Happy Wednesday, bibliophiles!
In the U.S., March is Women’s History Month! More than ever, it’s blatantly clear that this administration views women as inferior and disposable, given the sweeping legislation attempting to curtail women’s rights and the complete lack of consequences here in the States for those in the Epstein Files. With all of that weighing on my shoulders, it’s hard to not feel that I’m disposable; I’ve unfortunately realized from a fairly young age that the government does not have my best interests at heart, but it’s hard not to internalize that rhetoric that I don’t matter. But that’s exactly how they want us women to feel. We have to remember, especially now, that the government is no match for the power that we have in numbers and strength. After all, this is Women’s History Month—there’s a long, proud line of women who have fought before us, and if they could face the oppression of their times, then we can face the oppression today. For all women—women of color, queer and trans women, disabled women, immigrant women, and all the rest—there is always hope.
So for the occasion, I’ve compiled another list of feminist books for women’s history month: fiction and nonfiction, Adult and YA, and from all different genres and contexts. (NOTE: I’ve included We Will Rise Again in this list; not all of the contributors to this anthology are women, but I thought this would be fitting since it directly talks about resistance and feminism, and many of the contributors are women. This is not to diminish or invalidate the different identities of the authors, but rather to celebrate the feminist message that they encourage.) I hope you enjoy this list, and I hope it makes you realize that there are so many ways to be a feminist.
For my previous lists, click below:
Let’s begin, shall we?
🚺THE BOOKISH MUTANT’S BOOKS FOR WOMEN’S HISTORY MONTH🚺
SCIENCE FICTION:
- The King Must Die – Kemi Ashing-Giwa | Adult | dystopia, space fantasy, POC | ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
- Red Star Rebels – Amie Kaufman | YA | romance, LGBTQ+ | ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
- We Will Rise Again: Speculative Stories and Essays on Protest, Resistance, and Hope – edited by Karen Lord, Annalee Newitz, and Malka Older | Adult | speculative fiction, fantasy, dystopia, LGBTQ+, POC | ⭐️⭐️⭐️.75
- The Library of Broken Worlds – Alaya Dawn Johnson | YA | space fantasy, POC, LGBTQ+, romance | ⭐️⭐️⭐️.75
- The Resisters – Gish Jen | Adult | dystopia, POC | ⭐️⭐️⭐️.75
- The Calculating Stars – Mary Robinette Kowal | Adult | alternate history, historical fiction, disability | ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
FANTASY:
- Lady’s Knight – Amie Kaufman & Meagan Spooner | YA | high fantasy, LGBTQ+, romance | ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
- Needy Little Things – Channelle Desamours | YA | magical realism, urban fantasy, POC, disability | ⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
- She Who Knows – Nnedi Okorafor | Adult | afrofuturism, novellas | ⭐️⭐️⭐️.75
- Scout’s Honor – Lily Anderson | YA | paranormal, urban fantasy, disability | ⭐️⭐️⭐️.75
- Saints of Storm and Sorrow – Gabriella Buba | Adult | high fantasy, LGBTQ+, romance, POC | ⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
- The Volcano Daughters – Gina María Balibrera | Adult | historical fiction, magical realism | ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
REALISTIC & HISTORICAL FICTION:
- Afrotistic – Kala Allen Omeiza | YA | fiction, disability, POC | ⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
- Lula Dean’s Little Library of Banned Books – Kirsten Miller | Adult | realistic fiction | ⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
- This Town Is on Fire – Pamela N. Harris | YA | POC, realistic fiction | ⭐️⭐️⭐️.75
- If We Were a Movie – Zakiya N. Jamal | YA | fiction, POC, LGBTQ+, romance | ⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
- Sisters in the Wind – Angeline Boulley | YA | mystery/thriller, historical fiction, POC | ⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
NONFICTION:
- Borderlands/La Frontera: The New Mestiza – Gloria Anzaldúa | Adult | essays, memoir, POC, LGBTQ+ | ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
- Read Dangerously: The Subversive Power of Literature in Troubled Times – Azar Nafisi | Adult | literature, POC, history | ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
- The Serviceberry: Abundance and Reciprocity in the Natural World – Robin Wall Kimmerer | Adult | nature, economics, POC | ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
- Girl on Girl: How Pop Culture Turned a Generation of Women Against Themselves – Sophie Gilbert | Adult | history, essays | ⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
- Unmasking AI: My Mission to Protect What is Human in a World of Machines – Joy Buolamwini | Adult | POC, technology, memoir | ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
- Separate Roads to Feminism: Black, Chicana, and White Feminist Movements in America’s Second Wave – Benita Roth | Adult | history | ⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
TELL ME WHAT YOU THINK! Have you read any of these books, and if so, what did you think of them? What are your favorite feminist books? Let me know in the comments!
Today’s song:
That’s it for this list! Have a wonderful rest of your day, and take care of yourselves!
The Bookish Mutant 