This Monday is Women's Equality Day, a commemoration instituted in 1971 to celebrate the certification of the 19th amendment back in 1920. That amendment—originally drafted by Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton in 1878—took more than 40 years of tireless work by the women's suffrage movement to get from writing to law.
As we celebrate the immense impact of those suffragettes, it is important to remember that the work they started is not yet complete. The modern women's movement continues to battle for full equality today and it is up to our generation to build upon the work of past leaders.
With that in mind, we compiled a few of our favorite works by a few of our favorite feisty female writers that we hope will inspire you. As Alice Walker said, "The most common way people give up their power is by thinking they don't have any."
Fear of Flying by Erica Jong
A literary sensation when first published in 1973, Fear of Flying established Erica Jong as one of her generation’s foremost voices on sex and feminism.
Outrageous Acts and Everyday Rebellions by Gloria Steinem
A bestselling first collection of humorous and insightful essays by a luminary of the women’s liberation movement.
The Ethics of Ambiguity by Simone de Beauvoir
In de Beauvoir’s second major essay, the renowned French philosopher illustrates the ethics of Existentialism by outlining a series of “ways of being.”
Female Friends by Fay Weldon
A smart novel that speaks for a generation of women struggling to find their place in a male-dominated world
The Erotic Silence of the American Wife by Dalma Heyn
Shocking and revelatory, The Erotic Silence of the American Wife is a groundbreaking guide to understanding marriage—and its unspoken effects on women’s and men’s relationships
Ahead of Time by Ruth Gruber
The early life and trailblazing career of one of the twentieth century’s most remarkable female journalists
Sex and the Single Girl by Helen Gurley Brown
A spirited manifesto that puts women—and what they want—first, capturing the exuberance, optimism, and independence that have characterized the lives of so many contemporary American women.
In Search of Our Mothers’ Gardens by Alice Walker
Walker’s collection of early nonfiction serves as the manifesto of a young artist—and an illuminating self-portrait
The Group by Mary McCarthy
Mary McCarthy’s bold and brilliant bestselling novel about the lives of eight upper-middle-class friends—an unabashed look at marriage, motherhood, career, and sexuality for women in interwar America.
Imperial Woman by Pearl S. Buck
Pearl S. Buck’s remarkable account of the life of Tzu Hsi, the magnetic and fierce-minded woman from humble origins who became China’s last empress
A Marriage Agreement and Other Essays by Alix Kates Shulman
Witty, stirring, and poignant, A Marriage Agreement and Other Essays illustrates how each generation, in Shulman’s words, “can do no more than add its bit to the endless river of consciousness and change.”
You Gotta Have Girlfriends by Suzanne Braun Levine
An inspiring and eye-opening affirmation of the power of female friendship in the second half of life.
Motherhood by Erma Bombeck
A look at one of the toughest jobs on earth, from the woman who perfectly captures life’s humor and heart.