I’ve recently gotten back into reading and I stumbled across a TikTok that didn’t sit right with me. It was someone asking men to name the last book we’ve read by a woman. I checked my last three books (House on the cerulean sea, dune Messiah, and Good Omens) no women. I checked the books I was excited to read this year, no women. I checked my immediate shelf and only saw three books by women. It was completely inadvertent and I felt awful. I have a wife and a 5 year old daughter that are my world and I felt terrible that somehow or other, I haven’t brought more women’s perspectives into my life. This past weekend I went to my local shop and picked up Remarkably Bright Creatures and Demon Copperhead. They were ones I’ve been interested in and never bought. I also picked up “Boys, Dogs, and Other Things I’ve cried about” by Isabel Klee. It sounded interesting and I knew my wife would like it after I read it. I guess I’m reaching out for a bunch of other suggestions that would help bring more “non-men” into my literary life. I’m open to any genres that you think would be the most impactful.
by Apply_Yourself
25 Comments
Great start with those picks – Demon Copperhead especially is incredible and Barbara Kingsolver really knows how to write characters that stick with you. For sci-fi since you liked Dune try Ursula K Le Guin’s Left Hand of Darkness or anything by NK Jemisin, and if you want something that’ll completely mess with your head in the best way check out Octavia Butler’s Parable series
If I had a say in it I would make Reservoir Bitches by Dahlia de la Cerda, and Women Without Men by Shahrnush Parsipur compulsory reading for all teenage boys. But for enjoyment, I Who Have Never Known Men by Jacqueline Harpman is a great read, you and your wife will enjoy this I think.
A lot of women write science fiction which I consider to be the most impactful fiction. Lots of themes explored in a wide open genre. Some of my favorites are Lois McMaster Bujold, CJ Cherryh, Ann Leckie, Becky Chambers, Martha Wells, and let’s not forget the grand master Andre Norton.
The secret history – Donna Tartt, Piranesi – Susanna Clarke, The song of Achilles – Madeline Miller
The Light Brigade by Kameron Hurley
I almost entirely stick to women authors so I would like to chime in. “I who have never known man” hit hard last year as well as “Kim jiyoung, born 1982”. They both hold a special place in my heart and I truly recommend them so much. Jen Beagen is good, Mona Awad is good. For sci-fi, Octavia Butler is an excellent choice for some varying perspective. Ottessa Moshfegh is an absolute favourite of mine I loved all her books so much. “The vegetarian” by Han Kang sticks out to me and “tender is the flesh”. I hope this is helpful to you!
My favorite fantasy’s & Romantasy’s are by women! If you like these genres?
I’d highly recommend these books:
Gift of a Rose by Lauren Gross
The Wolf King by Lauren Palphreyman
Tusk Love by Thea Guanzon
God Killer by Hannah Kaner
Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros
The Knight and the Moth by Rachel Gillig
My all time favorite book:
The Second Death of Locke by V.L Bovalino, Toni Bovalino
Here are some that I personally liked
Sin eater by Megan Campisi
Nightwatch man by Louise Erdrich
Frozen river by Ariel Lawhorn
Water outlaws by Huang
Buddhas in the attic by Otsuka
My sister the serial killer by Braithwaite
Swords of Kaigen by M L Wang
When stars go dark by Paula McLain
The nothing man by Catherine Howard
Vampires of el notre by Isabel canas
The great alone by Kristin Hannah
Any Toni Morrison
Frankestin by Mary Shelly
Pachinko by min Jin Lee
Monstrillo by Cordova
I like the Cal Hooper series by Tana French A LOT!
Some of my faves by women or just books I quite enjoyed
The Secret History
If We Were Villains
Normal People
The Vanishing Half
How To Build A Girl
The Handmaids Tale & The Testaments
I recently read A Thousand Acres by Jane Smiley and it blew me away, very much recommend
Parable of the Sower – Octavia Butler – speculative fiction, very important for today. Maybe even prescient.
Earthsea series – Ursula K Le Guin – wizard fantasy. SLAAAPS.
Broken Earth Trilogy – NK Jemisin – scifi/fantasy about a broken future. Soooo good
I’m a man, and just finished *The Goldfinch* by Donna Tartt. It was fantastic.
Here’s some of my favourites. A little bit of everything genre wise
Foster / Small Things Like These – Claire Keegan
The Secret History / The Goldfinch – Donna Tartt
Babel – R. F. Kuang
The Haunting of Hill House – Shirley Jackson
The Hounding – Xenobe Purvis
I Who Have Never Known Men – Jacqueline Harpman
Frankenstein – Mary Shelley
The Frozen River by Ariel Lawhon
I Who Have Never Known Men by Jacqueline Harpman
Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil by V.E. Schwab
Three Bags Full by Leonie Swann
This exact request for suggestions comes up a lot. I think that’s what saddens me. People are completely disregarding women’s works and obviously a lot aren’t even aware they’re doing it.
Why not give Annie Hartnett a try. I just listened to A Road To Tender Hearts last week, great book. I’m going to seek out her other books.
Now, unrelated to an actual book suggestion but this is something I suggest you do. When you read to your daughter if you talk about the story you’re reading and it’s got characters that don’t specify they’re male don’t just go all in with “look what HE is doing.” “Where do you think HE is going?” because it’s something that most people do. (Unfortunately I don’t have a source for this but I read an article that claimed something like 85% of the time the person reading to the child defaults to making the characters male)
The Calculating Stars series by Mary Robinette Kowal.
Anything by Octavia Butler
My Antonia by Willa Cather
As a dad I think you’d enjoy ‘Fleishman is in trouble’ – my husband loved the TV series (doesn’t have time to read sadly). It’s about a father of young children, recently separated, under pressure at work, whose wife goes missing.
Some of my fav:
Not Quite Dead Yet by Holly Jackson – thriller: a girl is smashed in the head and want to solve her own murder before the anevrism killed her
I want to die but I want to eat tteokbokki by Baek Se Hee – memoir: the author talks about her mental health and transcript her therapy session
The Tamìr Triad (trilogy) by Lynn Flewelling – hard fantasy: in Skala, a prophecy said that the country will only be successful if a woman weard the crown. To keep the throne, the king killed every female heir, expect one hidden by magic
The Invisible Life of Addie Larue by V.E Schwab ‘ fantasy: a young french girl in 1715 had a pact with the devil. She is immortal but nobody will ever remembered her. Except someone does in present day.
The Wall by Marlen Haushofer – meditative read. Woman goes on a cabin vacation and it turns into an isolated survivalist (+ dog) situation but is primarily calm. She has to let go of her whole way of thinking/perspective as it no longer applies to her new life, which is still vibrant in a way.
For a classic option I would submit Wuthering Heights by Brontë. It has everything: haunted landscape, sweeping nature, man driven by vengeance, angst, generational trauma, ghosts, unreliable narrator, petty behavior, drunken violence, bumbling men, horses, redemption (?)
Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver
The Ten Thousand Doors of January by Alix E. Harrow
The Murderbot Diaries (7 book series – so far) by Martha Wells
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot
Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead by Olga Tokarczuk
Tons of good books by Agatha Christie
Lots of good books by Connie Willis (check out the two All Clear books)
Piranesi by Susanna Clarke
Becky Chambers has written some popular ones, but I like her earlier works better
T. Kingfisher aka Ursula Vernon
Fire of the Dark Triad by Asya Semenovich
Verity by Colleen Hoover
Margaret Weis is pretty famous for her fantasy
I who have never known men
Can’t go wrong with Ursula K LeGuin