I (F22) am graduating college soon and have been looking to get back into reading again. I recently finished “Wedding People” and while i found some premises cheesy (cliche ending, romance wasnt piquing my interest, etc), i was really interested in the main theme of “i and others in my life put me into a box that made me think i was boring/uninteresting. I am very interesting and cool actually.” I also really enjoyed “Crying in H-mart” as a memoir because of its narrative nature and Asian-American connection to the immigrant parent experience.
would love a book (fiction/nonfiction) thats about female self/discovery or reflection on their self-concept! Similarly, books that also touch on perceiving/understanding yourself within friendships/companionship.
i mainly read on Libby, so less popular titles that I can likely get my hands on immediately are a plus (I have “So Old So Young,” “Heart on Lover,” and “The Road to Tender Hearts” on hold).
by coldfeetzzz
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Cold-Blooded Kindness by Barbara Oakley
Eat Prey Love
Educated
The Glass Castle
Some older books that work for this —
The Blue Castle by LM Montgomery. Freely available on project Gutenberg!!! Reminded me a lot of the wedding people, in that it’s about a woman who’s tired of fitting in the box other people put her in and what happens when she stops. Definitely sentimental and with flowery language but such a warm and comforting and funny book.
Lolly Willowes by Sylvia Townsend Warner — super interesting story of a woman learning to listen to herself. I love the third act so much.
Zadie Smith’s essays could be good for this, or her novel On Beauty is an exploration of relationships. A Room With a View by EM Forster is all about trying to form a true self conception in a social world.
Untamed by Glennon Doyle is a modern classic about shedding the expectations society imposes on women.