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Good Housekeeping 100 Best Books to Read by Women Authors

There have been many lists of the 100 best books to read, but few focusing solely on female writers. For a long time, women were excluded from the literary canon and many were forced to use male pseudonyms in order to be published. We're lucky to live in a time where there is space for women to be published but literary prizes are still dominated by male writers. Women's writing is often dismissed as light, frivolous or 'domestic'.
From gripping works of fiction to literary classics, this list of 100 books to read by women was selected by the Good Housekeeping team and shows that women's writing is complex, brilliant, moving, innovative – everything the best writing should be. Let us know how many of these books you've read and join in the conversation in the online Good Housekeeping Book Room (https://www.facebook.com/groups/GoodHousekeepingBookRoom).
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A Little Life (Hanya Yanagihara)
A Little Life
1
Hanya Yanagihara
Pride and Prejudice (Jane Austen)
Pride and Prejudice
2
Jane Austen
Normal People (Sally Rooney)
Normal People
3
Sally Rooney
Wuthering Heights (Emily Bronte)
Wuthering Heights
4
Emily Bronte
Girl, Woman, Other (Bernardine Evaristo)
Girl, Woman, Other
5
Bernardine Evaristo
Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine (Gail Honeyman)
Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine
6
Gail Honeyman
Queenie (Candice Carty-Williams)
Queenie
7
Candice Carty-Williams
Little Women (Louisa May Alcott)
Little Women
8
Louisa May Alcott
My Brilliant Friend (Elena Ferrante)
My Brilliant Friend
9
Elena Ferrante
Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit (Jeanette Winterson)
Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit
10
Jeanette Winterson
The Color Purple (Alice Walker)
The Color Purple
11
Alice Walker
White Teeth (Zadie Smith)
White Teeth
12
Zadie Smith
To Kill a Mockingbird (Harper Lee)
To Kill a Mockingbird
13
Harper Lee
Noughts & Crosses (Malorie Blackman)
Noughts & Crosses
14
Malorie Blackman
Heartburn (Nora Ephron)
Heartburn
15
Nora Ephron
Swimming Home (Deborah Levy)
Swimming Home
16
Deborah Levy
Wolf Hall (Hilary Mantel)
Wolf Hall
17
Hilary Mantel
Bel Canto (Ann Pratchett)
Bel Canto
18
Ann Pratchett
The Handmaid's Tale (Margaret Atwood)
The Handmaid's Tale
19
Margaret Atwood
Selected Stories 1 and 2 (Alice Munro)
Selected Stories 1 and 2
20
Alice Munro
The Power (Naomi Alderman)
The Power
21
Naomi Alderman
I Capture the Castle (Dodie Smith)
I Capture the Castle
22
Dodie Smith
City of Girls (Elizabeth Gilbert)
City of Girls
23
Elizabeth Gilbert
The Five (Hallie Rubenhold)
The Five
24
Hallie Rubenhold
The Secret History (Donna Tartt)
The Secret History
25
Donna Tartt
Trans (Juliet Jacques)
Trans
26
Juliet Jacques
Jane Eyre (Charlotte Brontë)
Jane Eyre
27
Charlotte Brontë
The Street (Ann Petry)
The Street
28
Ann Petry
Mrs Dalloway (Virginia Woolf)
Mrs Dalloway
29
Virginia Woolf
The Lowland (Jhumpa Lahiri)
The Lowland
30
Jhumpa Lahiri
The Luminaries (Eleanor Catton)
The Luminaries
31
Eleanor Catton
Half of a Yellow Sun (Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie)
Half of a Yellow Sun
32
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Five Steps to Happy (Ella Dove)
Five Steps to Happy
33
Ella Dove
Middlemarch (George Eliot)
Middlemarch
34
George Eliot
Their Eyes Were Watching God (Zora Neale Hurston)
Their Eyes Were Watching God
35
Zora Neale Hurston
Gone With the Wind (Margaret Mitchell)
Gone With the Wind
36
Margaret Mitchell
Persepolis (Marjane Satrapi)
Persepolis
37
Marjane Satrapi
And Then There Were None (Agatha Christie)
And Then There Were None
38
Agatha Christie
Brick Lane (Monica Ali)
Brick Lane
39
Monica Ali
How to Be Both (Ali Smith)
How to Be Both
40
Ali Smith
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