For a considerable amount of time in history, many women did not have a voice. Though we still have quite a ways to go, these narratives allowed some of my favorite women to find their voices and share them with the world. These books are some of my favorite examples of complex women who have inspired me or made me laugh through their real experiences.
Yes, Please by Amy Poehler
This was definitely the most obvious choice for this list as I will consume anything and everything that Amy Poehler creates. Amy is funny without trying too hard and talks about what it’s like to be a woman in comedy without being nauseatingly cliché. Amy talks to you like a friend who wants you to succeed and embrace your passions and I truly felt like I could accomplish anything I wanted after my Poehler pep-talk. If you like Parks and Rec, SNL, or just comedy in general, you should definitely pick this memoir up.
Lucky by Alice Sebold
This memoir, written by the award-winning author of The Lovely Bones, tells the story of when Sebold was raped during college and the trial that followed. At times, it is extremely heartbreaking due to the honest and candid nature of Sebold’s writing about her experiences. In other parts, it is extremely frustrating to hear about the repeated failures of the justice system in dealing with her trial. Though Sebold’s experiences occurred several decades ago, it is still pretty disheartening to recognize the fact that not much has changed. Sebold is a wonderful storyteller, and though her story is difficult to hear at times, it is an important one to be told.
Why Not Me? by Mindy Kaling
Why Not Me? is Mindy Kaling’s second book, and reads more like a series of essays and stories than an actual memoir. All of her stories are either laugh-out-loud funny or just extremely honest in a way that I haven’t really seen before. One particularly memorable part (that I screenshotted and sent to all of my friends) talked about how college friends are truly like no other and how hard it is once you leave them. One part, that had me swooning endlessly, talked about her relationship with a White House employee. It’s truly a must-read if you are into comedy, are somewhat of a hopeless romantic, or just enjoy a good story.
Fun Home by Alison Bechdel
Fun Home is a graphic memoir written by Alison Bechdel, whose name may sound familiar if you have ever heard of the Bechdel test (a test commonly used for films, a work of fiction passes the Bechdel test if it features at least two women who talk to each other about something other than a man, a surprising number of films fail the Bechdel test) Fun Home is the first and only graphic book I had ever read and I was truly surprised by how much I loved it considering the abnormal format. I first decided to read Fun Home after hearing some of the music from the Tony-winning musical that was based off of Bechdel’s book. The memoir primarily focuses on Bechdel’s adolescence and early adulthood years and discoveries she makes about herself and her sexuality while living with her dysfunctional family in the so-called “fun home”. It is a quick read but it is still beautiful and heart-wrenching while touching on issues that generally do not pervade mainstream media. Even if you generally stray away from graphic novels, I’d definitely give this one a shot.
#GIRLBOSS by Sophia Amoruso
Though this is the most recent addition to the list, it is definitely a contender for my favorites. This no-nonsense, (though still hilarious), book written by the founder of Nasty Gal is at once a memoir and an advice book. Amoruso tells you it like it is, that you do have to work really hard in order to achieve success, but she also tells you about all the ways she was deemed to fail. She is honest about her past failures but is still very motivating and inspiring and makes it seem like she truly wants the best for each and every one of her readers. One of my favorite aspects of this book is the inclusion of some of Amoruso’s favorite quotes that are sprinkled throughout, some of which I have added to my growing catalogue of favorite quotes. I would definitely recommend this to anyone who is ambitious or perhaps wants to become ambitious and achieve the eponymous status of #GIRLBOSS.