Witchy reads
The Sisters Grimm – Menna van Praag
A lyrically-spun delight of a novel which takes place in Cambridge and in mysterious Everwhere, The Sisters Grimm is a tale of injustice, feminist struggle and re-empowerment. Recommended to anyone looking for relatable characters, powerful women figures and magic.
Follow me to Ground – Sue Rainsford
Earthy and strange, Follow me to Ground invites you into a non-human yet familiar world of desire, secrets and revenge where bodies are grown, sewn and ‘put to ground’. Suited to those who enjoy nature and want to reconnect with their bodies in a powerful way.
The Poppy War – R.F. Kuang
Fire, Earth, Water, Air—the elements are malleable to the shamans of this novel, but often at great cost. The Poppy War is a tactful exploration of the Opium Wars which also treats female bodily experience and the day-to-day injustices faced by women, especially working-class women. Whilst this book could be more concise, it is a gripping read and recommended to all who seek magic and mystery.
Realist
The Handmaid’s Tale and The Testaments – Margaret Atwood
In many ways the Ur-text of contemporary feminism, The Handmaid’s Tale is disquietingly successful in its paralleling of Gileadean women’s lives with the experiences of real women. The Testaments completes this alignment by bringing Gilead to modern-day Canada and spotlighting the shortcomings of Western society. For those seeking an understanding ear and hope for escape from these patriarchal wastelands.
White Teeth – Zadie Smith
Irie, Clara, Hortense, Ambrosia—these are just some of the women whose stories are narrated in White Teeth with wit and flair. Smith splays an ambitious spectrum of womanhood in this novel, offering masterful representation for WOC, a diversity of faiths and LGBTQ+ women. White Teeth will be enjoyable to most readers with its sparkling humour, wide-ranging characters and universally human message.
The Female Persuasion – Meg Wolitzer
The Female Persuasion came to me at just the right time: my university studies were over, summer was drawing to a close and I was struggling to find a job. Wolitzer offers a heartfelt portrayal of female pain and friendship, loss and passion as women’s careers splutter into being and draw to a close. I would recommend it to anyone who, like myself, feels that they will never find a valuable job which also pays the bills. Wolitzer’s approach to the job-hunt comes the closest to a needed hug that I believe a novel can.
Theory
Women and Power – Mary Beard
Offering striking background for the privileging of the male voice over the female, Mary Beard presents the problem whilst, perhaps, failing to produce a useful exit strategy. In this sense, Women and Power is less a ‘manifesto’, following the subtitular description, as a denunciation of female disempowerment. Good for those who enjoy shorter reads but lacking in in-depth analysis.
All About Love – bell hooks
bell hooks’s ethics of love is a powerful reminder of the difficult but necessary compromise between Self and Other. Loving is not an easy business, hooks explains, however it is indispensable if we are to undo the hurt inflicted by sexism, racism and capitalism, fuelled as they are by greed, envy and abuse. All About Love outlines various relationships where love is lacking and delineates the transformative potential of an ethics of love. Perfect for those who feel the need for a new, counter-cultural ethics and who are unfazed by calls for self-reform.
Shameless – Nadia Bolz-Weber
This book, though attached to Bolz-Weber’s name, is in fact a collection of life stories gathered for the benefit of the sexually repressed, the ignored, the abused and the hurting. Shameless lives up to its title by treating sexuality with candour whilst also handling individuals’ experiences with respect. Bolz-Weber uncovers the ugly underside of religious teaching on sexuality and the way it has damaged many people, in some cases irreparably. Commended to anyone who aspires to live out their sexuality to the full.