As March kicks off, so does a month-long celebration and appreciation of women's accomplishments throughout history. What better way to honor it all than to find your next favorite book. I know that doesn't really make sense, but these books in particular are practically made for the month at hand. I've gathered up 25 novels that I've read over the years that capture both the strength and complexities of womanhood. Again, I've stayed solely in the Young Adult contemporary genre and don't ever repeat titles, so if you don't see what you're looking for here, feel free to check other lists. Happy reading! (Update: I've tried my best to add trigger warnings to all the books that I remember deal with sensitive topics at some point. I'm sure I forgot some though, so please make sure to look the book up if you're concerned before reading)
1. "Moxie" by Jennifer Mathieu
Why you should read: A teen is inspired by her mom to start a feminist magazine at her high school with the help of other girls (The movie is out on Netflix on Wednesday!!)
2. "The Life and Medieval Times of Kit Sweetly" by Jamie Pacton
Why you should read: Tired of being a serving wench at the medieval-themed restaurant she works at, a girl decides to break from tradition and become a knight, even if her boss doesn't like it.
3. "Gimme Everything You Got" by Iva-Marie Palmer
Why you should read: In 1979, a high school starts its 1st girl's soccer team, and the girls go from crushing on the young coach to loving the sport and working together as a team.
4. "The Burning" by Laura Bates
Why you should read: After having to transfer schools from a bullying incident, a girl does a project on a woman accused of witchcraft and notices some similarities to her real life.
5. "Six Angry Girls" by Adrienne Kisner
Why you should read: A group of girls ban together to start a mock trial team to go against the current sexist one at their school.
6. "The Feminist Agenda of Jemima Kincaid" by Kate Hattemer
Why you should read: Our main character wants to use her new position in school to change some of the old traditions like prom, but things still go astray even with the changes.
7. "Go with the Flow" by Lily Williams & Karen Schneemann
Why you should read: Some friends decide to take on their school administration about the lack of period products in the bathrooms and help raise awareness about menstruation in the process.
8. "My Eyes Are Up Here" by Laura Zimmermann
Why you should read: A girl who has never been comfortable in her own skin, especially with her much larger than normal boobs, tries new things and learns to accept her body.
9. "Suggested Reading" by Dave Connis
Why you should read: Our main character starts a secret library of her own, when she discovers her school is banning dozens of important pieces of literature.
10. "What Kind of Girl" by Alyssa Sheinmel (TW: domestic violence)
Why you should read: A powerful story about a teen girl being brave enough to tell her school administration that her boyfriend is abusing her and the unfortunate way her peers chose sides.
11. "Watch Us Rise" by Renée Watson & Ellen Hagan
Why you should read: Some talented friends begin a Women's Rights Club at their school and post their work online, which obviously leads to haters surfacing and trying to bring them down.
12. "Speak: The Graphic Novel" by Laurie Halse Anderson & Emily Carroll (TW: sexual assault)
Why you should read: This novel dives deep into the discussion of sexual assault, when a freshman girl is raped by an upperclassman at a party.
13. "On The Come Up" by Angie Thomas
Why you should read: A teen girl tries to chase her dreams of becoming a rapper amidst many trials and tribulations.
14. "All-American Muslim Girl" by Nadine Jolie Courtney
Why you should read: A Muslim girl faces Islamophobia head on when the guy she's dating turns out to have a well-known bigot as a father.
15. "Grown" by Tiffany D. Jackson (TW: grooming, sexual assault)
Why you should read: Our teenage main character dreams of being a singer and is thrilled when she's given attention from a big name celebrity. However, things quickly escalate when the man grooms her, and they enter into a relationship.
16. "Unscripted" by Nicole Kronzer (TW: grooming, sexual assault)
Why you should read: Our main character is one of the only girls at her improv camp and has to deal with the toxic masculinity along with a predatory coach.
17. "Dumplin'" by Julie Murphy
Why you should read: You may have heard of the Netflix film, but the book is super good too! It's about a plus-size teen who gets a group of girls to enter the local beauty pageant to spite her perfect mother.
18. "The Poet X" by Elizabeth Acevedo
Why you should read: A girl with strict parents learns how to use her voice through poetry.
19. "The Exact Opposite of Okay" by Laura Steven
Why you should read: A girl becomes not only a local pariah but a national one, when photos are leaked online of her getting intimate with a politician's son.
20. "The List"- Siobhan Vivian
Why you should read: This book's high school has an annual list of the prettiest and ugliest girls in each grade, and we get to see how they react to it all.
21. "Things Jolie Needs to Do Before She Bites It" by Kerry Winfrey
Why you should read: A girl with a severe underbite has lived her life uncomfortable with her body and decides to live adventurously before having surgery to fix it; along the way, she learns to love herself and her smile.
22. "Trinkets" by Kristen Smith (TW: addiction)
Why you should read: Just like the Netflix show, this book explores the power of female friendship as 3 girls from different social groups go to shoplifters anonymous meetings together.
23. "This Will Be Funny Someday" by Katie Henry
Why you should read: This mega funny novel takes the protagonist on a journey of learning to speak up for herself when she discovers she enjoys doing stand-up comedy- a male dominated field.
24. "The Good Girls" by Claire Eliza Bartlett (TW: sexual assault)
Why you should read: There's a murder in town, and the main suspects are 3 girls from drastically different social circles. I can't say anything more, because I don't want to spoil it too much; however, there's some revenge at play.
25. "Cold Day in the Sun" by Sara Biren
Why you should read: Our main character is the only girl on the hockey team and has to deal with toxic masculinity and proving herself to be a good athlete while falling for one of the guys.
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