middle-class privilege within feminism, we can take the first step towards active allyship and inclusive feminism in the future. 

Memorable quote: "There's nothing feminist about having so many resources at your fingertips and choosing to be ignorant."

A study of the women's liberation movement in the US

"Women, Race, and Class" by Angela Y. Davis 

In her study of the movement for women's rights, activist and political figure Angela Y. Davis uses an expanse of history from abolitionist days to now in order to demonstrate how classist and racist bias of leaders hinders the progression of women's liberation. This read is recommended by LeSavoy, and although nearly 40 years old, is still highly relevant today.

Memorable quote: "If most abolitionists viewed slavery as a nasty blemish which needed to be eliminated, most women's righters viewed male supremacy in a similar manner — as an immoral flaw in their otherwise acceptable society. "

The honest antidote to mansplaining

"Men Explain Things to Me" by Rebecca Solnit

Using a combination of humor and critical commentary, Rebecca Solnit addresses a problem that we often refer to as "mansplaining," writing about men who incorrectly assume they know things that women do not and the role that gender plays in these interactions. Sharing some of her own notable encounters with mansplainers, Solnit leaves us with the message that silencing women in large or small ways has the potential to be dangerous to women in the long run — making it a read recommended by LeSavoy.

Memorable quote: "Every woman knows what I'm talking about. It's the presumption that.. crushes young women into silence by indicating, the way harassment on the street does, that this is not their world."

A cultural critique

"Feminism is for Everybody: Passionate Politics" by bell hooks 

"Feminism is for Everybody" uses an engaging and open style to analyze critical issues that feminism faces, such as domestic violence and reproductive rights. Social activist and professor bell hooks demands intersectionality in feminism, welcoming people of all races, sexualities, abilities, and identities to collaborate on feminism that can create alternatives to the current patriarchal structures in society. This recommendation comes from LeSavoy who, like hooks, stresses that feminist knowledge must be accessible.

Memorable quote: "As long as women are using class or race power to dominate other women, feminist sisterhood cannot be fully realized."

A reframing of contemporary Black feminism

"Black Feminism Reimagined: After Intersectionality" by Jennifer C. Nash 

Recommended by Matthiesen, "Black Feminism Reimagined" is a philosophical and political take on intersectionality in feminism that begins with basic concepts and grows to explore deeper and more complex issues. In her mission to reclaim intersectionality, Nash encourages inclusion that will open feminism to a world of analytical freedom.

Memorable quote: " The labor of Black feminist scholarship, then, is to incite the reader to protect intersectionality from a set of forces — colonization, appropriation, gentrification — that are undeniably violent."

An approachable read about feminist theory

"Living A Feminist Life" by Sara Ahmed 

"Living a Feminist Life" is an accessible take on feminist theory, one that uses everyday experiences to prove application of practical changes can help anyone live a feminist life. Sarah Ahmed notes that feminists often become estranged from the problems they are trying to solve — but can create solutions that address the issues facing women of all races, classes, abilities, and sexualities. Recommended by LeSavoy, it's an academic feminist text that refuses to feel like one, opting for a narrative storytelling style that begs inclusivity of all feminist conversations. 

Memorable quote: "If talking about sexism and racism is heard as damaging institutions, we need to damage institutions."

Feminist Fiction

A fierce and passionate novel about womanhood.

"Girl, Woman, Other" by Bernardine Evaristo 

In his contemporary fiction novel about the Black British experience, we follow 12 stories of mostly women and their families, friends, and lovers. This book is full of energy, vibrantly embracing the struggles and successes of Black womanhood. Spanning across countries and years, Bernardine Evaristo creates a diverse spectrum of voices and experiences that represent womanhood in many of its forms. 

Memorable quote: "Gender is one of the biggest lies of our civilization."

An eerie dystopian novel

"The Handmaid's Tale" by Margaret Atwood

"The Handmaid's Tale" is a classic, feminist reading list staple. Both a satire and a warning, it depicts a dystopian fantasy where women are valued only as reproductive vessels. In this fiction recommendation from LeSavoy, Offred is a Handmaid to the Commander in a world where reproduction is declining, laying down once a month and praying the Commander gets her pregnant. In a strictly enforced republic where women aren't even allowed to read, Offred can remember the times before and longs for the days of freedom in her past. This powerhouse of a novel is frightening, one that still feels contemporary despite 20 years passing since its publication. 

Memorable quote: "Don't let the bastards grind you down."

A novel about a brave young woman

"The Girl With The Louding Voice" by Abi Daré

"The Girl With The Louding Voice" is a courageous, contemporary story about Adunni's formative years in Nigeria. Adunni lives in a rural Nigerian village until she is granted the opportunity to leave her impoverished community in pursuit of an education and a good job. Even though it means leaving her family and risking her safety, she decides achieving her dreams is worth the risk. Adunni's unique voice is instrumental in the reader's comprehension of her growth as she pursues education. Throughout the book, her voice slowly but deliberately evolves as she uses her new experiences and education to find her true voice. 

Memorable quote: "My mama say education will give me a voice. I want more than just a voice, Ms. Tia. I want a louding voice." 

A timeless feminist story

"The Color Purple" by Alice Walker 

In this iconic story about African American women in 20th-century rural Georgia, Alice Walker breaks the silence about domestic and sexual abuse, buried pain, resilience, and recovery. Nettie and Celie are sisters separated by an ocean and connected only through the letters Celie writes first to her sister, then to God. Attempting to survive immeasurable pain, Celie's strength is drawn from the women around her. This novel uses magnificent storytelling to pull a visceral and deeply empathetic reaction from readers, garnering profound love for powerful and admirable characters. 

Memorable quote: "Let 'im hear me, I say. If he ever listened to poor colored women the world would be a different place, I can tell you."

A feminist historical fiction novel set in the time of Jesus' life

"The Book of Longings" by Sue Monk Kidd

Sue Monk Kidd reimagines history in this novel of Ana, the brilliant writer and wife of Jesus. In "The Book of Longings," Ana is a feminist before her time, writing about silenced women, protesting injustices, and using her passion and womanhood to influence a time in history where she is otherwise destined to be stifled. This book is as powerful as Ana, following her rebellious and daring spirit from her rejection of the man her family wishes her to marry, to her marriage to Jesus and resistance to Rome's occupation. This historical fiction novel is an example of strong and courageous women demanding to be heard. 

Memorable quote: "Anger is effortless. Kindness is hard. Try to exert yourself."

A novel about motherhood and immigration

"A River of Stars" by Vanessa Hua

While working in a factory in her native China, Scarlett Chen fell in love and got pregnant by her married boss, who sent her to America so their son would have better opportunities as a US citizen. After a shocking sonogram, Scarlett escapes the maternity home in Los Angeles and finds herself in Chinatown amongst other immigrants in search of the American Dream. It's a story that encompasses a diverse lens of identity across nationality, class, documentation status, and motherhood. 

Memorable Quote: "Here in America, she might change the world — but she had to hurry before someone else did."

A profound historical fiction read

"Homegoing" by Yaa Gyasi 

This remarkable debut novel from Yaa Gyasi an emotional historical fiction novel that spans 300 years. Two half-sisters, Effia and Esi, are born in different villages in Ghana in the 18th century. When Effia is married off to an English man in a castle, she has no idea her sister is imprisoned in the dungeons beneath. As the story spans generations, the narration splits between the slave trade and British colonization in Ghana and slavery and the Civil War in America. Gyasi's writing flows beautifully through this portrait of womanhood.

Memorable quote: "We believe the one who has power. He is the one who gets to write the story. So when you study history, you must ask yourself, whose story am I missing?"

An emotional, contemporary feminist novel

"A Woman Is No Man" by Etaf Rum

In this multigenerational story of Arab women in America, Deya is 18 years old and her grandparents are beginning to force her to meet suitors, despite her near-refusal to get married. Her mother also had no choice when she was forced to leave Palestine to marry her husband in America. While they seem to mirror each other, Deya slowly discovers that her story is vastly different from her mother's. This isn't a happy story, but a memorable novel about the role of women in families, cultures, and communities. Recommended by LeSavoy, it highlights the ways in which traditions can be oppressive to women and while individualism and the ability to choose can be powerful, it can also have consequences. 

Memorable quote: "A real choice doesn't have conditions. A real choice is free."

• Main content

Best Feminist Books

Dive into empowerment and equality with these essential feminist reads, ranked by frequency of recommendations from leading literary sources..

These 15 Feminist Books Will Inspire, Enrage, and Educate You

In these superb books, feminist thinkers interrogate everything from the intersection of racism and misogyny to the pornography industry.

Every product was carefully curated by an Esquire editor. We may earn a commission from these links.

"Women who lead, read," said Laura Bates, the feminist writer and the founder of the Everyday Sexism Project, an online resource inviting women to share the sexist encounters they've experienced. Bates' words speak to a powerful truth about not just feminism, but about activism more broadly: to be an activist leader, first you'll need to get educated. Perhaps you've already explored the rich world of feminist writing, or perhaps you're adrift in the sheer surfeit of excellent choices, unsure of where to start. Wherever you're calling from, we've curated a list of exceptional feminist books both old and new.

In these fifteen books, feminist thinkers interrogate everything from intersections of racism and misogyny to Pepe the Frog's deeper meaning to online enclaves of sexist men. A feminist thinker needn't be an academic, of course—these writers range from feminist scholars to novelists, poets to producers of feminist pornography. Whatever their trade or their topic, their work is bound to inspire you, enrage you, and galvanize you to take part in the feminist movement, whether that's marching in the streets or producing powerful change in your own workplace or home life.

State University of New York Press This Bridge Called My Back: Writings by Radical Women of Color, edited by Cherríe Moraga and Gloria E. Anzaldúa

The fourth edition of this venerable anthology, first published in 1981, remains an enduring trove of foundational thought from women of color. Before the term “intersectionality” entered academic discourse, This Bridge Called My Back put in the radical work of developing intersectional feminism, challenging the hollow “sisterhood” of white feminists while drawing connections between race, class, gender, and sexuality. Forty years later, the panoply of perspectives contained in this anthology continues to undergird third wave feminism and emerging activist coalitions. May future generations of radical women fall just as hard for This Bridge Called My Back as their forebears did; after all, the future of feminism remains forever indebted to this groundbreaking anthology.

Viking Hood Feminism: Notes from the Women That a Movement Forgot, by Mikki Kendall

In Hood Feminism: Notes From the Women That a Movement Forgot , writer and feminist scholar Mikki Kendall writes, “We rarely talk about basic needs as a feminist issue… Instead of a framework that focuses on helping women get basic needs met, all too often the focus is not on survival, but on increasing privilege.” This is the thesis of Hood Feminism , an urgent and essential text about the failure of modern feminism to address the needs of all but a few privileged women. Hood Feminism is a searing indictment of whitewashed, Lean In feminism, with Kendall calling for the movement to embrace inclusivity, intersectionality, and anti-racism. In powerful, eloquent essays, Kendall highlights how the movement’s myopia has failed Black women, Indigenous women, and trans women, among others, and how feminism must shift its focus away from increasing privilege in favor of solving issues that shape the daily lives of women everywhere.

Haymarket Books Men Explain Things to Me, by Rebecca Solnit

From one of our most imaginative and incisive writers comes a contemporary classic: seven sharp essays, each one an exceptionally hewn gem, beginning with the rousing title essay about how conversations between men and women are often driven off-course by mansplaining. In the ensuing essays, Solnit peers through politics, history, art, and media as lenses on cultural misogyny, arguing that seemingly isolated acts of sexism, like mansplaining, exist on a dangerous continuum of gendered exploitation and abuse, leading perilously to sexual violence. Solnit writes, “It’s a slippery slope. That’s why we need to address the slope, rather than compartmentalizing the varieties of misogyny and dealing with them separately.” Candid, courageous, and unflinchingly honest, Men Explain Things to Me is a powerful polemic for a future where women can enjoy equal power and respect.

Vintage The Bluest Eye, by Toni Morrison

Simon & schuster good and mad: the revolutionary power of women's anger, by rebecca traister.

Released just five days after Dr. Christine Blasey Ford’s historic congressional testimony and four days before Justice Brett Kavanaugh’s Supreme Court confirmation, Good and Mad is the rare book published exactly when the culture needed it. Through exhaustive and compelling historical research, Traister illuminates female fury as a powerful political tool—one that’s long been ignored and suppressed, to the great detriment of American society. Traister traces women’s rage to the roots of the abolition and labor movements, exploring the forces that have sought to curb and marginalize women’s voices, while also emphasizing the ways in which Black women have long laid the foundation for the activism of American women. Powered by Traister’s own anger and laced through with compelling anecdotes from women about wielding righteous rage for constructive purposes, Good and Mad is galvanizing proof that hell hath no fury like half a nation’s population silenced. 

Seal Press Whipping Girl: A Transsexual Woman on Sexism and the Scapegoating of Femininity, by Julia Serano

In this twenty-first century cornerstone of transfeminism, Serano, a transgender woman, exposes the myriad ways in which trans women have been stereotyped and disregarded in popular culture. Serano challenges the hyper-sexualization of trans women and connects transphobia to misogyny, while also debunking dangerous and deeply-rooted cultural mistruths about femininity as weakness and passivity. Her acute analysis builds to a rousing manifesto for a new framework of gender and sexuality: one rooted in inclusivity and empowerment, designed to embrace femininity in all its many varied forms. 

Bison Books Bury My Heart at Chuck E. Cheese's, by Tiffany Midge

"What’s the Lakota word for intersectional feminism? Is it just an emoji of a knife?" asks prolific humorist Tiffany Midge in this uproarious, truth-telling collection of satirical essays skewering everything from white feminism to “Pretendians” to pumpkin spice. Midge, a member of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, muses bitingly on life as a Native woman in America, staring colonialism and racism in the face wherever she finds them, from offensive Halloween costumes to exploitative language. This collection’s deliciously sharp edges draw laughter and blood alike. 

Hachette Books The Witches Are Coming, by Lindy West

Only Lindy West, one of our foremost thinkers on gender, could capture the agony and the ecstasy of 21st century life in one slim volume. In this searing collection of seventeen laser-focused essays, she unveils her unifying theory of America: that our steady diet of pop culture created by and for embittered, entitled white men is directly responsible for our sociopolitical moment. Adam Sandler, South Park , and Pepe the Frog all come under her withering scrutiny in this uproarious, hyper-literate analysis of the link between meme culture and male mediocrity. West crafts a blistering indictment of the systems that oppress us—the government that denies our rights, the media that denies our stories, and the society that denies our dignity.

Currency Girl Decoded: A Scientist's Quest to Reclaim Our Humanity by Bringing Emotional Intelligence to Technology, by Rana el Kaliouby

At once a moving memoir of one woman’s becoming and a fast-paced story set on the bleeding edge of artificial intelligence, Girl Decoded traces el Kaliouby’s personal and professional journey as a Muslim woman in the overwhelmingly white and male world of technology. Raised by conservative parents in Egypt, el Kaliouby broke with obedient daughterhood to earn a PhD at Cambridge, then moved to the United States to pursue her dream of humanizing the tech industry. As she recounts her quest to bring emotional intelligence to emerging technologies, el Kaliouby writes beautifully about the personal challenge of learning to “decode” her own feelings. Her efforts led her to found Affectiva, a software company pioneering artificial intelligence that can understand human emotions. As women in STEM continue to fight misogyny, racism, and countless other challenges, Girl Decoded is a rousing reminder that women can and should be able to succeed without sacrificing any part of their wholeness. 

Washington Square Press The Will to Change: Men, Masculinity, and Love, by bell hooks

In this seminal excavation of patriarchy’s devastating effect on the male psyche, hooks describes an endemic pattern of “psychic self-mutilation,” which drives men to lead lives of spiritual barrenness when they lose touch with love, self-expression, self-knowledge. Hooks addresses common male fears of intimacy and loss of patriarchal status while encouraging men to enrich and share their inner lives. Although hooks wrote The Will to Change with an eye toward reforming the emotional and spiritual lives of male readers, it nonetheless contains troves of wisdom for women. After all, as hooks writes, “Anytime a single male dares to transgress patriarchal boundaries in order to love, the lives of women, men, and children are fundamentally changed for the better.”

Crown Entitled: How Male Privilege Hurts Women, by Kate Manne

The visionary author of Down Girl returns with a bracing and brilliant study of male entitlement, bound to become a cornerstone of contemporary feminist canon. In a far-ranging analysis, Manne explores the myriad manifestations of male entitlement in American society, from Brett Kavanaugh’s Supreme Court appointment to the unequal division of domestic labor. So too does her scrutiny fall on incels, the medical undertreatment of female pain, and the myth of female politicians as “unelectable,” among other forces that police and punish women. Manne interrogates how entitlement gives rise to misogynist violence, making for a perceptive, precise, and gut-wrenching account of a social framework with devastating consequences.

Back Bay Books Circe, by Madeline Miller

Disparaging tales of witches, harpies, and other female monsters are burned into our cultural imagination, but in the lush, luminous pages of Circe , a minor sorceress from Homer’s Odyssey receives a long-overdue feminist reimagining. Miller charts the lesser goddess Circe’s exile to the enchanted island of Aiaia, where Circe’s prison soon becomes her paradise. For centuries, she lives a free, feral life, honing her divine gifts of witchcraft and transfiguration while bedding down with lions and wolves. When Odysseus is shipwrecked on Aiaia, Miller reimagines the power dynamics of their entanglement, chipping away at Homer’s fabled myth of one man's greatness to expose a selfish man as flawed as any other. In Miller’s masterful hands, a long-overlooked goddess steps into the spotlight, giving rise to a powerful story of independence and self-determination in a man’s world. 

Ecco Press I Must Be Living Twice: New and Selected Poems, by Eileen Myles

In the past decade, a new generation of feminists awakened to the work of Eileen Myles, whose lifetime of intimate and inimitable poetry is collected in I Must Be Living Twice . Spanning almost four decades of visionary work, this collection assembles an eclectic blend of Myles’ finest work, from their reminiscences on life as a young creative in New York City to more universal reflections on falling in love. Resisting heteronormative modes and subverting facile labels, Myles reminds us that poetry is a form of activism—one that can shift how we understand and empathize with the world around us.

The Feminist Press at CUNY The Feminist Porn Book: The Politics of Producing Pleasure, edited by Tristan Taormino, Constance Penley, Celine Parrenas Shimizu, and Mireille Miller-Young

Can pornography and feminism coexist? At the heart of this informative and far-reaching volume is that thorny question, explored in a series of gripping and provocative essays authored by producers, actors, consumers, and scholars of feminist pornography. From plus-size porn to disability in porn to trans women’s fight to be included as frequently as trans men, these essays demand an inclusive new future for erotic representation—one where fantasies of power and pleasure are egalitarian, in front of and behind the camera.

The Feminist Press at CUNY The Feminist Utopia Project, edited by Alexandra Brodsky and Rachel Kauder Nalebuff

What would a feminist utopia look like? Just ask any one of the fifty-seven cutting edge feminists whose voices resound in this expansive collection, which invites us to imagine a radically different world of freedom, safety, and equality. With essays by Janet Mock, Sheila Heti, Melissa Harris-Perry, and more, The Feminist Utopia Project proposes vigorous and compelling thought experiments: how might birth control be different if it were designed by an abortion provider? What would our economy look like if it valued caregiving and domestic labor? What would “good sex” mean through a framework of female pleasure? Next time you feel the feminist project is doomed, dive into this galvanizing book for a curative and necessary dose of hope. 

@media(max-width: 73.75rem){.css-1ktbcds:before{margin-right:0.4375rem;color:#FF3A30;content:'_';display:inline-block;}}@media(min-width: 64rem){.css-1ktbcds:before{margin-right:0.5625rem;color:#FF3A30;content:'_';display:inline-block;}} Books

How to Take Back Your Life from AI

What Can You Read in Prison?

Why It’s a Vital Time for Short Stories

How to Read the 'Dune' Book Series in Order

The Last Gay Erotica Store

How We Broke the Social Safety Net

How to Read ‘Game of Thrones’ In Order

Books by ‘Under the Bridge’ Author Rebecca Godfrey

Why Are Debut Novels Failing to Launch?

Teddy Wayne Knows What Makes the World Go Round

The Best Nonfiction Books of 2024 (So Far)

40 Of The Best Feminist Books

Alice Nuttall

Alice Nuttall (she/her) is a writer, pet-wrangler and D&D nerd. Her reading has got so out of control that she had to take a job at her local library to avoid bankrupting herself on books - unfortunately, this has just resulted in her TBR pile growing until it resembles Everest. Alice's webcomic, writing and everything else can be found at https://linktr.ee/alicenuttallbooks

View All posts by Alice Nuttall

What makes a feminist? It’s a question that pops up whenever feminism is discussed. Sometimes the answers are pithy and snappy (for example, the one given by Su in Roxane Gay’s Bad Feminist, one of the best feminist books, who states that feminists are “just women who don’t want to be treated like shit”). Sometimes they’re much longer, for better or for worse. Often there’s mention of makeup or high heels (can you be a feminist and like either? Depends on who you ask – my personal feeling is, yes, but never tell me they’re compulsory).

Sometimes it seems that there are as many different types of feminism as there are people who identify – or don’t – as feminists. Learning about feminism and trying to apply it to your life is a continuous process, with a multitude of perspectives to consider as you go. While reading the best feminist books is certainly not the only way to get involved in feminism, it’s a great way to encounter and engage with some of these perspectives. Here’s a rundown of some of the best feminist books that I’ve come across whilst trying to work out what being a feminist is to me.

Feminist Classics

Although we’re heading into a new year, and indeed a new decade, many of the issues that we’re facing seem very familiar. It’s disheartening that, yet again, we’re having to argue issues like “do women deserve bodily autonomy and equal rights?”, but at least there are a multitude of classic feminist texts that have already given excellent answers to those questions, which we can draw on in the ongoing fight for equality. Here are some classic feminist texts that make for great foundational reading.

1. A Vindication of the Rights of Woman by Mary Wollstonecraft

In this classic of first-wave feminism, Mary Wollstonecraft made the argument that women deserved the same rights as men, including equal education – a fairly controversial statement in 1792. While many of Wollstonecraft’s opinions and attitudes about women’s roles in society might seem conservative by today’s standards, her writings played a major role in kick-starting the conversations that later feminists continued.

2. Sister Outsider by Audre Lorde

Audre Lorde’s famous essay collection is a cornerstone of Black Feminism. Lorde discusses the uses of anger, the role of poetry in activism, and her own experiences as a Black lesbian in the USA, as well as calling out white feminism for excluding and erasing Black women.

3. This Bridge Called My Back: Writings by Radical Women of Color , edited by Cherríe Moraga and Gloria E. Anzaldúa

This collection of writings by Black, Indigenous, Latinx, and Asian women looks at the intersections between feminism and race, class, and sexuality, and is generally viewed as one of the foundational texts of Third Wave feminism. Contributors include important feminist writers such as Naomi Littlebear Morena, Audre Lorde, Barbara Smith and the Combahee River Collective.

4. Women, Culture and Politics by Angela Davis

Academic and activist Angela Davis is the author of many important feminist text, but  Women, Culture and Politics is a particularly important read, looking at the importance of considering workers’ rights, racism and the prison industrial complex as part of feminist analysis.

5. Gender Trouble by Judith Butler

An essential read for anyone interested in queer theory,  Gender Trouble looks at the ways that gender has been, and continues to be, constructed and performed in various contexts and across societies.

6. Fat is a Feminist Issue by Susie Orbach

First published in 1978,  Fat is a Feminist Issue is just as relevant today, looking at women’s relationships with their bodies, the manipulative nature of the diet industry, and offering ways for readers to escape the trap of socially-imposed ideals of what their bodies “should” look like.

7. Ain’t I A Woman? by bell hooks

With a title drawn from Sojourner Truth’s famous speech , bell hooks’s Ain’t I A Woman? is another classic of Black Feminism. Charting the history of feminism from its inception to the 1970s, the Civil Rights movement, and the impact of racism and sexism on Black women, it’s a crucial read by a towering feminist scholar.

8. The Second Sex by Simone de Beauvoir

One of the best-known works of feminist philosophy, The Second Sex was a source of inspiration for Judith Butler and Betty Friedan. Comprising two volumes ( Facts and Myths and  Lived Experience ), Beauvoir’s book tackles the treatment of women throughout history.

9. The Madwoman in the Attic by Sandra Gilbert and Susan Gubar

Gilbert and Gubar’s work of feminist literary criticism might already be familiar to anyone who did an English Literature degree. The text looks at the way women are portrayed in 19th century novels, applying a feminist lens to the treatment of female characters, particularly the titular ‘madwoman in the attic’, Mr Rochester’s imprisoned wife Bertha.

10. The Sacred Hoop: Recovering the Feminine in American Indian Traditions by Paula Gunn Allen

A must-read text in the field of Indigenous feminism, Paula Gunn Allen’s work is a history and celebration of women’s roles in various Native American traditions, looking at a return to tradition and spirituality as a way of countering colonialism.

Recent Feminist Must-Reads

In recent years, there has been an explosion of brilliant feminist writing which looks at the relationships between gender, race, sexuality, class, dis/ability, and many other aspects of identity. If you want to learn more about third-wave and intersectional feminism, the feminist books below are a fantastic place to start.

11. Colonize This! Young Women of Color on Today’s Feminism , edited by Bushra Rehman and Daisy Hernández

With essays on subjects including abortion, Muslim feminism, and the lack of contradiction in being both femme and feminist,  Colonize This! celebrates the feminism of women of colour in the 21st century. It’s a fascinating and joyful read, with a multitude of feminist voices tackling crucial topics.

12. Race, Class and Gender: An Anthology by Margaret L. Andersen

With over 60 essays exploring the intersections of gender, race, class and sexuality, Race, Class and Gender is a fantastic resource for gaining an understanding of multiple aspects of feminist theory.

13. Bad Feminist by Roxane Gay

Novels, essays or tweets – anything written by Roxane Gay is well worth reading, and Bad Feminist , her collection of personal essays, is one of her best. The widest range of topics is covered, including sexual violence, female anti-heroines, being a ‘bad’ feminist, and even the world of competitive Scrabble. Gay’s writing turns familiar topics on their heads, making you think about them in an entirely new light, and is fiercely funny as often as it is gut-punchingly frank.

14. The Gender Games by Juno Dawson

You might know Juno Dawson from her YA novels, but she’s also a fantastic nonfiction writer, and in The Gender Games  she considers how gendered expectations and stereotypes damage everyone. Drawing on her own experiences as a trans woman, and insights from many other feminist writers and activists, Dawson delivers a manifesto on how to dismantle stereotypes.

15. Feminism: A Graphic Guide by Cathia Jenainati and Judy Groves

This beautifully illustrated graphic novel offers a history of various feminist movements, a breakdown of the different waves and categories of feminism, and a guide to feminism in the present day, as well as featuring biographies of several prominent feminist figures.

16. Feminism is For Everybody by bell hooks

One of hooks’s more recent works, Feminism is For Everybody is exactly what the title implies – a feminist primer looking at crucial feminist topics like race, class, reproductive rights, and sexual violence.

17. Gender Outlaw by Kate Bornstein

Written by “a self-described nonbinary transfeminine diesel femme dyke”,  Gender Outlaw is a radical work on gender, trans rights and feminism that encourages every reader to question society’s binary view of sex and gender.

18. On Intersectionality by Kimberlé Crenshaw

Kimberlé Crenshaw coined the term intersectionality in 1989, and her theories and critical work have been a hugely influential part of feminism ever since.  On Intersectionality is a collection of Crenshaw’s writings, with a new introduction by the author that clarifies this groundbreaking feminist framework.

19. Can We All Be Feminists? , edited by June Eric-Udorie

In this essay collection, seventeen feminist writers discuss ways to make feminism more effective and inclusive. With contributions from writers such as Wei Ming Kam, Zoé Samudzi and Frances Ryan,  Can We All Be Feminists?  is a fascinating and thought-provoking read.

20. Slay in Your Lane by Elizabeth Uviebinené and Yomi Adegoke

Subtitled ‘The Black Girl Bible’,  Slay in Your Lane  looks at the lives and experiences of Black British women. Uviebinené and Adegoke draw on stories from their own lives, as well as interviewing many other successful Black British women.

21. Headscarves and Hymens by Mona Eltahawy

Author, journalist and activist Mona Eltahawy is a fearless fighter for women’s rights. Her first book, Headscarves and Hymens , challenges religious misogyny in the Middle East and the complacency of feminist movements in the West.

22. Too Fat, Too Slutty, Too Loud by Anne Helen Petersen

Petersen’s book is a call to every woman who’s been told that she’s ‘too much’ – who takes up more space than patriarchal limitations allow. Looking at several different women, all of whom have been dismissed as being ‘too [something]’, Petersen considers why women are so often told to be ‘less’.

23. Here We Are: Feminism for the Real World , edited by (Book Riot Editor) Kelly Jensen

A perfect read for feminist teens,  Here We Are discusses girls in fiction, body positivity, activism, love, and much more. Taking a firmly intersectional approach, this collection is a fantastic introduction to feminism for young adult readers.

24. Men Explain Things to Me by Rebecca Solnit

The inspiration for the term ‘mansplaining’, Solnit’s book of essays covers subjects including rape, marriage, the erasure of women from history, and the titular topic of men explaining obvious things to women (often ones with expertise).

25. Down Girl: The Logic of Misogyny by Kate Manne

In  Down Girl , philosopher Kate Manne analyses misogyny, how it functions, and what we can do about it. Manne puts the focus on how women are policed by society, how internalised misogyny is encouraged, and how misogyny differs from sexism.

26. Revolting Prostitutes: The Fight for Sex Workers’ Rights by Molly Smith and Juno Mac

Written by two sex workers,  Revolting Prostitutes discusses sex workers’ rights within a feminist framework. Sex workers’ voices are too often sidelined in mainstream and legal discourse, and in  Revolting Prostitutes , Smith and Mac attempt to redress this imbalance.

27. The Minority Body: A Theory of Disability by Elizabeth Barnes

Disability rights are a crucial aspect of feminism. In The Minority Body , Elizabeth Barnes gives an essential overview of the social vs. the medical model of disability, asserting that disabled bodies like hers should be viewed as different, rather than inferior, to abled bodies.

28. Living a Feminist Life by Sara Ahmed

In this ‘killjoy manifesto’, Sara Ahmed describes ways to apply feminist theory to everyday life, and build support systems and solutions that can stand against the ongoing grind of sexism, racism, and other kinds of bigotry.

Fiction, Poetry, and Feminist Nonfiction

Feminism is a movement and a framework for activism, but it’s also a source of inspiration, a springboard for creativity, and a prompt to look at neglected areas of history. Here are some recommendations for feminist novels, poetry, and nonfiction books.

29. Asking For It by Louise O’Neill

Celebrated YA author O’Neill tells a devastating story of sexual violence and victim blaming, in this novel that was also turned into a highly rated play.

30. The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood

A classic of feminist fiction,  The Handmaid’s Tale tells the story of Offred, a woman treated as nothing more than breeding stock by an oppressive, fundamentalist society.

31. Things A Bright Girl Can Do by Sally Nicholls

This historical YA novel tells the story of the Suffragette and Suffragist movements, through the eyes of three young girls frustrated by the limited roles that society offers for women at the beginning of the 20th century.

32. The Deathless Girls by Kiran Millwood Hargrave

This contemporary Gothic novel reimagines the ‘dark sisters’ from  Dracula , giving these two new vampires a voice that they never had in Bram Stoker’s original novel.

33. Angela Carter’s Book of Wayward Girls and Wicked Women , edited by Angela Carter

This collection of stories, edited by a titan of feminist fiction, celebrates women who defy labels like ‘likeable’, ‘pleasant’ or ‘nice’, and instead go for ‘cunning’, ‘clever’ and ‘interesting’.

34. The Belles by Dhonielle Clayton

Dhonielle Clayton’s debut novel, a fantasy story set in a world where appearances can magically be changed, isn’t just a gripping adventure – it’s also a sharp takedown of the dangers of the beauty industry.

35. The Radium Girls by Kate Moore

This narrative nonfiction book deals with a groundbreaking battle to protect workers’ rights, health and safety. When the young women working for the Radium Dial Corporation in the early 20th century began to show signs of radiation poisoning, they started a legal battle for compensation that led to major changes in employers’ legal responsibilities.

36. Furious Thing by Jenny Downham

Anger is a feminist issue, and in this explosive YA novel, heroine Lexi learns to express her anger at a world that lets her and so many other girls down.

37. The Blazing World by Margaret Cavendish

This very early feminist novel (and proto sci-fi story) was written by the Duchess of Newcastle in 1666, and follows the adventures of a woman who travels to an alien, utopian world.

38. The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman

Another early feminist classic,  The Yellow Wallpaper tells the story of a woman slowly undergoing a breakdown following extreme confinement as treatment for postnatal depression – and, frighteningly, was based on the author’s own experiences.

39. Dialectic of the Flesh by Roz Kaveney

Roz Kaveney’s poems are well worth a read, and  Dialectic of the Flesh is a beautiful exploration of queer and trans existence through verse.

40. Rubyfruit Jungle by Rita Mae Brown

A quintessential lesbian coming-of-age story, Rubyfruit Jungle is a novelised telling of Rita Mae Brown’s own experiences as a young lesbian leaving home and setting out as a filmmaker.

As I mentioned at the start of this post, feminism is such a huge and wide-ranging subject that this list only makes up a fraction of the great feminist books out there.

Luckily, Book Riot has plenty more recommendations – have a browse through 10 Recent Nonfiction Books About Feminism , or 10 Feminist Books to Help Dismantle the Patriarchy . And if you want to talk feminist books with fellow readers, why not join Book Riot’s Instagram-based feminist book club, Persist ?

You Might Also Like

• UK Politics
• News Videos
• Paris 2024 Olympics
• Rugby Union
• Sport Videos
• John Rentoul
• Mary Dejevsky
• Andrew Grice
• Sean O’Grady
• Photography
• Theatre & Dance
• Culture Videos
• Fitness & Wellbeing
• Food & Drink
• Health & Families
• Royal Family
• Electric Vehicles
• Car Insurance Deals
• Lifestyle Videos
• UK Hotel Reviews
• News & Advice
• Simon Calder
• Australia & New Zealand
• South America
• C. America & Caribbean
• Middle East
• Politics Explained
• News Analysis
• Today’s Edition
• Home & Garden
• Broadband deals
• Fashion & Beauty
• Travel & Outdoors
• Sports & Fitness
• Sustainable Living
• Climate Videos
• Solar Panels
• Behind The Headlines
• On The Ground
• Decomplicated
• You Ask The Questions
• Binge Watch
• Travel Smart
• Watch on your TV
• Crosswords & Puzzles
• Most Commented
• Newsletters
• Ask Me Anything
• Virtual Events
• Betting Sites
• Online Casinos
• Wine Offers

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in Please refresh your browser to be logged in

The Independent's journalism is supported by our readers. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn commission.   Why trust us?

13 best feminist books to read ahead of International Women’s Day 2024

From 20th-century classics to modern-day manifestos, our suggestions run the gamut, article bookmarked.

Find your bookmarks in your Independent Premium section, under my profile

Sign up to our free weekly newsletter for insider tips and product reviews from our shopping experts

Sign up for our free indybest email.

Now in its fourth wave, the feminist movement has achieved a great deal over the past 100 years, and we have its literary canon to thank for a lot of it.

From Virginia Woolf and Doris Lessing’s seminal writing in the 20th century to Margaret Attwood, Caitlin Moran and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s contemporary musings on womanhood, feminist books address everything from financial independence and motherhood to intersectionality and gender politics.

And while some books champion the progress made, others continue to draw awareness to just how far the movement still has to go.

Whether you’re looking to widen your own understanding of what feminism means, broaden someone else’s horizons or enlighten a slightly antiquated aunt, we’ve got you covered with our reading list.

19 best new books to read in 2024, from historical fiction to romance novels

International Women’s Day 2023: The female-founded brands to know

10 best books written by women: From Hilary Mantel to Sally Rooney

8 best book subscription boxes for a monthly literary treat delivered to your door

How we tested feminist books

To mark International Women’s Day 2024, we’ve rounded up books that not only reflect what it means to be a woman today but also help demonstrate how far the feminist movement has come, as well as classic 20th-century works that proved revolutionary at the time. There’s an exhaustive selection of feminist tomes out there to educate, galvanize and inspire – here’s a selection of some of the best.

The best feminist books for 2024 are:

• Best feminist book overall – ‘We Should All Be Feminists’ by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie: £6.23, Amazon.co.uk
• Best feminist novel – ‘Girl, Woman, Other’ by Bernadine Evaristo: £8.80, Amazon.co.uk
• Best feminist classic – ‘A Room of One’s Own’ by Virginia Woolf: £5.99, Waterstones.com
• Best feminist dystopia – ‘Handmaid’s Tale’ by Margaret Attwood: £9.49, Bookshop.org
• Best feminist memoir – ‘How to Be a Woman’ by Caitlin Moran: £6.99, Amazon.co.uk   

‘We Should All Be Feminists’ by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, published by HarperCollins

• Best : Feminist book overall

Just as personal and powerful as Virginia Woolf’s 20th-century essay A Room of One’s Own , Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s contemporary text is adapted from her TEDx talk of the same name. A feminist critique of the 21st century woman, the writer explores inclusion, intersectionality and awareness within the movement while drawing on her own experiences as a woman growing up in Nigeria, living in the US and abroad.

Adichie’s manifesto carries the same witty and conversational tone as her bestselling fiction and serves as a rallying cry for unity. At just 64 pages, this pocket-sized book is an ideal introduction to modern feminist thought.

‘A Room of One’s Own’ by Virginia Woolf, published by Penguin

• Best : Feminist classic

Hugely significant at the time of its release, Virginia Woolf’s 1929 extended essay addresses everything from the necessity of women’s financial freedom to the situations of female authors such as Jane Austen and the Bronte sisters. Examining the educational, social and financial disadvantages that women have faced throughout history, the central gist of Woolf’s feminist critique is that: “A woman must have money and a room of her own if she is to write fiction.”

Through the use of metaphors such as the tragic story of Shakespeare’s fictional sister Judith, Woolf explores the history of marginalised women and the male constructs that have held them back – from inheritance bars and educational exclusion to the expectation of marriage and childbearing. Essential reading for anyone looking to understand the position of women 100 years ago, as well as the progress that’s been made since.

‘Girl, Woman, Other’ by Bernadine Evaristo, published by Penguin

• Best : Feminist novel

Joint winner of the 2019 Booker Prize, Bernadine Evaristo’s vast novel follows 12 British women over 100 years, through different generations and across social classes, to tell an intersectional story of British and black womanhood and feminism. Following a playwright, university student, house cleaner, school teacher and more, each character has their own chapter and their lives intertwine in various ways – whether that be as friends, relatives or acquaintances.

Exploring themes of racism, politics, patriarchy, gender and sexuality, Evaristo’s novel is masterfully assembled and riveting until the very last line. The thoroughly contemporary story is an engaging and ideal entry point into what it means to be a woman today.

‘Bad Feminist’ by Roxane Gay, published by Corsair

• Best : Book of essays

As the title suggests, Roxane Gay’s collection of essays explores all the contradictions, nuances and difficulties of being a modern-day feminist – such as wanting independence but equally wanting to be taken care of, or loving rap music but being offended by misogynistic lyrics. At its heart is Gay’s profession to being a “bad feminist” and a “mess of contradictions”.

Are you a good feminist if you like pink, read Vogue , wear dresses, shave or possess no knowledge about cars? Gay asserts of course you still are, despite all the mixed messages of society. Covering the TV show Girls , Chris Brown, Black women’s representation in films such as The Help , abortion and much more, Bad Feminist is a deep dive into what it means to be a feminist today.

‘Handmaid’s Tale’ by Margaret Attwood, published by Vintage Publishing

• Best : Feminist dystopia

A contemporary classic, Atwood’s fictional story is set in a dystopian near-future where a patriarchal, totalitarian and devout regime has overthrown the United States government and founded the Republic of Gilead. Exploring themes of female subjugation, the protagonist Offred is one of a group of “handmaids” who are assigned “commanders” – the ruling class of men – and forced to produce their children.

Though a work of fiction, Atwood wrote her foreboding tome through stitching together real-life examples of oppression. As such, the book serves as a chilling reminder of what women have experienced.

‘The Golden Notebook’ by Doris Lessing, published by Harper Perennial

• Best : Taboo-breaking novel

A pioneering novel of the 1960s, Doris Lessing’s account of a woman searching for personal, political and professional identity became entwined with the rising feminist movement which hailed it as a “bible”. The book follows novelist Anna Wulf – divorced with a young child – who struggles with writer’s block. In an attempt to remain sane, Anna records her experiences in four coloured notebooks: red for her communist-leaning political views, yellow for emotions, black for her writing life and blue for everyday events, while the fifth notebook – the golden notebook – pulls these strands together.

Lessing was one of the first women to write so boldly on topics such as menstruation and sex – both of which were still taboo – and this proved radical for women at the time, despite the author’s resistance to the “feminist book” label.

‘Difficult Women’ by Helen Lewis, published by Jonathan Cape

• Best : Feminist history

Part history, part manifesto, Difficult Women explores how pioneering and revolutionary women have often been unlikable and difficult – attributes that journalist Helen Lewis asserts have always been vital to feminism. Looking at the victories secured by 19th- and 20th-century feminists – including divorce, education, sex, voting and abortion rights – and the women behind them, Lewis tells a more sordid history of the movement.

From working-class suffragettes who advocated for bombings and arson; to a pioneer of the refuge movement who became a men’s rights activist; to the founder of the first birth-control clinic, who was also anti-abortion and a Hitler admirer, Lewis recounts the fury, contradictions, anger and violence behind progress. Engaging and witty, this history of feminist fights will keep you gripped to the last page.

‘How to Be a Woman’ by Caitlin Moran, published by Ebury Press

• Best : Feminist memoir

One of the most distinctive voices in contemporary feminism, journalist Caitlin Moran brings wit, humour and punchiness to her 2011 memoir, How to Be a Woman . Documenting her early life, adolescence and mid-thirties, Moran weaves through themes of feminism and truths of womanhood, commenting on everything from the feminist importance of bras to Brazilian waxes, abortion, workplace sexism, the pressure to have children and eating disorders.

‘Ain’t I a Woman’ by bel hooks, published by Pluto Press

• Best : History of black feminism

Essential reading for understanding the history of black women in America, bel hooks wrote her classic 1981 text Ain’t I a Woman while still an undergraduate at university. Her study follows black women from the 17th century, after emancipation and through to the present day. It was one of the first texts to address intersectionality in feminism and the overlooked oppression of marginalised black women.

Hooks argues that race, class, gender, oppression and subjugation are all intertwined, and illustrated this alongside her own moving personal accounts. Provocative and galvanising, the feminist voice in the Black Lives Matter movement has its roots in Ain’t I a Woman. 

‘Hood Feminism’ by Mikki Kendall, published by Bloomsbury

• Best : Intersectional feminist book

Building on bel hooks’s work, Mikki Kendall’s Hood Feminism explores contemporary intersectional feminism and how the mainstream movement neglects to acknowledge differing experiences of race, class, sexuality and disability. Kendall expertly and engagingly explains how we can’t talk about feminism without talking about intersectionality. Outlining how racial justice and feminism come hand in hand, Kendall argues what needs to be done to confront inequalities across education, violence, medical care, hunger and more.

‘Fear of Flying’ by Erica Jong, published by Vintage

• Best : Second-wave novel

One of the defining novels of second-wave feminism, Erica Jong’s book Fear of Flying embraced the sexual revolution of the 1970s. The tome follows 29-year-old poet Isadora – bored after five years of marriage – who decides to ditch her husband during a work conference in Vienna, embarking on a journey through Europe in search of the perfect, no-strings-attached fling. Witty, brazen and liberating, Jong’s novel’s was a controversial bestseller and one of the first novels to discuss women’s intellectualism and sexuality together, resonating with readers across the world.

‘Woman & Power’ by Mary Beard, published by Profile Books

• Best : Historical manifesto

In her manifesto Women & Power – adapted from two of her lectures – classicist Mary Beard looks at the history of gender imbalance in power. Tracing the cultural roots of misogyny back to ancient Athens and Rome, Beard uses examples such as Homer’s Odyssey , where Telemachus effectively tells his mother Penelope to “shut up”, to paint a history of women being silenced. Alongside similar myths and precedents of women in power – from Merkel to Thatcher – and Beard’s own experiences of sexism, this pocket-sized modern classic packs a big punch in just 115 pages.

‘The Color Purple’ by Alice Walker, published by Orion Publishing

• Best : Historical novel

The deep American South between the wars serves as the backdrop for this Pulitzer Prize-winning novel. Telling the story of Celie, a young black girl born into poverty and segregation, The Color Purple paints the harsh realities of life for African-American women in the 1930s. While the more haunting moments of the novel involve rape, children being taken away and the trappings of marriage, moments of joy and hope are equally as present as Celie begins to liberate herself from her past after meeting the glamorous musician Shug Avery.

The verdict: Feminist books

For a highly readable and intersectional look at contemporary feminism, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s We Should All Be Feminists is the perfect introduction, while Mikki Kendall’s Hood Feminism and Roxane Gay’s Bad Feminist build on this intersectionality.

If you’re looking to engage with feminism through fiction, Erica Jong’s Fear of Flying is a brazen and liberating read and Bernadine Evaristo’s Girl, Woman, Other is a clever novel that offers a sweeping journey through 100 years of British womanhood, while Doris Lessing’s The Golden Notebook remains a groundbreaking novel.

Looking for more reading recommendations? We’ve rounded up the best new book releases

Voucher Codes

NYPL's Essential Reads on Feminism

Explore feminism and its history in this list of essential reads for adults, teens, and kids. Many titles are available as e-books, on SimplyE, and from the Library Shop. Learn more .

Essential Reads on Feminism for Adults

Filter results below, 127 books found, ain't gonna let nobody turn me around.

Ain't I a Woman: Black Women and Feminism

All Bound Up Together

America's Women

Antigone Rising: The Subversive Power of the Ancient Myths

The Argonauts

The Art of Feminism

Backlash: The Undeclared War Against American Women

Bad Feminist: Essays

Because of Sex

Betrayal and Other Acts of Subversion

Betraying Big Brother: The Feminist Awakening in China

Beyoncé in Formation: Remixing Black Feminism

The Birth of Chinese Feminism

Black Feminism Reimagined: After Intersectionality

Black Feminist Thought

Black on Both Sides: A Racial History of Trans Identity

The Black Woman: An Anthology

A Black Women's History of the United States

Borderlands/La Frontera: The New Mestiza

Born Both: An Intersex Life

But Some of Us Are Brave

Captive Genders

Century of Struggle

A Colored Woman in a White World

Compañeras: Zapatista Women's Stories

Critically Sovereign

The Crunk Feminist Collection

Crusade for Justice: The Autobiography of Ida B. Wells

Dear Sisters: Dispatches from the Women's Liberation Movement

Decolonizing Feminism: Transnational Feminism and Globalization

Delusions of Gender

Deviations: A Gayle Rubin Reader

The Dialectic of Sex: The Case for Feminist Revolution

Dreaming the Dark: Magic, Sex and Politics

Ecofeminist Natures

Ecological Borderlands

Eloquent Rage: A Black Feminist Discovers Her Superpower

Everyday Sexism: The Project That Inspired a Worldwide Movement

Existential Eroticism

Exquisite Rebel

Fairest: A Memoir

The Feminine Mystique

Feminism for the 99%: A Manifesto

Feminism Unfinished

The Feminist Promise: 1792 to the Present

Feminist Revolution

Funk the erotic: transaesthetics and black sexual cultures.

Gender Trouble: Feminism and the Subversion of Identity

Gender, Development, and Globalization

Gilded Suffragists

Girl Zines: Making Media, Doing Feminism

Girls to the Front: The True Story of the Riot Grrrl Revolution

Good and Mad: The Revolutionary Power of Women's Anger

The Good Girls Revolt

Gyn/Ecology: The Metaethics of Radical Feminism

Hard Choices: A Memoir

The Hello Girls: America's First Women Soldiers

Home Girls: A Black Feminist Anthology

Hood Feminism: Notes from the Women That a Movement Forgot

How We Get Free: Black Feminism and the Combahee River Collective

I'm Afraid of Men

Immigrant Women in the Land of Dollars

In Search of Our Mothers' Gardens: Womanist Prose

The Industrial Vagina

Intercourse

Inuit Women: Their Powerful Spirit in a Century of Change

Jailed for Freedom: American Women Win the Vote

The Judy Grahn Reader

Law, Gender & Injustice: A Legal History of U.S. Women

Male Daughters, Female Husbands

Men Explain Things to Me

Mr. President, How Long Must We Wait?

My Beloved World

My Life on the Road

The Myth of Seneca Falls

Native Country of the Heart: A Memoir

Odd Girls and Twilight Lovers

Of Woman Born: Motherhood as Experience and Institution

Other Powers

Our Bodies, Ourselves: A New Edition for a New Era

Our Mothers' War

Out to Work: A History of Wage-Earning Women in the United States

Performing Sex: The Making and Unmaking of Women's Erotic Lives

A Politically Incorrect Feminist

Quiet Rumours: An Anarcha-Feminist Reader

Reclaiming Our Space

Redefining Realness: My Path to Womanhood

Regulating the Lives of Women

Ruth Bader Ginsburg: A Life

The Sacred Hoop

SCUM Manifesto

The Second Sex

Sex Object: A Memoir

Sexual Politics

She Had Some Horses: Poems

Sister Love: The Letters of Audre Lorde and Pat Parker

Sister Outsider: Essays & Speeches

Song in a Weary Throat: Memoir of an American Pilgrimage

Southern Women: Black and White in the Old South

Spill: Scenes of Black Feminist Fugitivity

Suffrage and the City: New York Women Battle for the Ballot

Suffrage: Women's Long Battle for the Vote

Thank You for Voting

This Bridge Called My Back: Writings by Radical Women of Color

The Traffic in Women and Other Essays on Feminism

Transgressive: A Trans Woman on Gender, Feminism, and Politics

A Voice from the South

Want to Start a Revolution?

Wayward Lives, Beautiful Experiments

We Should All Be Feminists

When and Where I Enter

Whipping Girl

Why They Marched

Witches, Sluts, Feminists: Conjuring the Sex Positive

The Woman Warrior; China Men

The Woman's Hour: The Great Fight to Win the Vote

Women & Power: A Manifesto

Women of Color and the Reproductive Rights Movement

Women Warriors of the Afro-Latina Diaspora

Women Will Vote: Winning Suffrage in New York State

The Women's Suffrage Movement

Women, Race & Class

New to Feminism? Here are 10 Essential Books to Get You Started

• By Left Diary
• February 15, 2023
• Beginner Must Read

If you're new to the world of feminism and looking to explore and learn more, you've come to the right place. Feminism is a vast and complex subject, and reading feminist literature is one of the best ways to gain a deeper understanding of its principles and values.

To get you started, I've compiled a list of 10 beginner-friendly books written by some of the most influential feminist writers of all time. These books cover a range of topics from race, gender, and sexuality to housework, reproduction, and body image. Whether you're interested in memoirs, theory, or essays, this list has something for everyone.

These books have been chosen because they are easy to understand and written in accessible language. Reading these books will inspire you to delve deeper into the world of feminism and to become more knowledgeable and informed on the issues that affect women around the world. So, pick up a book, get inspired, and start your journey into the wonderful world of feminism!

1. "We Should All Be Feminists" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

"We Should All Be Feminists" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie is a powerful and essential book that provides a thought-provoking introduction to the world of feminism. Adichie argues that feminism is not just a women's issue, but a human rights issue that affects everyone, and she urges readers to consider what a more equal and just society might look like.

In her engaging and relatable style, Adichie shares her personal experiences with sexism and discrimination, highlighting the ways in which gender inequality affects us all. She writes, "We teach girls to shrink themselves, to make themselves smaller. We say to girls, you can have ambition, but not too much. You should aim to be successful, but not too successful. Otherwise, you would threaten the man." These words resonate with many women and girls who have felt the pressure to conform to society's expectations and limitations.

Adichie also explores the intersectionality of feminism, acknowledging the unique challenges faced by women of color and those from marginalized communities. She states, "The problem with gender is that it prescribes how we should be rather than recognizing how we are. Imagine how much happier we would be, how much freer to be our true individual selves, if we didn't have the weight of gender expectations."

Overall, "We Should All Be Feminists" is a must-read for anyone interested in learning more about feminism. Adichie's powerful words and personal stories are a reminder that gender inequality is a pressing issue that affects us all, and that by working together to create a more equal society, we can build a better future for everyone.

2. "Hood Feminism: Notes from the Women That a Movement Forgot" by Mikki Kendall

"Hood Feminism: Notes from the Women That a Movement Forgot" by Mikki Kendall is a powerful and necessary book that sheds light on the often-overlooked experiences of women of color in the feminist movement. Kendall, a writer and activist, draws on her own experiences growing up in poverty and her work with marginalized communities to call attention to the ways in which mainstream feminism has failed to address the needs of those who are most vulnerable.

In "Hood Feminism," Kendall challenges readers to broaden their understanding of what feminism is and what it can achieve. She writes, "Feminism is flawed because it is a movement powered by people and people are inherently flawed. But this doesn't mean that feminism is useless or that we should abandon it." She urges readers to recognize the importance of intersectionality and to prioritize the needs of those who are most marginalized in the fight for gender equality.

Overall, "Hood Feminism" is a must-read for anyone interested in learning more about the complexities of feminist theory and practice. Kendall's powerful words and personal stories are a reminder that feminism must be a movement for all women, not just those with privilege and power.

3. "The Guilty Feminist: From Our Noble Goals to Our Worst Hypocrisies" by Deborah Frances-White

"The Guilty Feminist: From Our Noble Goals to Our Worst Hypocrisies" by Deborah Frances-White is a witty and insightful exploration of the complexities of modern feminism. Frances-White, a comedian and writer, shares her own struggles and hypocrisies as a feminist, encouraging readers to embrace their own imperfections and work towards a more inclusive and intersectional movement.

In "The Guilty Feminist," Frances-White covers a wide range of topics, from body image to workplace inequality to the power of language. She writes, "We are all feminists, but sometimes we feel like we're failing. Sometimes we feel guilty, or we feel like we're not doing enough." Through humor and relatable anecdotes, she encourages readers to recognize the importance of their own experiences and to continue pushing for progress, even in the face of setbacks and challenges.

Frances-White also explores the ways in which feminism intersects with other social justice movements, such as race and LGBTQ+ rights. She writes, "If you're not making room at the table for all feminists, you're not really practicing feminism." This message underscores the importance of intersectionality in modern feminist discourse.

Overall, "The Guilty Feminist" is a refreshing and honest take on the complexities of modern feminism. Frances-White's personal anecdotes and insightful commentary provide a compelling call to action for readers to embrace their own imperfections and work towards a more inclusive and just society. It's a must-read for anyone interested in learning more about the complexities of feminist theory and practice.

4. "Men to Avoid in Art and Life" by Nicole Tersigni

If you're looking for a fun and informative read that will help you navigate the world of toxic masculinity, then "Men to Avoid in Art and Life" by Nicole Tersigni is the perfect choice. Tersigni is a writer and comedian who has gained a following on social media for her hilarious and relatable illustrations that highlight the problematic behavior of certain men.

The book is a collection of Tersigni's illustrations, paired with witty commentary and practical advice on how to identify and avoid "men to avoid" in various aspects of life, from the workplace to personal relationships. She writes, "The men to avoid are the ones who diminish and belittle women, who feel entitled to our time and attention, and who refuse to see us as equals." Tersigni's humor and empathy make the book a joy to read, and her advice is both practical and empowering.

The book covers a range of topics related to toxic masculinity, including mansplaining, gaslighting, and the objectification of women. Tersigni encourages readers to trust their instincts and to set boundaries in their personal and professional lives. She writes, "It's not your job to change a man. It's your job to be true to yourself and to demand the respect you deserve."

Overall, "Men to Avoid in Art and Life" is a witty and engaging guide to navigating the world of toxic masculinity. Tersigni's illustrations and commentary will make you laugh, but also inspire you to stand up for yourself and demand respect. I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants to learn more about feminism and how to identify and avoid toxic behavior.

5. "Feminism, Interrupted: Disrupting Power" by Lola Olufemi

Looking for a thought-provoking and insightful read that will challenge your assumptions about feminism? Look no further than "Feminism, Interrupted: Disrupting Power" by Lola Olufemi. Olufemi is a writer, activist, and researcher whose work focuses on issues of gender, race, and colonialism. In this book, she offers a powerful critique of mainstream feminism and calls for a more inclusive, intersectional approach.

"Feminism, Interrupted" covers a wide range of topics, including the history of feminism, the impact of colonialism on gender relations, and the need for a more radical and transformative vision of feminist politics. Olufemi writes, "Feminism, Interrupted is a call to imagine a feminist movement that is alive to the complexity and diversity of our lives and that refuses to be confined by the narrow boundaries of mainstream feminist thought."

One of the key themes of the book is the need to center the experiences and perspectives of marginalized groups in feminist activism. Olufemi argues that mainstream feminism has often ignored the needs and struggles of women of color, LGBTQ+ individuals, and other groups who face multiple forms of oppression. She writes, "A feminist movement that does not center the experiences of marginalized people is no movement at all."

Overall, "Feminism, Interrupted" is a must-read for anyone interested in feminist theory and activism. Olufemi's writing is incisive and passionate, and her vision of a more inclusive and transformative feminist politics is both inspiring and challenging. I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants to learn more about feminism and how to create a more just and equitable world for all.

6. "Eloquent Rage: A Black Feminist Discovers Her Superpower" by Brittney Cooper

"Eloquent Rage: A Black Feminist Discovers Her Superpower" by Brittney Cooper is a powerful memoir that explores the intersection of race and gender in contemporary society. In the book, Cooper shares her experiences as a black woman navigating the world, and delves into the history of black feminism and the ways in which it has been erased from mainstream discourse.

Cooper, a professor of Women's and Gender Studies and Africana Studies at Rutgers University, draws on her academic expertise and personal experiences to create a powerful and accessible narrative. Throughout the book, she encourages readers to embrace their anger and use it as a tool for change, stating "Anger is our birthright, and our obligation. It is the force that propels us forward, the energy that makes us feel most alive."

The book covers a range of topics, including the politics of respectability, the intersection of racism and sexism, and the importance of building a community of support. Cooper also explores the role of popular culture in shaping our understanding of gender and race, arguing that we must actively work to resist harmful stereotypes and representations.

Overall, "Eloquent Rage" is a must-read for anyone interested in feminism, race, and social justice. It is a powerful and deeply personal book that challenges readers to confront their own assumptions and biases, and to embrace the power of anger as a force for positive change.

7. "All About Love: New Visions" by bell hooks

"All About Love: New Visions" by bell hooks is a powerful and insightful book that explores the meaning and practice of love in our society. bell hooks, a renowned feminist scholar and social activist, brings her extensive knowledge and experience to the table, presenting a compelling argument for why love is not just a personal feeling, but a political act that can transform society.

As hooks puts it, "Genuine love is rarely an emotional space where needs are instantly gratified. To know love we have to invest time and commitment." The book covers a range of topics such as self-love, parenting, masculinity, the LGBTQ+ community, marriage and romantic love, and social justice.

"All About Love: New Visions" is an essential read for anyone interested in feminism, social justice, and personal growth. It inspires readers to embrace love as a transformative force in their lives and the world. As hooks says, "The moment we choose to love we begin to move against domination, against oppression. The moment we choose to love we begin to move towards freedom, to act in ways that liberate ourselves and others."

8. "Why I'm No Longer Talking to White People About Race" by Reni Eddo-Lodge

"Why I'm No Longer Talking to White People About Race" is a powerful and thought-provoking book by Reni Eddo-Lodge that explores the complexity of racial inequality in Britain. Reni Eddo-Lodge is a British writer and journalist who has been outspoken on issues of race, gender and class. In her book, she examines the different aspects of systemic racism and how it affects black people and people of colour.

The title of the book is a nod to the difficulties of discussing racism with white people who are often defensive, dismissive or clueless about the true extent of racial inequality. Eddo-Lodge's book provides an unflinching look at how Britain's history of colonialism and slavery continue to impact people's lives today. She writes with a raw honesty that is both refreshing and confronting.

In "Why I'm No Longer Talking to White People About Race," Eddo-Lodge covers topics such as white privilege, the history of racism in Britain, and the complexities of intersectionality. She brings her own experiences as a black woman to bear on the subject and provides an insightful analysis of how racism is perpetuated in contemporary society.

This book is a must-read for anyone who wants to understand the reality of racism in Britain today. Eddo-Lodge writes with great clarity and purpose, making the book both accessible and challenging. As she says in the book, "We need to talk about race, but we also need to act on it." This book is a call to action for anyone who wants to be a part of the solution to racial inequality.

9. "The Feminine Mystique" by Betty Friedan

"The Feminine Mystique" by Betty Friedan is a seminal work in the history of feminism, published in 1963. In this book, Friedan analyzes the lives of women in the 1950s and 60s and the ways in which they were encouraged to conform to traditional gender roles, including marriage and motherhood, rather than pursue their own interests and aspirations. Friedan coins the term "the problem that has no name" to describe the pervasive sense of dissatisfaction and unfulfillment experienced by many women at this time.

Through a combination of personal anecdotes, interviews, and historical research, Friedan argues that women's place in society is not predetermined by biology, but rather by cultural conditioning. She calls on women to reject the limitations placed on them by society and to pursue their own goals and interests. She also advocates for greater social and political equality for women, including access to education and the workplace.

Friedan's book had a significant impact on the feminist movement and is credited with inspiring the second wave of feminism. It is considered a must-read for anyone interested in the history of feminism and the ongoing struggle for gender equality. As Friedan writes, "The only way for a woman, as for a man, to find herself, to know herself as a person, is by creative work of her own."

10. "A Room of One's Own" by Virginia Woolf

"A Room of One's Own" is a seminal work of feminist literature by Virginia Woolf. This book is an essential text for anyone interested in exploring feminist theory and history. In this book, Woolf explores the constraints that have held women back from achieving their full potential throughout history. She argues that women have been historically disadvantaged because they have not been afforded the same opportunities for education and creative expression as men.

Woolf famously wrote, "A woman must have money and a room of her own if she is to write fiction." This book explores the societal and cultural limitations that have kept women from having those two things. Woolf also touches on topics such as the intersection of gender and class, the struggles of women writers throughout history, and the ways in which women have been silenced and excluded from the literary canon.

Overall, "A Room of One's Own" is a powerful and insightful exploration of the ways in which gender impacts creativity, art, and culture. This book is a must-read for anyone interested in feminist theory, women's history, or the intersection of gender and creativity.

10 Essential Feminist Texts That Everyone Should Read

Today marks the 50th anniversary of Betty Friedan’s The Feminine Mystique , a book that, as the Times put it, “ignited the contemporary women’s movement in 1963 and as a result permanently transformed the social fabric of the United States and countries around the world.” To celebrate the book’s anniversary, we’ve put together a list of ten essential feminist reads, from fiction and poetry to essays and nonfiction dissections. Read through our picks after the jump — and since there are so many more than ten important feminist texts worthy of pressing into any friend’s hands, add your own favorites to our list in the comments.

The Feminine Mystique , Betty Friedan

Friedan’s 1963 investigation into “the problem that has no name” — that is, the unrepentant unhappiness she found among housewives — is one of the most influential books of the 20th century, and is generally credited with being the catalyst for the rise of second-wave feminism in the United States.

Feminism Is for Everybody: Passionate Politics , bell hooks

Well, you heard her — this is by its very project a book for everyone. bell hooks has written a host of books that could fit this list, but this one is a primer of sorts to the movement — or at least hooks’s interpretation of the movement. She calls for a feminism that breaks barriers: “A genuine feminist politics always brings us from bondage to freedom, from lovelessness to loving,” she writes. “There can be no love without justice.”

A Room of One’s Own , Virginia Woolf

Another classic, we’d recommend Woolf’s A Room of One’s Own — an extended essay that explores women’s relationship to writing — to just about anyone. The Woolf devotees in this writer’s life happen to be almost exclusively men, so this might be a particularly good place to start for all you literary boys curious about feminism.

The Beauty Myth , Naomi Wolf

This 1991 text, which dissects the relationship between the growing social prominence of women and society’s demands for them to conform to specific standards of beauty, is as relevant now as it was 20 years ago — since, sadly, nothing much has changed in this arena since then. Betty Friedan herself wrote in Allure that “ The Beauty Myth and the controversy it is eliciting could be a hopeful sign of a new surge of feminist consciousness.”

Sister Outsider , Audre Lorde

One of the most influential voices of the feminist movement rings out in this collection of 15 essays and speeches by Caribbean-American activist Audre Lorde. “Perhaps,” Lorde challenges her reader in “The Transformation of Silence into Language and Action,” “I am the face of one of your fears. Because I am a woman, because I am Black, because I am a lesbian, because I am myself — a Black woman warrior poet doing my work — come to ask you, are you doing yours?”

The Second Sex , Simone de Beauvoir

“I hesitated a long time before writing a book on woman,” De Beauvoir begins. “The subject is irritating, especially for women; and it is not new. Enough ink has flowed over the quarrel about feminism; it is now almost over: let’s not talk about it anymore.” This was in 1959 — and the sentiment is as fresh now as it was then, just like (most of) the rest of De Beauvoir’s lucid, equal parts literary and philosophical, book. Another installment in the classic-for-a-reason file.

The Collected Poems of Lucille Clifton , Lucille Clifton

Feminism and poetry have a long and storied history together , and Lucille Clifton is one of the most beloved of its flagbearers, her poems ringing with race, sex, and the ever-present body. This volume, which collects all 11 of Lucille Clifton’s published collections, plus 50-odd unpublished works, is not only an essential text for those interested in feminism, but a must for all readers of poems, heralded by Publisher’s Weekly as “the most important book of poetry to appear in years.”

The Woman Warrior , Maxine Hong Kingston

Maxine Hong Kingston’s take on the memoir blends her personal experiences with traditional Chinese folktales, examining the Chinese-American experience as well as the female one, taking on the cultural source of oppression. She writes: “There is a Chinese word for the female I — which is ‘slave’. Break the women with their own tongues!” So why not seek the attention reserved for boys by channeling Fa Mu Lan and swapping out her gender? “I refused to cook. When I had to wash dishes, I would crack one or two. ‘Bad girl,’ my mother yelled, and sometimes that made me gloat rather than cry. Isn’t a bad girl almost a boy?”

Sexual Politics , Kate Millett

For the staunchly literary-minded among you, try Kate Millett’s 1970 book, widely heralded as the very first work of “academic feminist literary criticism,” which started as her doctoral dissertation. Though the book stirred up as much denunciation as it did praise, we think it’s an essential lens (one of many) for looking at the Western canon.

How to Be a Woman , Caitlin Moran

This list is filled with books written decades ago, so we thought we’d conclude with a recent triumph: Caitlin Moran’s manifesto on being a woman today, filled with brash, no-nonsense criticism steeped in a saucy sense of humor. An example: “We need to reclaim the word ‘feminism’. We need the word ‘feminism’ back real bad. When statistics come in saying that only 29% of American women would describe themselves as feminist – and only 42% of British women – I used to think, What do you think feminism IS, ladies? What part of ‘liberation for women’ is not for you? Is it freedom to vote? The right not to be owned by the man you marry? The campaign for equal pay? ‘Vogue’ by Madonna? Jeans? Did all that good shit GET ON YOUR NERVES? Or were you just DRUNK AT THE TIME OF THE SURVEY?”

Breadcrumbs Section. Click here to navigate to respective pages.

A Mind Of One's Own

DOI link for A Mind Of One's Own

Get Citation

With philosophy so steeped in patriarchal tradition how is it possible for feminists to work within it? In this volume, 13 feminist theorists discuss whether traditional ideals of objectivity and rationality should be given a place within the committed feminist view of philosophy and the world.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Part | 89  pages, history of philosophy, chapter 1 | 18  pages, feminism and aristotle's rational ideal, chapter 2 | 17  pages, cartesian reason and gendered reason, chapter 3 | 15  pages, hume: the reflective women's epistemologist, chapter 4 | 20  pages, could it be worth thinking about kant on sex and marriage, chapter 5 | 17  pages, maleness, metaphor, and the "crisis" of reason, part | 115  pages, epistemology, chapter 6 | 17  pages, essential tensions— phase two: feminist, philosophical, and social studies of science, chapter 7 | 44  pages, quine as feminist: the radical import of naturalized epistemology, chapter 8 | 23  pages, the politics of credibility, chapter 9 | 29  pages, though this be method, yet there is madness in it: paranoia and liberal epistemology, part | 128  pages, metaphysics, chapter 10 | 45  pages, on being objective and being objectified, chapter 11 | 19  pages, generalizing gender: reason and essence in the legal thought of catharine mackinnon, chapter 12 | 29  pages, mackinnon's critique of objectivity, chapter 13 | 17  pages, feminist metaphysics, chapter 14 | 16  pages, resurrecting embodiment: toward a feminist materialism, part | 98  pages, social and political philosophy, chapter 15 | 32  pages, feminist contractarianism, chapter 16 | 29  pages, should feminists reject rational choice theory, chapter 17 | 20  pages, rational choice theory and the lessons of feminism, chapter 18 | 15  pages, minds of their own: choices, autonomy, cultural practices, and other women.

• Privacy Policy
• Terms & Conditions
• Cookie Policy
• Taylor & Francis Online
• Taylor & Francis Group
• Students/Researchers
• Librarians/Institutions

Connect with us

Registered in England & Wales No. 3099067 5 Howick Place | London | SW1P 1WG © 2024 Informa UK Limited

Search with any image

Unsupported image file format.

Image file size is too large..

Drag an image here

• Politics & Social Sciences
• Politics & Government

Sorry, there was a problem.

Download the free Kindle app and start reading Kindle books instantly on your smartphone, tablet, or computer - no Kindle device required .

Read instantly on your browser with Kindle for Web.

Using your mobile phone camera - scan the code below and download the Kindle app.

Image Unavailable

• To view this video download Flash Player

Follow the author

Don't Be a Feminist: Essays on Genuine Justice Paperback – September 5, 2022

• Print length 248 pages
• Language English
• Publication date September 5, 2022
• Dimensions 5 x 0.56 x 8 inches
• ISBN-13 979-8846166653
• See all details

Product details

• ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0BD3DFMMH
• Publisher ‏ : ‎ Independently published (September 5, 2022)
• Language ‏ : ‎ English
• Paperback ‏ : ‎ 248 pages
• ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 979-8846166653
• Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 11.8 ounces
• Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5 x 0.56 x 8 inches
• #153 in Political Economy
• #335 in Economic Conditions (Books)

About the author

Bryan douglas caplan.

I'm Bryan Caplan, Professor of Economics at George Mason University and New York Times bestselling author. I’ve written *The Myth of the Rational Voter*, named "the best political book of the year" by the New York Times, *Selfish Reasons to Have More Kids*, *The Case Against Education*, and *Open Borders: The Science and Ethics of Immigration* – co-authored with Saturday Morning Breakfast Cereal’s Zach Weinersmith. My latest project, *Poverty: Who To Blame*, is now well underway.

I blog for EconLog. I've published in the New York Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, TIME, Newsweek, Atlantic, American Economic Review, Economic Journal, Journal of Law and Economics, and Intelligence, and appeared on ABC, BBC, Fox News, MSNBC, and C-SPAN.

An openly nerdy man who loves role-playing games and graphic novels, I live in Oakton, Virginia, with my wife and four kids.

Customer reviews

Our goal is to make sure every review is trustworthy and useful. That's why we use both technology and human investigators to block fake reviews before customers ever see them.  Learn more

We block Amazon accounts that violate our community guidelines. We also block sellers who buy reviews and take legal actions against parties who provide these reviews.  Learn how to report

• Sort reviews by Top reviews Most recent Top reviews

Top reviews from the United States

There was a problem filtering reviews right now. please try again later..

• About Amazon
• Investor Relations
• Amazon Devices
• Amazon Science
• Sell products on Amazon
• Sell on Amazon Business
• Sell apps on Amazon
• Become an Affiliate
• Advertise Your Products
• Self-Publish with Us
• Host an Amazon Hub
• › See More Make Money with Us
• Amazon Business Card
• Shop with Points
• Reload Your Balance
• Amazon Currency Converter
• Amazon and COVID-19
• Your Account
• Your Orders
• Shipping Rates & Policies
• Returns & Replacements
• Manage Your Content and Devices

• Conditions of Use
• Privacy Notice
• Consumer Health Data Privacy Disclosure
• Your Ads Privacy Choices

To revisit this article, visit My Profile, then View saved stories .

The 27 Best LGBTQ+ Books to Read (or Revisit) This Pride

By Emma Specter

Products are independently selected by our editors. We may earn an affiliate commission from links.

Trying to list the very best LGBTQ+ books—or even the LGBTQ+ authors who have changed my life—is, it turns out, a near-painful task. As a lifelong book nerd who came out in my mid-20s and promptly set out to devour every book I’d missed about queer and trans culture, I can attest that it is, in fact, impossible to read everything. That said, it’s a lot easier to be out and proud when you have some of the greatest writers and thinkers in literary history figuratively holding your hand.

To that end, Vogue has rounded up 27 of the greatest books of all time by queer, trans, and gender-nonconforming writers. Whether you’re an queer-fiction pro revisiting old favorites or a newly out member of the community looking to brush up, it’s almost guaranteed that you’ll find at least one book on this list to treasure.

Orlando by Virginia Woolf (1928)

Not only was this book inspired by the tumultuous life of Woolf’s longtime lover Vita Sackville-West, but it’s also considered to be one of the earliest examples of trans fiction. In the novel, a British nobleman undergoes a sex change, and proceeds to live for more than 300 years without aging. (Nonbinary actor Emma Corrin starred in a London stage adaptation of the book in 2022, bringing new life to Woolf’s century-old tale.)

The Price of Salt by Patricia Highsmith (1952)

The Price of Salt

If you tend to watch Todd Haynes’s 2015 film Carol each Christmas, you a) are most definitely gay and b) probably already have some familiarity with the source material: Highsmith’s 1950s romance novel follows two women in what one might call an age-gap relationship as they take a cross-country road trip and try to figure out what they mean to one another.

Giovanni’s Room by James Baldwin (1956)

Giovanni's Room

Arguably the best-known and most enduring portrait of Black queer masculinity in Western literature, this novel concerns itself primarily with the life of David, an American who becomes entangled in an affair with an Italian man he meets at a Parisian gay bar. (Anecdotally, one of my all-time favorite quotes about the nature of belonging comes from Giovanni’s Room : “Perhaps home is not a place but simply an irrevocable condition.”)

The Faggots and Their Friends Between Revolutions by Larry Mitchell (1977)

The Faggots and Their Friends Between Revolutions

Part gay manifesto, part collection of fantasitcal vignettes, Mitchell’s book is one of the defining pieces of 1970s queer literature. Originally self-published, it was out of print for years before its first republication in 2016. (It’s worth trying to track down a copy of the 2019 reissue, however, which was put out by Nightboat Books and features a stunning preface by artist Tourmaline .)

The Color Purple by Alice Walker (1982)

The Color Purple

If you’ve only ever seen the 1985 Spielberg film of the same name (or the 2023 version , directed by Blitz Bazawule), it’s definitely worth reading Walker’s original depiction of the long-standing and richly, gorgeously queer bond between protagonist Celie and her fiercely independent, wildly rebellious “friend” Shug Avery. (Spielberg has admitted that he could have depicted Celie and Shug’s relationship more thoughtfully onscreen, but at least we’ll always have the book.)

Zami: A New Spelling of My Name by Audre Lorde (1982)

Zami: A New Spelling of My Name

This biomythography by Lorde—one of history’s leading Black lesbian and feminist thinkers—takes its name from a Caribbean word for what Lorde describes as “women who work together as friends and lovers.” The author’s description of pursuing queer love and finding her community amid the lesbian scene of Cuernavaca, Mexico, during the Cold War era is impossible to forget.

Bastard Out of Carolina by Dorothy Allison (1992)

Bastard Out Of Carolina

The Southern queer experience (if, indeed, there is such a unified thing) often gets short shrift in the dominant literary fold, but Allison’s semi-autobiographical novel—a moving and often painful coming-of-age story about surviving poverty, violence, and familial abuse—is richly worth reading for its depiction of the lesbian struggle in 1950s South Carolina.

Stone Butch Blues by Leslie Feinberg (1993)

Stone Butch Blues

The proof of Feinberg’s staunch commitment to social justice and queer and trans liberation is, in some ways, encapsulated by the fact that hir autobiographical novel is available for free on Feinberg’s own website, making this story about the often-simultaneous violence and joy faced by gender-nonconforming individuals available to the young members of the LGBTQ+ community who might most need to read it.

Chelsea Girls by Eileen Myles (1994)

Chelsea Girls

“Apart from the fact of trying to figure out if Chelsea Girls is a novel or a memoir or a collection of stories (or whether it’s really even a book at all), I think I mainly want to tell you that in the time of the writing of Chelsea Girls —which was long: 1980 to 1993 was the actual time of the composition of the thing—I mainly needed to say what I thought was real,” Myles has written of this groundbreaking work about queerness, lust, violence, and desire in the East Village.

Funny Boy by Shyam Selvadurai (1994)

This Sri Lanka-set coming-of-age memoir has a Lambda Literary Award for Gay Fiction to its name, and rightfully so; Selvadurai’s depiction of gay protagonist Arjie Chelvaratnam’s journey toward personal and societal acceptance within his wealthy Tamil family against the backdrop of the anti-Tamil “Black July” pogroms of 1983 is intensely affecting.

Fun Home by Alison Bechdel (2006)

If you’ve ever heard a rendition of “Ring of Keys” at queeraoke and wanted to know the story behind it, look no further than Bechdel’s graphic memoir, which finds her younger self trying to work up the courage to come out and find queer love and creative fulfillment while grieving the unexpected loss of her father—himself a closeted gay man—to suicide.

Nevada by Imogen Binnie (2013)

Described by author Isle McElroy as “a novel that made the trans experience a human experience, showing that we are just as lovable and maddening and real as any other complicated subject in fiction,” Nevada —Binnie’s chronicle of a trans woman living in Brooklyn who embarks on a West Coast road trip—has been widely credited with ushering in a sea-change in trans literature.

Redefining Realness by Janet Mock (2014)

Redefining Realness

Queer and trans memoirs are a booming genre today, but when Mock first released Redefining Realness in 2014, it stood apart as one of the few mainstream personal literary narratives centered around a Black trans woman's journey toward self-discovery and the healing power of a like-minded community. (Luckily, it has since been joined on its shelf by Raquel Willis’s memoir, The Risk It Takes to Bloom , among others.)

Mean by Myriam Gurba (2017)

Gurba’s identity as a queer, mixed-race Chicana permeates her fascination with meanness as a cultural trope, an art form, and a kind of saving grace, leading to such delicious observations as: “Being mean to boys is fun and a second-wave feminist duty. Being rude to men who deserve it is a holy mission. Sisterhood is powerful, but being a bitch is more exhilarating. Being a bitch is spectacular.”

Freshwater by Akwaeke Emezi (2018)

Igbo religious deities, modern-day sexual trauma, splintered selves, and anxiety-riddled spirals come together in this debut novel from Emezi, one of Nigeria’s best-known and most widely read nonbinary authors. A TV adaptation is allegedly in the works from FX , suggesting that protagonist Ada’s story may soon transcend the page.

How to Write An Autobiographical Novel , Alexander Chee (2018)

How to Write an Autobiographical Novel

Chee paints an unforgettable portrait of his life as “a son, a gay man, a Korean American, an artist, an activist, a lover, and a friend” in this collection of essays, which touches upon everything from grieving the loss of too many friends to AIDS to tarot-reading to attempting to make it in New York City by cater-waitering at conservative cocktail parties (and much more that you’ll have to crack the book’s bright red spine to discover for yourself).

Gender Queer by Maia Kobabe (2019)

Gender Queer

In a world where trans and gender-nonconforming identities are still criminalized , Kobabe’s illustrated account of their life as a nonbinary person living in contemporary America balances deeply necessary social context with narrative specificity and visual appeal. (If the execrable hate group Moms For Liberty is trying to ban it , you know it must be worth reading.)

The Stonewall Reader , ed. New York Public Library and Jason Baumann (2019)

The Stonewall Reader

The Stonewall riots of 1969 are frequently cited as a flashpoint in American queer and trans history, but this deep dive into the vibrant LGBTQ+ culture that led to Stonewall adds a new layer of complexity to the event with first-person accounts and diary entries from activists representing groups including the Mattachine Society NY, the Gay Activists Alliance, and the Gay Liberation Front.

In The Dream House by Carmen Maria Machado (2019)

In the Dream House

In this lyrical and deeply moving memoir, Machado plumbs the depths of lesbian and bisexual history to find context for her own experience falling in love and attempting to build a life with an erratic and increasingly abusive female partner. Her story feels full of potential to help fellow queer sufferers of intimate partner violence know that they aren’t alone with their pain, no matter how great it may be.

We Both Laughed in Pleasure: The Selected Diaries of Lou Sullivan, ed. Ellis Martin and Zach Ozma (2019)

We Both Laughed in Pleasure

Sullivan’s meticulously maintained journals (in which he first began recording the details of his life at age of 11) serve as the basis for this unmissable and wide-ranging collection, which paints a vivid portrait of a trans gay man’s quest for love, revolution, and self-understanding in San Francisco across the second half of the 20th century. If you’ve ever wanted to better understand transmasculine identity, this is most definitely the book for you.

Las Malas by Camila Sosa Villada (2019)

“I think [ Las Malas ] is a masterpiece,” Love the World or Get Killed Trying author Alvina Chamberland told Vogue in May, and it’s not hard to see why. The fairytale-slash-horror-story revolves around a group of Latin American trans women who perform street-based sex work in an Argentinean park, weaving magical realism into a biting portrait of the modern world.

Gay Bar: Why We Went Out by Jeremy Atherton Lin (2021)

Gay Bar: Why We Went Out

If you’ve ever heeded the band Muna’s call to “dance in the middle of a gay bar,” this expert combination of memoir and cultural history—which is at once a response to the closure of many LGBTQ+ establishments across America and a joyful reminder to keep patronizing the remaining physical places that make us feel most queer and most alive—might just be your ideal going-out book.

You Exist Too Much by Zaina Arafat (2021)

You Exist Too Much

A young Palestinian-American woman makes her way from Bethlehem to Brooklyn and delves into her first serious queer romance in this gorgeously written debut novel that deals expertly with its protagonist’s exploration of love, lust, bisexual identity, internalized homophobia, disordered eating, healing from trauma, and so much more.

Big Girl by Mecca Jamilah Sullivan (2022)

Sullivan’s protagonist, Malaya Clondon, is a fat Black girl in a rapidly gentrifying New York City that would prefer her smaller. This central tension—as well as the schism between her mother’s strict food rules and Malaya’s own growing appetite for food, community, and queer love—animates the book thoroughly and unforgettably, leaving this fat, queer reader wishing she’d come across Big Girl much earlier in life.

Hijab Butch Blues by Lamya H (2023)

Hijab Butch Blues

Two decades after the publication of Leslie Feinberg’s Stone Butch Blues , author Lamya H provides a memoir-in-essays that speaks to a different, though no less vital, facet of queer and trans identity. Hijab Butch Blues is steeped in the author’s experience as a gender-nonconforming, queer and nonbinary young person studying the Qu’ran in an attempt to find a place for themselves and their various identities within Islam.

The Late Americans by Brandon Taylor (2023)

The Late Americans

Chosen family can get short shrift in mainstream American society, but it’s long been one of the animating forces of LGBTQ+ life. Taylor places it at the front and center of this crackling campus novel that interrogates the ways in which young people live—together, separately, and everything in between—when the question of who they will become looms larger than almost anything else in their day-to-day existences.

A Short History of Trans Misogyny by Jules Gill-Peterson (2024)

A Short History of Trans Misogyny

Anyone hoping to gain a greater understanding of the heavy and systemic sociocultural forces that make this world deeply unsafe for trans women, and particularly trans women of color, would do well to spend some time with A Short History of Trans Misogyny. In this recently released yet already culturally indelible book, Gill-Peterson surveys trans communities around the world and provides a history of anti-trans hatred that is both unique and vital in its specificity.

Vogue Daily

By signing up you agree to our User Agreement (including the class action waiver and arbitration provisions ), our Privacy Policy & Cookie Statement and to receive marketing and account-related emails from Vogue. You can unsubscribe at any time. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.