I'm a firm believer that there are the perfect books for every occasion and International Women's Day is no exception. Whether you're taking the day to participate in
#DayWithoutAWoman or you're looking for something to read on your lunch break, here are some inspiring reads to remind you just how amazing women can be.
The Woman Warrior - Maxine Hong Kingston
For those of us in the US and other western countries, it can be easy to forget that daughters are not celebrated in every corner of the world. In The Woman Warrior, Maxine Hong Kingston examines a clashing of cultures where the old world of China and the new ways of the US meet in her female body. Part myth, part family history, it is a captivating portrait of the complexities of the Chinese-American identity.
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The Buddha in the Attic - Julie Otsuka
Most history books only laud the achievements and bravery of men and in many ways
The Buddha in the Attic is a response to that. She illuminates the incredible courage of the 19th and 20th centuries' Japanese picture brides, women who left behind everything they knew to join husbands they'd never met before in the US. These women speak as a chorus of hardship and suffering, determination and the unshakeable bonds of family.
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Spinster: Making a Life of One's Own - Kate Bolick
What is a woman's ultimate goal: happiness or marriage? Are those two mutually exclusive? While Kate Bolick doesn't have all the answers to these very loaded questions, she does take the time to examine the course of her own, happily unmarried life. And she does so by investigating the female writers who have helped to shape her understanding of herself and the kind of life she wants.
Spinster is one woman's love letter to the most important female minds in her life.
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My Beloved World - Sonia Sotomayor
You can't talk about inspiring women without mentioning Sonia Sotomayor, just the third women to ever be named to the US Supreme Court and the first ever Hispanic Justice.
My Beloved World is a memoir about family, learning, and all the amazing things you can achieve through hard work and dedication.
The Girls of Atomic City - Denise Kiernan
There's kind of an unspoken rule in my family: if you want something done, ask one of the women.
The Girls of Atomic City tells the tale of the women that helped the US Miliary get shit done during the race for atomic arms in World War II. Follow the young women who left their families for pop-up "atomic cities" in the hopes of gaining some independence and helping their country.
