March is Women’s History Month when we celebrate the achievements and the contributions that women have made in America and abroad. Women have always had an important place in society going back to early human civilization. Throughout history they have been seen as agents of chaos and creation, both feared and revered; and in art and literature they have been depicted as the young maiden who inspires and the wise old witch who embodies ancient wisdom. Despite the female archetype that we have long warily admired—or perhaps because of it—women’s knowledge and their labor and ideas have been minimized or disregarded. It’s only in recent history that we have come to acknowledge and appreciate their accomplishments and contributions to society.
During the month of March, we honor the many women who have changed the course of history through their words and actions. Women like Harriet Tubman whose courage led many slaves to freedom, Susan B. Anthony who led the suffrage movement, Rosa Parks whose defiance inspired civil rights action, Marie Curie who discovered polonium and radium, and Ruth Bader Ginsburg who was a champion for gender equality are an inspiration for many women today. But it’s not just notable women we celebrate, Women’s History Month is also the celebration of the women in our lives who have guided us, inspired us, and supported us.
Here are five books written by women about women to read during the month of March or any month!
Lovely One by Ketanji Brown Jackson
Also available on Libby
The title of the book comes from the translation of “Ketanji Onyika,” a name given to Ketanji Brown Jackson by her aunt who worked in West Africa as a Peace Corps worker. Jackson made history in 2022 when she became the first Black woman ever confirmed to the Supreme Court of the United States. In this memoir, Jackson shares her personal life that is often hidden behind her public one. Her path to a legal career and ultimately to the highest court in the United States didn’t come easy for her as a Black woman, but at an early age she was determined to honor the legacy of her parents and grandparents by pursuing her dreams and overcoming barriers that they had faced growing up in the segregated South. A central theme of this book is heritage and racial identity, which in many ways have defined Jackson’s life. She often had to prove herself because of her gender and the color of her skin. Her story of trials and triumphs will resonate with many people who have big dreams and who refuse to step aside for the status quo.
Saving Five: A Memoir of Hope by Amanda Nguyen
Amanda Nguyen is the daughter of Vietnamese parents who fled Vietnam on a boat after the war. She attended Harvard University and had aspirations to work for NASA after graduation, but her plans were disrupted when she was sexually assaulted while a student there. For a long time she did not take action to bring the perpetrator to justice because she didn’t want this incident to derail her chances of joining NASA—that is until she learned that by remaining anonymous, evidence related to the rape would be destroyed after six months and she would no longer be able to take legal actions. Rather than giving into her fears and doing nothing, she decided to fight for change and speak up for herself as well as for other survivors of sexual assault and trauma. Nguyen’s story, while heart-wrenching, is one of courage, hope, and resilience.
Finding My Way: A Memoir by Malala Yousafzai
Also available on hoopla
The world was introduced to Malala Yousafzai in her book I Am Malala, which highlights her fight for girl’s education, a stand that made her a target of the Taliban. In this memoir, she reintroduces herself to the world, sharing a more intimate aspect of her life in which she talks about friendships, love, personal failures, and self-discovery. But most importantly, it’s a about a young woman who is finding her way and not afraid to take control of her own destiny.
Positive Obsession: The Life and Times of Octavia E. Butler by Susan M. Morris
Also available on Libby and hoopla
A trailblazer in the literary world, Octavia Butler opened many doors for Black women writers in the science fiction genre. This biography examines Butler’s life in the context of the social and cultural events that were taking place in the 1960s and 1970s. During those periods, science fiction was mostly a male-dominated genre, and there were very few, if any, women writers. Butler was keenly aware that Black women had very little representation in science fiction and wanted to change that. Positive Obsession is about Butler’s obsession to write—not because she loved it (she did) but because she felt she must write. It was a sense of destiny yet also a need to squelch her doubt that she could ever be as good as a writer than the white men who wrote science fiction. From her personal struggles growing up in Pasadena, California, to shattering the color and gender barriers in science fiction, Butler became an inspiration to many aspiring women writers.
Ain’t Nobody’s Fool: The Life and Times of Dolly Parton by Martha Ackmann
Also available on Cloud Library
Anybody who loves country music will know who Dolly Parton is. She’s an icon in the Nashville scene and also a star in showbiz. Yet despite her fame and fortune, Dolly has remained humble and extremely grateful. Those who have met her say she is one of the nicest people in the music business, which has its fair share of rock stars and divas. Her humility and love of music are rooted in the mountains of Tennessee where she grew up with twelve siblings in a small cabin. Her family was very poor, but what they lacked in material comforts they made up with music, faith, and love. Ackmann’s biography offers a glimpse of the famous singer who was determined to make something of herself right after high school. It chronicles her journey from extreme poverty to global stardom in both music and television and from businesswoman to philanthropist and an advocate of literacy and other social causes. It’s a comprehensive look at her life and highlights her intelligence, ambition, business acumen, and her control of her own narrative. One will gain a bigger appreciation of her accomplishments and who she is as a person after reading this book.