[dropcap]I[/dropcap]n a time where news for women are all but happy, turn off your t.v. and open some of these books. Trust me, these are five books you must read before you die:
The Handmaid’s Tale – Margaret Atwood
Main Character Offred lives the life of a Handmaid, a fertile woman acting as a “concubine” to the upper classes in order to maintain a declining population. Set in a totalitarian theocracy, a dystopia which alludes to 17th century puritan Massachusetts, it explores the themes of freedom and the use of women’s bodies for political tools.
Memorable Quotes: “Don’t let the bastards grind you down.” , “Ignoring isn’t the same as ignorance, you have to work at it.”
Wild Swans: The Three Daughters of China – Jung Chang
This masterpiece tells the tale of three generations of women in a Chinese family, taking the reader through 20th century china, from the resigning of emperor Puyi in 1905 to Mao Zedong’s death in the 70s. Based on a true story, it gives a rare glimpse into female life in 20th century china and the struggles of a grandmother, a mother, and a daughter to make it through each in their own circumstances.
Memorable quotes: “If you have love, even plain cold water is sweet.”, “When a man gets power, even his chickens and dogs rise to heaven.”, “Father is close, Mother is close, but neither is as close as Chairman Mao.”
The Underground Railroad – Colson Whitehead
The chosen book for Oprah’s famous bookclub, The Underground Railroad is the story of a young slave named Cora, striving to run away from a cruel plantation in Georgia. In this novel, the “Underground Railroad” (historically a system of safe houses and secret routes which aided slaves in their escape) takes on the life or a real railroad, where trains are a window for freedom. Cora experiences different types racism and cruelty in all states she travels, as she tries to find the meaning of true freedom. Warning: this book contains violent and graphic scenes, the terrors of the cruelty faced by African-Americans in the pre-civil war era most definitely comes to life.
Memorable Quotes: “Slavery is a sin when whites were put to the yoke, but not the African. All men are created equal, unless we decide you are not a man.”, “Cora didn’t know what optimistic meant. She asked the other girls that night if they were familiar with the word. None of them had heard it before. She decided that it meant trying.”
The Scarlet Letter – Nathaniel Hawthorne
An all-American classic published in 19850. The Scarlet Letter depicts Hester Prynne’s punishment in Puritan New England after being branded an adulteress, forced to wear a scarlet letter upon her bosom. Despite her circumstances, the Hester is incapable of giving up, and takes on her punishment with bravery, dignity and a fervency for independence. The novel explores the idea of “sin” and the differencing of gender roles in a traditional framework, as well as defining “what is truly evil”. Hester Prynne is without a doubt America’s first epic heroine.
Memorable Quotes: “She had not known the weight until she felt the freedom.”, “Love, whether newly born or aroused from a deathlike slumber, must always create sunshine, filling the heart so full of radiance, that it overflows upon the outward world.”
The Help – Kathryn Stockett
Set in 1960’s Jackson, Mississippi, The Help follows of a white woman attempting to write about the lives of black maids living in the south. The book not only explores the ambitions of a group of women, with Skeeter attempting to break from the traditional gender roles set forth to her by going to college and becoming a writer, instead of a housewife, the book focuses on the lives of black women specifically. On their position in the households they work, facing outright racism and discrimination on a daily basis, striving to find a way to voice their struggles without facing the violence perpetrated by white supremacists. Despite the novel’s heavy subject matter, it contains memorable moments of laughter and humor, shining a spotlight on leis lively and resilient characters.
Memorable Quotes: “Ever morning, until you dead in the ground, you gone have to make this decision. You gone have to ask yourself, “Am I gone believe what them fools say about me today?” , “I always thought insanity would be a dark, bitter feeling, but it is drenching and delicious if you really roll around in it.”, “All I’m saying is, kindness don’t have no boundaries.”
Little Women – Louisa May Alcott
Little Women follows the March Daughters – Jo, Amy, Beth and Meg – in their journey from curious and playful girls to intelligent and outspoken young women. Set in Massachusetts around the time of the Civil War, it explores women’s struggle with their family duties, becoming a mother and wife, and their own other personal aspirations. Moreover, It touches upon the danger of stereotyping roles, a book ahead of its time, with a main character who writes and is proud of her passion beyond any stereotypes in her time prohibiting her to work.
Memorable Quotes: “I am not afraid of storms, for I am learning how to sail my ship.”, “Have regular hours for work and play; make each day both useful and pleasant, and prove that you understand the worth of time by employing it well. Then youth will bring few regrets, and life will become a beautiful success.”
