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Powerful stories about women standing for change
Stories of trailblazing women who were unafraid to challenge the status quo and fight for a more equal future.
Published on August 3, 2023
You're the Only One I've Told: The Stories Behind Abortion
Meera ShahThe need to debunk myths surrounding abortion and women’s reproductive healthcare has never been more urgent than it is today with the recent repeal of Roe v. Wade. Dr. Shah, a chief medical officer of Planned Parenthood, shares this collection of deeply moving stories of relatable women who exercised their right to choose. Shah recounts their experiences with the empathy and compassion deserving of such a personal subject and presents factual information regarding abortion and the repercussions of anti-choice legislation.
Girlhood
Melissa FebosSo much of what girlhood means is shaped by a patriarchal culture that caters to the desires of men — desires that all too often present as inexcusable behavior that is, unfortunately, excused on a systemic level. Febos’ memoir comprises seven powerful essays that explore the impossible and unfair burdens placed on adolescent girls. However, despite the challenges, it’s possible to unlearn the harmful conditioning that has taught women to make themselves small and put the needs of men first. Part memoir, part investigative reporting, “Girlhood” is a must-read for women seeking to reclaim their own personal happiness and well-being.
Shout Your Abortion
Amelia BonowFor nearly 50 years, anti-choice politicians and community leaders have been doing everything in their power to criminalize a woman’s right to reproductive choice. In 2018, following a Congressional attempt to defund Planned Parenthood, #ShoutYourAbortion went viral and served as a passionate rallying cry for women to share their stories of abortion — putting a much-needed human face on perhaps the most fiercly contested medical procedure. Bonow and Nokes’s compilation of essays and images is honest and raw and continues the critical work of destigmatizing abortion.
It's Not About the Burqa: Muslim Women on Faith, Feminism, Sexuality and Race
Mariam KhanAfter hearing the U.K.’s prime minister make sweeping, derogatory generalizations about Muslim women in 2016, writer Khan gathered 17 Muslim women to set the record straight. These Western Muslim women’s experiences are vast and varied, as relayed in this essay collection exploring everything from Islamophobia, to feminism, to one’s decision to wear traditional clothing.
Rage Becomes Her: The Power of Women's Anger
Soraya ChemalyThe power of women’s rage is, well, all the rage these days. All that silent seething about large systemic issues and the little everyday slights is now boiling over and fueling large-scale action. This is a thorough chronicle of the ways the patriarchy attempts to discredit women.
Warrior Queens & Quiet Revolutionaries: How Women (Also) Built the World
Kate MosseFrom pirate commanders and warrior queens, to authors and engineers, these are the underappreciated and seldom told truths about women who built the world. Mosse intersperses the accomplishments of various women from a wide range of fields and professions with stories of her own great-grandmother, a successful novelist who all but disappeared from public record.
Warrior Princesses Strike Back: How Lakota Twins Fight Oppression and Heal through Connectedness
Warrior Princesses Strike Back: How Lakota Twins Fight Oppression and Heal through Connectedness
Sarah Eagle HeartPart-memoir, part-guide, “Warrior Princesses Strike Back” is filled to the brim with Indigenous knowledge, rich Lakota history, and strategies for self-help. Despite the biases and challenges the Eagle Heart sisters face being Native and having grown up in one of the poorest communities in the United States, they’re determined to aid others — especially women of color — as they heal from generational trauma.
Flowers of Fire: The Inside Story of South Korea's Feminist Movement and What It Means for Women's Rights Worldwide
Flowers of Fire: The Inside Story of South Korea's Feminist Movement and What It Means for Women's Rights Worldwide
Hawon JungAs a journalist, Jung has covered everything from the ascension of Kim Jong-Un to the rise of K-pop on the Korean Peninsula; in this book, she covers the feminist revolution that continues to unfold in South Korea. Jung’s on-the-ground reporting and interviews with leaders of the movement shine a spotlight on the bravery and tenacity of these women, who are all too often relegated to the sidelines in the global conversation about gender equality.
The Sky Is for Everyone: Women Astronomers in Their Own Words
Virginia TrimbleThis incredible collection of autobiographical essays highlights how far women in science have come — and how far we have to go. Tracing the path of women astronomers from 1960 to the 2020s, readers gain insight into the transformation of astronomy and glean a deeper understanding of the sacrifices that female and nonbinary scientists have made in the name of gender equality.
A Bigger Picture: My Fight to Bring a New African Voice to the Climate Crisis
Vanessa NakateDespite the fact that climate change is a global crisis that disproportionately affects marginalized communities, the voices of those communities often continue to be omitted from the conversation. Nakate seeks to change that by propelling people of the Global South to the forefront of the fight for environmental justice. In her poignant and urgent memoir, the Ugandan activist invites readers to center race and gender in how they think about the climate movement.
Betraying Big Brother: The Feminist Awakening in China
Leta Hong FincherIn what the New York Public Library calls “an essential read on feminism,” Fincher dissects what she argues is one of the greatest threats to the Chinese government: the rise of the feminist movement. She dives into the story of the Feminist Five, a group of activists arrested by the Chinese Communist Party, and the ongoing fight for women’s rights in one of the most tightly controlled nations in the world.
Redefining Realness: My Path to Womanhood, Identity, Love & So Much More
Janet MockMock’s “Redefining Realness” shares a woman of color’s powerful story of coming into her own. In this memoir, writer and producer Mock chronicles her path to coming out as transgender, which is an urgent experience to hear right now, as the higher levels of discrimination and violence committed against trans women of color continues to make national headlines. Mock provides a path to a better tomorrow.
My Own Words
Ruth Bader GinsburgJustice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, the second woman to serve on the Supreme Court, died on September 18, 2020. Her memoir showcases her brilliant mind, as well as the cultural and political forces that shaped her approach to the bench. This is essential reading for those who want to know about one of the most influential judges in recent memory.
Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance
Angela DuckworthWhat REALLY drives success? Duckworth hypothesizes that it’s passion and long-term perseverance that ultimately win the day, not raw genius. Duckworth shares insights from highly successful personalities like JP Morgan CEO Jamie Dimon, combined with her own experiences in teaching, neuroscience, and business consulting to come to her ultimate conclusion: Grit and tenacity can be learned, and IQ is really just a bonus.
Abolition. Feminism. Now.
Angela Y. DavisA group of activist scholars presents an impassioned and practical defense of the need for feminism and abolition to work collectively. The book is both a rigorous critique of the structural and systemic nature of injustice, and a reflection of the ongoing community organizing that must build on the intersectional, anti-capitalist work that’s been done.
Ava DuVernay is Triumphant: Before Ava DuVernay became the first Black woman director to win Sundance and get nominated for Best Picture at the Oscars, she was a publicist with a little hobby, a big dream, and a lot of patience.
Ava DuVernay is Triumphant: Before Ava DuVernay became the first Black woman director to win Sundance and get nominated for Best Picture at the Oscars, she was a publicist with a little hobby, a big dream, and a lot of patience.
ReThinkingAva DuVernay’s contributions to filmmaking and directing are hard to rival. Her work on “Selma,” “When They See Us,” and “13th,” to name a few, garnered international critical acclaim and the title of the first Black woman to win the best director award at Sundance. On the podcast “ReThinking,” she shares the story of how she started as a publicist with a side gig of filmmaking and how she transformed that side gig into a brilliant career.
Pivots, Blockers, and Jammers: The History of Roller Derby
Michella MarinoIf you love the movie “Whip It,” then this history of roller derby, one of America’s most gender-progressive pastimes, is for you. “Pivots, Blockers, and Jammers” provides a high-speed, nitty-gritty highlight reel of the sport's greatest jams and worst stumbles since its start in the 1930s.