Women contain multitudes. Perhaps there is more - in terms of experience and context - that divides women than unites them. Yet, violence and discrimination visit all women, affecting them in different and profound ways. It is impossible to contain important writing by women, and about women's issues, in a single list. Here are a few classic and contemporary works to get you started.
Undoing Gender, Judith Butler
Nobody has influenced the study of gender quite as much as Butler. Undoing Gender is widely known as one of her more accessible works, and it expands upon the path-breaking reflections on gender of her earlier works Gender Trouble, and Bodies that Matter. Butler looks closely at how gender regulates people's lives, from both feminist and queer theoretical points of view.
Women and Gender in Islam, Leila Ahmed
Ahmed's study spans over 2,000 years of Islamic history, and challenges some of the most pre-dominant assumptions the rest of the world makes about Islam and women. Ahmed closely looks at how Islam developed, how it was shaped by its surroundings, and how it is interpreted and perceived. Ahmed particularly focuses on Egypt towards the end of the work.
The Sexual Politics of Meat, Carol J. Adams
In this landmark work, Adams connects women's rights with animal rights. Her argument is that patriarchy acts upon women's and animal bodies in ways that are fundamentally connected to each other. In doing so, she not only provides a crucial dimension to the human-animal relationship, she also explores an intersection that has inspired much debate and discussion on ethics and the language of rights.
This Bridge Called My Back: Writings by Radical Women of Color, edited by Cherríe L. Moraga and Gloria E. Anzaldúa
This is one of the most influential feminist works of all time, and features writing from black, Asian American, Native American, and Latina women. The essays, poetry, and fiction in the collection remain relevant more than twenty years on, and are essential reading for anyone who wants to understand how race, class, sexuality, and other factors intersect with gender - and affect women's lives differently.
Whipping Girl: A Transsexual Woman on Sexism and the Scapegoating of Femininity by Julia Serano
The Woman in the Body, Emily Martin
Martin closely examines scientific assumptions about women's bodies, specifically how women are seen and talked about by the medical establishment. Its insights on reproduction, menstruation, and analysis of medical terminology will change how you look at health in relation to gender.
Muchachas No More: Household Workers in Latin America and the Caribbean, Elsa Chaney
The 22 essays in this collection add to our understanding of household work, of women's experiences and women's labour, and of Latin American and Caribbean women. Some of the testimonies are from domestic workers themselves, a refreshing and crucial change from academic analysis.
Sister Outsider, Audre Lorde
Lorde is a luminary; her poetry and writing from a black lesbian point of view has been vastly influential. This book brings together some of her most remarkable and important work, providing an in-depth understanding of Lorde's politics in her gorgeous style.
To Live and to Write: Selections by Japanese Women Writers, 1913-1938, edited by Yukiko Tanaka
Nine Japanese women writers talk about life in Japan before the Second World War. They discuss, with courage and conviction, their struggles with poverty, heartbreak, patriarchy, and self-expression. This is a great chronicle of twenty five crucial years in Japanese women's history.
Global Sex Workers: Rights, Resistance, and Redefinition, edited by Kamala Kempadoo and Jo Doezema
This collection has been written by sex workers from around the world, and tackles the international movements that ask for sex workers' human rights to be protected. These are powerful voices of women negotiating their daily lives, with all their violence and joys, and actively organising to secure their human rights.
The Asian Mystique: Dragon Ladies, Geisha Girls, and Our Fantasies of the Exotic Orient, Sheridan Passo
This is a rigorously researched take-down of Orientalist fantasies about “submissive” Asian women and “weak” Asian men. Passo delves into the origins of Orientalism, and then counters these perceptions using interviews with women from various parts of Asia.
Plaintext, Nancy Mairs
Read this for Mairs's acclaimed essay, On Being a Cripple, in which Mairs talks about disability, long-term illness, and her relationship with her body. She examines representations of women in popular media, and the consequences of this on disabled women. The essay, and the rest of Mairs's writing, is characterised by her refusal to be dismissed as a category or a disease, to her insistence on being seen for who she is.
My Place, Sally Morgan
This book is about the author's discovery of her aboriginal past. Growing up, Morgan did not know that she was aboriginal – a secret kept by her mother and grandmother, who had faced the systemic racism faced by indigenous communities in Australia. Morgan has inspired both widespread acclaim, as well as critique and debate by other aboriginal writers. The work is now considered a classic.
We Should All Be Feminist, Chimananda Ngozi Adichie
Adapted from the hugely popular Tedx talk given by this beloved Nigerian novelist, this work explores the ways in which feminism has been vilified and misinterpreted. Adichie's arguments are clear, and thought-provoking – ideal for anyone who wants to understand feminism and why it is relevant.
Undoing Gender, Judith Butler
Nobody has influenced the study of gender quite as much as Butler. Undoing Gender is widely known as one of her more accessible works, and it expands upon the path-breaking reflections on gender of her earlier works Gender Trouble, and Bodies that Matter. Butler looks closely at how gender regulates people's lives, from both feminist and queer theoretical points of view.
Women and Gender in Islam, Leila Ahmed
Ahmed's study spans over 2,000 years of Islamic history, and challenges some of the most pre-dominant assumptions the rest of the world makes about Islam and women. Ahmed closely looks at how Islam developed, how it was shaped by its surroundings, and how it is interpreted and perceived. Ahmed particularly focuses on Egypt towards the end of the work.
The Sexual Politics of Meat, Carol J. Adams
In this landmark work, Adams connects women's rights with animal rights. Her argument is that patriarchy acts upon women's and animal bodies in ways that are fundamentally connected to each other. In doing so, she not only provides a crucial dimension to the human-animal relationship, she also explores an intersection that has inspired much debate and discussion on ethics and the language of rights.
This Bridge Called My Back: Writings by Radical Women of Color, edited by Cherríe L. Moraga and Gloria E. Anzaldúa
This is one of the most influential feminist works of all time, and features writing from black, Asian American, Native American, and Latina women. The essays, poetry, and fiction in the collection remain relevant more than twenty years on, and are essential reading for anyone who wants to understand how race, class, sexuality, and other factors intersect with gender - and affect women's lives differently.
Whipping Girl: A Transsexual Woman on Sexism and the Scapegoating of Femininity by Julia Serano
Transgender women are deeply discriminated against, many times even by those who profess to care intensely about women's rights. Their self-identification as women is rejected – but, as Serano shows in this work, transgender women's experiences are shaped by the same misogyny and violence that other women face. Serano is particularly interesting because she makes the disciplines of gender studies and biology talk to each other, rather than at each other – which can often be the case. A must-read for its accessibility and the insight it offers.
The Woman in the Body, Emily Martin
Martin closely examines scientific assumptions about women's bodies, specifically how women are seen and talked about by the medical establishment. Its insights on reproduction, menstruation, and analysis of medical terminology will change how you look at health in relation to gender.
Muchachas No More: Household Workers in Latin America and the Caribbean, Elsa Chaney
The 22 essays in this collection add to our understanding of household work, of women's experiences and women's labour, and of Latin American and Caribbean women. Some of the testimonies are from domestic workers themselves, a refreshing and crucial change from academic analysis.
Sister Outsider, Audre Lorde
Lorde is a luminary; her poetry and writing from a black lesbian point of view has been vastly influential. This book brings together some of her most remarkable and important work, providing an in-depth understanding of Lorde's politics in her gorgeous style.
To Live and to Write: Selections by Japanese Women Writers, 1913-1938, edited by Yukiko Tanaka
Nine Japanese women writers talk about life in Japan before the Second World War. They discuss, with courage and conviction, their struggles with poverty, heartbreak, patriarchy, and self-expression. This is a great chronicle of twenty five crucial years in Japanese women's history.
Global Sex Workers: Rights, Resistance, and Redefinition, edited by Kamala Kempadoo and Jo Doezema
This collection has been written by sex workers from around the world, and tackles the international movements that ask for sex workers' human rights to be protected. These are powerful voices of women negotiating their daily lives, with all their violence and joys, and actively organising to secure their human rights.
The Asian Mystique: Dragon Ladies, Geisha Girls, and Our Fantasies of the Exotic Orient, Sheridan Passo
This is a rigorously researched take-down of Orientalist fantasies about “submissive” Asian women and “weak” Asian men. Passo delves into the origins of Orientalism, and then counters these perceptions using interviews with women from various parts of Asia.
Plaintext, Nancy Mairs
Read this for Mairs's acclaimed essay, On Being a Cripple, in which Mairs talks about disability, long-term illness, and her relationship with her body. She examines representations of women in popular media, and the consequences of this on disabled women. The essay, and the rest of Mairs's writing, is characterised by her refusal to be dismissed as a category or a disease, to her insistence on being seen for who she is.
My Place, Sally Morgan
This book is about the author's discovery of her aboriginal past. Growing up, Morgan did not know that she was aboriginal – a secret kept by her mother and grandmother, who had faced the systemic racism faced by indigenous communities in Australia. Morgan has inspired both widespread acclaim, as well as critique and debate by other aboriginal writers. The work is now considered a classic.
We Should All Be Feminist, Chimananda Ngozi Adichie
Adapted from the hugely popular Tedx talk given by this beloved Nigerian novelist, this work explores the ways in which feminism has been vilified and misinterpreted. Adichie's arguments are clear, and thought-provoking – ideal for anyone who wants to understand feminism and why it is relevant.
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