‘Feminism’ can sometimes seem like a bit of a daunting concept, especially with people throwing it around online like the current buzzword that it is.
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Truthfully, feminism is a school of thought, which entertains different angles and different ideas, and with like any idea, it can take a while to discover how you feel about it.
There might be aspects you agree with, or see with a different perspective, and the best way to figure this out is jumping right into the deep end and reading as much as you can about the topic.
Here are our top five favourite reads when it comes to learning about what feminism really is.
Women Don’t Owe You Pretty, $24.75, from Booktopia
Women Don’t Owe You Pretty was written by British influencer Florence Given, who is a strong advocate for feminism, LGBTIQA+ rights and representation, and for women embracing life and living unapologetically. It came out last year, making it one of the most successful books in the genre at the moment. Florence is also an illustrator, and the book is littered with her gorgeous drawings of women.
Fight Like a Girl, $19.35, from Booktopia
Clementine Ford is one of Australia’s most unapologetic women, and her writing is no different! She’s written two books so far, Fight Like a Girl and Boys Will Be Boys, which are both excellent, but we definitely recommend the former as a little ‘intro to feminism’ read. Clementine uses both personal anecdotes and research to explain to readers why we need feminism to move forward as an equal society.
White Tears, Brown Scars, $26.90, from Booktopia
Australian writer Ruby Hamad wrote White Tears, Brown Scars in response to the privilege white women experience that Women of Colour generally don’t. Full of confronting and inconvenient truths about our relationship with racism, this book is definitely an eye-opener.
We Should All Be Feminists, $16.35, from Booktopia
Based on a 2017 TED Talk, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie adapted her speech into We Should All Be Feminists, a small book on what feminism means today. Chimamanda argues that feminism in this century should be rooted in inclusion and awareness. This is a short read that won’t take you too long, serving as a great intro into feminism.
Bad Feminist, $24.75, from Booktopia
Roxane Gay’s Bad Feminist came out in 2014, but still stands as a solid and helpful read today! This series of essays reassures us that no one can really ‘do feminism’ perfectly, and that it’s okay to be a bad feminism. Roxane unpacks a lot in her book, but the core idea still stands – it’s okay to be a feminist who enjoys feminine things!
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