Feminist Books for Your BFF
Photo by Andrea Piacquadio from Pexels.
It’s Women’s History Month and we’re looking for as many reasons as possible to celebrate the women in our lives. March is prime “because I love you” gift time, so we’ve rounded up five of our favorite feminist books to get for your best friend, sister, mother, aunt, or significant other. Because adding to someone’s feminist library is always a great idea.
Wonder Women: 25 Innovators, Inventors, and Trailblazers Who Changed History by Sam Maggs
Sam Maggs’ Wonder Women is an incredible in depth look at twenty-five women in STEM, intelligence, innovation, and related fields who’ve been all but lost to history. Maggs’ coverage is inclusive and exhaustive, profiling women like Chinese textile pioneer Huang Daopo, born in the year 1240 (!), and American spy Mary Bowser, who was born around 1841 and operated under so many pseudonyms that almost every piece of information known about her is unconfirmed. This is the perfect book for the curious feminist in your life – the kind of woman who will fall in love with the renegades in this book and leave hungry for more.
In the Company of Women: Inspiration and Advice from over 100 Makers, Artists, and Entrepreneurs by Grace Bonney
If Wonder Woman is a celebration of women of the past, In the Company of Women is a celebration of women of the present. This gorgeous coffee table book is best enjoyed at a leisurely pace, one or two interviews at a time – making it a perfect gift for the homebody feminist in your life. Grace Bonney created this book because she was tired of seeing feminist books that excluded women of color and LGBTQ women. The result is an incredible and diverse book of women in their workspaces. Real women who run the gamut on age, sexuality, gender identity, race, culture, and industry. It’s a must have for any feminist home.
Crafting with Feminism: 25 Girl-Powered Projects to Smash the Patriarchy by Bonnie Burton
A decoupage flask featuring a drinking Dorothy Parker. A Feminist Killroy pageant sash. A Frida Kahlo finger puppet. A necklace that simply says “nope.” No, we’re not just naming things that are on our Pinterest board. These are just a few of the patriarchy smashing crafts that Bonnie Burton lays out in her badass book Crafting with Feminism. This is the perfect gift for the lady in your life who not only made pussy hats for everyone in your squad, but also hosted a sign making party the night before the Women’s March. Her protest sign was the best, but she never bragged about it. And she made sure everyone’s message was intersectional.
All the Single Ladies: Unmarried Women and the Rise of an Independent Nation by Rebecca Traister
Part anecdote, part history, All the Single Ladies traces the history of unmarried women in the United States. This book is filled with interviews with prominent single women, as well as social scientists and academics. We particularly love the origin story of Aminatou Sow and Ann Friedman’s best friendship – a friendship that became the impetus for their feminist podcast Call Your Girlfriend. If we could use the fire emoji to describe this book, we would. It’s that magnificent. Grab a copy for best friend and one for yourself. Because All the Single Ladies is worthy of its own book club.
How to be a Woman by Caitlin Moran
Caitlin Moran’s How to be a Woman is equal parts memoir, feminist anecdotes, and hilarity. The book is written more or less chronologically, beginning with the start of Moran’s first period. Each chapter includes an over the top and positively delightful heading. The chapter on her first period, for example, is titled “I Start Bleeding!” Her chapter on workplace harassment is titled “I Encounter Some Sexism!” Her opinions are polarizing and How to be a Woman is best read with a focus on humor. This is a perfect gift for the extroverted feminist in your life – a woman who isn’t afraid to laugh out loud with a book in her hands.
