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5 Female Authors I Adore

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In the wider book industry, female authors often get overlooked so it is super important to support them as much as possible. I thought I would compile a list of some of my favourite female authors today. They all write books that feature either feminism or female characters who stand out as being realistic and passionate.

Louise O’Neill – Only Ever Yours and Asking For It

Louise is one of the biggest YA talents out there at the moment and with the recent announcement that she’s been signed to write two adult books for Quercus, I’m really excited to read her future books. Only Ever Yours has earned Louise comparisons to the likes of Margaret Atwood, which is no mean feat, and it is set in a dystopian future where girls are genetically engineered to be perfect. They are then raised to please the men of this fictional world, which leads you to question our own society and just how far away the world in Only Ever Yours is from ours.

Asking For it deals with the subject of rape and consent. It’s extremely harrowing and a must-read for people of all ages. It draws attention to what it’s like to be a woman in the digital age and, although I didn’t love every second of reading it, I came away knowing just how important the book is.

Holly Bourne – Soulmates, The Manifesto On How to Be Interesting, Am I Normal Yet?

I read Soulmates a few years ago and fell in love with it. Each page gripped me and I couldn’t put it down. Since then, I’ve become a huge fan of Holly’s and she is one of the loveliest people you could wish to meet. It makes me very happy to see her books doing so well!

The book that I could talk all day about is Am I Normal Yet?. The first in a new series, it tells the story of a girl recovering from OCD and anxiety, and her journey as she tries to fit in and be “normal”. The best part of it for me was the feminist group that Evie and her two friends set up. It allows younger readers to test the waters of feminism without it being forced on them and it’s a book that I’ll be recommending to everyone. Continue Reading

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Top 5 Feminist YA by Holly Bourne, author of Am I Normal Yet?

42 Am I Normal Yet - Front cover

 

 

 

Am I Normal Yet? is the first book in a trilogy about a group of girls who set up their own feminist campaign group called ‘The Spinster Club’. I think YA gets a bad rep when it comes to feminism. So many people keep bleating out the dreaded words ‘Bella’ and ‘Swan’ – like Twilight isn’t a) TEN years old, and b) Not the only YA book out there. In fact, YA have LOADS of incredibly feminist books, and here are my top 5.

1) The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks by E. Lockhart

Most people know E C Lockhart for her haunting We Were Liars, but I have to say I actually preferred this book. Frankie is very much in love with her new boyfriend, but she can’t understand why she isn’t allowed into his secret boys-only club at their top private school. So she infiltrates it…

Why it rocks:
Frankie is the very definition of ‘kick-ass’ – you spend the entire book wishing you could be her. This book has incredible insight into the thirst of power, the complexities and contradictions of being a teen feminist who also wants a boyfriend. A top-notch quirky teen feminism manifesto!

Favourite quote: “It is better to be alone, she figures, than to be with someone who can’t see who you are. It is better to lead than to follow. It is better to speak up than stay silent. It is better to open doors than to shut them on people.”

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