Did you know that Women’s History Month began as Women’s History…Week? In 1987, we finally got upgraded to the full month, and thank goodness! There are so many inspiring women to read about, even a month is never going to cover it. From Louisa May Alcott to Edmonia Lewis, Margaret Sanger to Margarita Engle, women have changed our world and continue to shape our future. Let’s keep reading about women all year round.
Clara Ketterling-Dunbar is one of twenty-eight crew members of The Resolute—a ship meant for an Antarctic expedition now marooned on ice one hundred miles from the shore of the continent. Two members of the crew know that she's an American, but no one knows the truth of her activities in England before The Resolute set sail. She and her suffragist sisters in the Women’s Social & Political Union were waging war of a different kind in London. They taught Clara to fight. And now, even marooned on the ice, she won’t stop fighting for women’s rights…or for survival.
In the wake of the Civil War, life was especially tough for women of color, but Edmonia Lewis didn’t let that stop her. Half Native American and half African American, Edmonia was a gifted sculptor whose life is shrouded in mystery. She studied art at Oberlin, one of the first schools to admit women and people of color, but she lost her place after being accused of poisoning and theft, despite being acquitted of both. Nevertheless, she persisted. She moved to Boston and eventually Italy, where she achieved her dream of becoming a successful sculptor. She never recorded much about her extraordinary life, but critically acclaimed author Jeannine Atkins fills in the gaps in this gorgeous, haunting biographical novel in verse.
In this epic team-up of veritable YA superheroes, Amy Reed, Ellen Hopkins, Amber Smith, Sandhya Menon, and more of your favorites explore the diverse experiences of injustice, empowerment, and growing up female in the United States. They address powerful topics, including the intersection of gender with race, religion, and ethnicity, and impart messages of hope and solidarity. As Amy Reed writes in her introduction, “The act of telling our stories, speaking our truths, is in itself an act of resistance.” And who knows? Maybe it will inspire you to write your truth too.
Not all women have periods, and not everyone who has a period is a woman, but for everyone who does experience a flow, you know that it comes with a lot of baggage. Menstruators are told that their periods are taboo, embarrassing, and gross. Because of these stigmas, the status quo excludes menstruators from a seat at the table and leads to discriminations like the tampon tax, medicines that favor non-menstruator biology, and more. Period Power creates a strategy to end the silence and prompt honest conversation about periods.
Margarita Engle’s gorgeous memoir in verse (and follow-up to its award-winning companion Enchanted Air) recounts her teenage years as a Cuban-American in Los Angeles during the turbulent 1960s. Margarita’s childhood straddled two worlds: the lush, welcoming island of Cuba and the lonely reality of Los Angeles. But the revolution has transformed Cuba into a mystery of impossibility, no longer reachable in real life. When the shock waves of war reach America, Margarita must grapple with questions of peace, civil rights, freedom of expression, and environmental protection. More Americans than ever are bicultural and biracial, and this Young People’s Poet Laureate’s story will resonate with everyone who has felt caught between two worlds.
Nearly one in five girls ages fourteen to seventeen have been the victim of a sexual assault or attempted sexual assault. Chessy Prout was a freshman at a prestigious boarding school in New Hampshire when a senior boy sexually assaulted her as part of a ritualized game of conquest. Chessy bravely reported the assault and testified against her attacker in court. When she faced unexpected backlash from her once-trusted school, she shed her anonymity to help other survivors find their voices. In her memoir, she offers real, powerful solutions to upend rape culture and gives words of hope in the face of unspeakable trauma.
Before the first birth control pill was approved by the FDA in 1960, and the Roe vs. Wade decision was issued in 1973, a fierce and opinionated young woman named Margaret Sanger wanted more out of life than dirty dishes and diapers. She grew up with limited means, and she witnessed and experienced incredible hardships early in life. But all of this led to her groundbreaking work as an advocate for women’s health, most notably founding Planned Parenthood in 1916. This fiery novelization of Margaret’s early life introduces us to a young woman with the passion and courage to change the world.
Gaze upon this stunning cover! Fine artist Leah Tinari illustrated portraits of 24 notable American women in her signature, striking style, and the result is something to behold. Tinari chose a diverse group of groundbreaking women from the last 300 years whose vision, grit, and guts inspire her and countless others. Courage, perseverance, brilliance, and passion were their guiding principles, and, hey, a little fairy-dusting of these could keep you motivated all month long.
Few things are more powerful than sisterhood and found family, and Dirt has both in Daughters of Oduma! In this scintillating young adult fantasy inspired by West African culture Dirt, an elite female fighter, must reenter the competition to protect her found family of younger sisters. Even though she has never wanted to be a leader, defeat would mean the end of her beloved Fam. And no way is Dirt going to let that happen.
