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A Diverse List of 500+ Books by Women

Books by women across time and from around the world with a limit of one book per author. The list contains classics, popular books, obscure books and focuses on adult novels and memoirs but also contains poetry, essays, some children's classics, and more. Books are listed alphabetically by author (family name or pseudonym when used) as best I could (apologies for any mistakes) with anthologies at the end. The list is sure to contain books you have already read and my hope is it may inspire future reads — I certainly added to my own to-be-read list while compiling!
Edit: "Border Town" should not be on this list as Shen Congwen is male.
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1,568 users · 18,500 views
 
made by ErinM31
avg. score: 32 of 512 (6%)
required scores: 1, 13, 24, 34, 46 
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High Tide (Inga Ābele)
High Tide
1
Inga Ābele
A Bridge Through Time (Laila Abou-Saif)
A Bridge Through Time
2
Laila Abou-Saif
Lyrics Alley (Leila Aboulela)
Lyrics Alley
3
Leila Aboulela
Stay With Me (Ayọ̀bámi Adébáyọ̀)
Stay With Me
4
Ayọ̀bámi Adébáyọ̀
Half of a Yellow Sun (Chimamanda Ngozi Achibie)
Half of a Yellow Sun
5
Chimamanda Ngozi Achibie
Pitch Dark (Renata Adler)
Pitch Dark
6
Renata Adler
Changes (Ama Ata Aidoo)
Changes
7
Ama Ata Aidoo
The Complete Poems of Anna Akhmatova (Anna Akhmatova)
The Complete Poems of Anna Akhmatova
8
Anna Akhmatova
Women of Sand and Myrrh (Hanan Al-Shaykh)
Women of Sand and Myrrh
9
Hanan Al-Shaykh
The Open Door (Latifa Al-Zayyat)
The Open Door
10
Latifa Al-Zayyat
Little Women (Louisa May Alcott)
Little Women
11
Louisa May Alcott
A Woman (Sibilla Aleramo)
A Woman
12
Sibilla Aleramo
Indian Love Poems (Meena Alexander)
Indian Love Poems
13
Meena Alexander
The Unwomanly Face of War (Svetlana Alexievich)
The Unwomanly Face of War
14
Svetlana Alexievich
Celestial Bodies (Jokha Alharthi)
Celestial Bodies
15
Jokha Alharthi
Infidel (Ayaan Hirsi Ali)
Infidel
16
Ayaan Hirsi Ali
Brick Lane (Monica Ali)
Brick Lane
17
Monica Ali
The House of the Spirits (Isabel Allende)
The House of the Spirits
18
Isabel Allende
Girls of Riyadh (Rajaa Alsanea)
Girls of Riyadh
19
Rajaa Alsanea
In the Time of the Butterflies (Julia Alvarez)
In the Time of the Butterflies
20
Julia Alvarez
The Blood of Flowers (Anita Amirrezvani)
The Blood of Flowers
21
Anita Amirrezvani
The Purple Violet of Oshaantu (Neshani Andreas)
The Purple Violet of Oshaantu
22
Neshani Andreas
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings (Maya Angelou)
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings
23
Maya Angelou
The Last Brother (Nathacha Appanah)
The Last Brother
24
Nathacha Appanah
Asunder (Chloe Aridjis)
Asunder
25
Chloe Aridjis
The Travelling Cat Chronicles (Hiro Arikawa)
The Travelling Cat Chronicles
26
Hiro Arikawa
The Doctor's Wife (Sawako Ariyoshi)
The Doctor's Wife
27
Sawako Ariyoshi
Blue Lorries (Radwa Ashour)
Blue Lorries
28
Radwa Ashour
Life After Life (Kate Atkinson)
Life After Life
29
Kate Atkinson
Swallow (Sefi Atta)
Swallow
30
Sefi Atta
The Handmaid's Tale (Margaret Atwood)
The Handmaid's Tale
31
Margaret Atwood
Letters From Burma (Aung San Suu Kyi)
Letters From Burma
32
Aung San Suu Kyi
Pride and Prejudice (Jane Austen)
Pride and Prejudice
33
Jane Austen
Tahuri (Ngahuia Te Awekotuku)
Tahuri
34
Ngahuia Te Awekotuku
The Queue (Basma Abdel Aziz)
The Queue
35
Basma Abdel Aziz
So Long a Letter (Mariama Bâ, Trans. Modupé Bodé-Thomas)
So Long a Letter
36
Mariama Bâ, Trans. Modupé Bodé-Thomas
Whose Names Are Unknown (Sanora Babb)
Whose Names Are Unknown
37
Sanora Babb
Tropical Fish: Tales From Entebbe (Doreen Baingana)
Tropical Fish: Tales From Entebbe
38
Doreen Baingana
Patchwork (Ellen Banda-Aaku)
Patchwork
39
Ellen Banda-Aaku
Artemisia (Anna Banti)
Artemisia
40
Anna Banti
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