Books

10 Essential Books About Writing

An illustration shows a person with brown skin and brown hair with a pencil in their mouth, bookshelves with blue, purple, yellow, and pink book covers behind them, and a laptop in front of them.
by Nylah Burton
April 6, 2022 at 12:07pm
Must-read titles for writers include works by Elena Ferrante, Akwaeke Emezi, Meg Wolitzer, Yoko Ogawa, and more.
Shirley Jackson, a white woman with her blond hair in a bun and wearing glasses, looks downward in front of a yellow background

Haunted Housewife: The Horror—and the Humor—of Shirley Jackson

by Trimble
July 29, 2020 at 1:30pm
As both writer and housewife, she embodied identities that were incompatible according to the norms of her time. Read more »
A child reads a book.

Trauma or Tragedy: Disability Representation in Children’s Books Has a Long Way to Go

by Alaina Leary
July 21, 2020 at 12:22pm
It isn’t easy to find a children’s book or young adult novel that accurately depicts disability. Read more »
Leslie Kern, a white woman with short, brown hair, poses in front of a book case in a blue cardigan

Woman-Made World: Inside the Inevitable Rise of the Feminist City

by Nicole Froio
July 21, 2020 at 9:00am
There are ways to transform the city that would advance the liberation of women and marginalized people. Read more »
Rebekah Weatherspoon, a Black woman wearing glasses, smiles at the camera

Rebekah Weatherspoon Is the Queen of Erotic Romance

by Nichole Perkins
July 14, 2020 at 9:00am
If you want to read romances with a bit more erotic heat to them, look no further than Rebekah Weatherspoon. Read more »
an Unsplash photo of an Asian person with shoulder-length brown hair reading a book

BitchReads: 17 Books Feminists Should Read in July

by Evette Dionne
July 13, 2020 at 2:44pm
 This BitchReads list is curated to encourage everyone to find the small joys, including books, that will help us through this trying time. Read more »
Leah Johnson, author of You Should See Me in a Crown. Leah is a Black woman with curly hair and a nosering. She wears a black mockneck tank top and smiles at the camera.

Unabashed Triumph: “You Should See Me in a Crown” Reimagines the Prom Queen

by Rachel Charlene Lewis
June 30, 2020 at 10:46am
This is a book that, at its core, offers hope. Read more »
The Herd by Andrea Bartz and Self Care by Leigh Stein. The former cover features a white woman with a purple highlight blocking out her features. The second features a lotion bottle.

Slaying the Girlboss: New Books Explore the Underbelly of Corporate Feminism

by Rachel Charlene Lewis
June 30, 2020 at 9:59am
Against differing backdrops, Andrea Bartz and Leah Stein offer their own look into the darker underbelly of these easily marketable spaces. Read more »
A close up of a Black woman’s hair.

A Multifaceted Beauty: In Emma Dabiri’s “Twisted,” Black Hair Is Both Historic and Personal

by Mary Retta
June 29, 2020 at 10:08am
Emma Dabiri’s analysis also shines in its unexpected critique of today’s natural hair movement in an international context. Read more »
A white woman reads a book. The text next to her reads, “I’m tired of white people ‘trying.’”

Very Online: Anti-Racist Readers Are Plaguing the DMs of Black People

by Rachel Charlene Lewis
June 26, 2020 at 10:53am
We’re in the time of the online anti-racism book club. Read more »
Felix Ever After author Kacen Callender, who is Black and nonbinary and smiles directly at the camera while wearing a pink tee, has blue hair.

Unexpected Connection: “Felix Ever After” Lets Queer and Trans Teens Be Messy

by Rachel Charlene Lewis
June 17, 2020 at 1:15pm
The characterization in this book should serve as an example to others writing queer YA in 2020. Read more »

Pages

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Mock & Awe: Janet Mock on Truth-Telling, Community Building, and Writing the Story She Had Been Waiting for Her Whole Life

Janet Mock, a transgender Hawaiian woman with curly, brown hair, smiles
by Tina Vasquez
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“Redefining Realness” is written with astounding honesty and heart. Read more »

Rewriting the Future: Using Science Fiction to Re-Envision Justice

by Walidah Imarisha
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Our justice movements desperately need science fiction. Read more »

A Look at How Media Writes Women of Color

by Victoria Law
November 17, 2014 at 5:07pm
Nearly every Saturday morning, feminists of color hold Twitter discussions taking a deeper look at issues, such as gender violence. It’s the... Read more »

Hot Under the Bonnet: The Cooptation of Amish Culture in Mass-Market Fiction

a blue and white illustration of a woman in Amish attire standing next to a fan and a chicken
by Audrey deCoursey
Spring 2014 • Maps & Legends
Dubbed “Amish romance novels,” “Amish fiction,” or the more waggish “bonnet rippers,” these novels just one entry point into the varying images of Amish communities in U.S. popular culture. Read more »