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87 Books by Women You Should Read Before You Die

"Without women, some pretty amazing things wouldn't exist. Book-lovers know best that women have changed the world in so many important ways — oftentimes, with their words. We've rounded up more than 80 novels, essays, poem collections, and memoirs written by female writers. Everyone should read these literary works in their lifetimes."
Do you agree with these choices? How many of them have you read?
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On Beauty (Zadie Smith)
On Beauty
1
Zadie Smith
Americanah (Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie)
Americanah
2
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
The Goldfinch (Donna Tartt)
The Goldfinch
3
Donna Tartt
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings (Maya Angelou)
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings
4
Maya Angelou
Jane Eyre (Charlotte Brontë)
Jane Eyre
5
Charlotte Brontë
The Diary of a Young Girl (Anne Frank)
The Diary of a Young Girl
6
Anne Frank
The Color Purple (Alice Walker)
The Color Purple
7
Alice Walker
The House of the Spirits (Isabel Allende)
The House of the Spirits
8
Isabel Allende
Frankenstein (Mary Shelley)
Frankenstein
9
Mary Shelley
Zami: A New Spelling of My Name (Audre Lorde)
Zami: A New Spelling of My Name
10
Audre Lorde
Howl's Moving Castle (Diana Wynne Jones)
Howl's Moving Castle
11
Diana Wynne Jones
The Well of Loneliness (Radclyffe Hall)
The Well of Loneliness
12
Radclyffe Hall
Wuthering Heights (Emily Brontë)
Wuthering Heights
13
Emily Brontë
The Tale of Genji (Murasaki Shikibu)
The Tale of Genji
14
Murasaki Shikibu
The House on Mango Street (Sandra Cisneros)
The House on Mango Street
15
Sandra Cisneros
The Handmaid's Tale (Margaret Atwood)
The Handmaid's Tale
16
Margaret Atwood
Wide Sargasso Sea (Jean Rhys)
Wide Sargasso Sea
17
Jean Rhys
Tipping the Velvet (Sarah Waters)
Tipping the Velvet
18
Sarah Waters
A Tale for the Time Being (Ruth Ozeki)
A Tale for the Time Being
19
Ruth Ozeki
Little House in the Big Woods (Laura Ingalls Wilder)
Little House in the Big Woods
20
Laura Ingalls Wilder
The Joy Luck Club (Amy Tan)
The Joy Luck Club
21
Amy Tan
We Should All Be Feminists (Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie)
We Should All Be Feminists
22
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
The Bell Jar (Sylvia Plath)
The Bell Jar
23
Sylvia Plath
A Room of One's Own (Virginia Woolf)
A Room of One's Own
24
Virginia Woolf
The Golden Notebook (Doris Lessing)
The Golden Notebook
25
Doris Lessing
The Mandarins (Simone De Beauvoir)
The Mandarins
26
Simone De Beauvoir
The Year of Magical Thinking (Joan Didion)
The Year of Magical Thinking
27
Joan Didion
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (J.K. Rowling)
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
28
J.K. Rowling
The Second Sex (Simone De Beauvoir)
The Second Sex
29
Simone De Beauvoir
Outlander (Diana Gabaldon)
Outlander
30
Diana Gabaldon
The Feminine Mystique (Betty Friedan)
The Feminine Mystique
31
Betty Friedan
The Namesake (Jhumpa Lahiri)
The Namesake
32
Jhumpa Lahiri
Anne of Green Gables (L.M. Montgomery)
Anne of Green Gables
33
L.M. Montgomery
The Glass Castle (Jeannette Walls)
The Glass Castle
34
Jeannette Walls
Atlas Shrugged (Ayn Rand)
Atlas Shrugged
35
Ayn Rand
Ain't I a Woman: Black Women and Feminism (Bell Hooks)
Ain't I a Woman: Black Women and Feminism
36
Bell Hooks
The Hunger Games (Suzanne Collins)
The Hunger Games
37
Suzanne Collins
The Yearling (Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings)
The Yearling
38
Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings
My Sister's Keeper (Jodi Picoult)
My Sister's Keeper
39
Jodi Picoult
To Kill a Mockingbird (Harper Lee)
To Kill a Mockingbird
40
Harper Lee
Page 1 of 3
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