Women’s History Month
Along with the first signs of warmer weather, March also brings Women’s History Month and International Women’s Day. One of the best ways to celebrate this month is by learning about and honoring women’s contributions throughout history. Women are responsible for some of the biggest contributions to our world and simultaneously have historically gone underappreciated, undervalued, or even unnoticed. Florence Nightingale, the founder of modern-day nursing and Nobel Prize winner Marie Curie are responsible for leagues of advancements in science and medicine. Katherine G. Johnson’s work in mathematics helped NASA send a man to the moon in 1969 and she unknowingly created the invisible string that would allow Dr. Mae C. Jemison to become the first African American woman to travel to space 23 years later. Benazir Bhutto and Indira Gandhi became the first female prime ministers of Pakistan and India, respectively.
From music and entertainment to medicine and politics, women have been making important waves in the world. Here at Scott County Public Library, we have hundreds, if not thousands, of books focusing on amazing women and their contributions to society throughout history. Whether you are looking for something for yourself or looking for a teaching tool, you’re sure to find something here at the library. Below is a list of some of our favorite books by age group to get you started!
Adult Picks:
Trailblazers: The Unmatched Story of Women’s Tennis by Billie Jean King: In celebration of the Women’s Tennis Association’s 50th anniversary, this updated and expanded edition based on the 1988 original We Have Come a Long Way: The Story of Women’s Tennis includes more than 250 photographs and 33 years’ worth of stories about inspiring women and their achievements. The book arrives 53 years after King and eight other women players broke with the male tennis establishment and launched their own professional tour. With this gorgeous, photographically forward, and deeply moving ode to women’s tennis, King and coauthor Cynthia Star will continue the remarkable story in which King has played such an integral role, shedding new light on barriers that were overcome and milestones that were achieved. Women’s tennis today has never been more popular across the globe and, as this book demonstrates, has never been more diverse and inclusive.
Fast Girls: A Novel of the 1936 Women’s Olympic Team by Elise Cooper: This novel explores the real-life history of female athletes, members of the first integrated women’s Olympic team, and their journeys to the 1936 summer games in Berlin, Nazi Germany. It is a chronicle of three athletes who defied society’s expectations of what women could achieve.
Teen Picks:
Women Who Won: 70 Extraordinary Women Who Reshaped Politics by Ros Ball: Women Who Won is a celebration of 70 women from the last 100 years: politicians from around the globe who fought for election in a man’s world… and won. Beautifully illustrated by artist Emmy Lupin, it features well-known figures, including Kamala Harris, Benazir Bhutto, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, Jacinda Ardern, and Julia Gillard, alongside lesser-known women whose stories are ready to be heard:
• Shidzue Katō, one of the first women elected to the Diet of Japan
• Yulia Tymoshenko, the first woman prime minister of Ukraine
• Shirley Chisholm, the first Black woman elected to the US Congress
• Peri-Khan Sofieva, the first democratically elected Muslim woman
• Ethel Blondin-Andrew, the first Indigenous woman elected to the Canadian parliament.
Women of the past, but also women of the present and future. Women who smashed the political glass ceiling. Women who fought to leave a positive legacy for future generations. Women who paved the way for girls of today to become women who won.
Gamer Girls: 25 Women Who Built the Video Game Industry by Mary Kenney: Discover the women behind the video games we love–the iconic games they created, the genres they invented, the studios and companies they built–and how they changed the industry forever. Women have always made video games, from the 1960s and the first-of-its-kind, projector-based Sumerian Game to the blockbuster Uncharted games that defined the early 2000s. Women have been behind the writing, design, scores, and engines that power one of the most influential industries out there. In Gamer Girls, now you can explore the stories of 25 of those women. Bursting with bold artwork, easy-to-read profiles, and real-life stories of the women working on games like Centipede, Final Fantasy, Halo, and more, this dynamic illustrated book shows what a huge role women have played–and will continue to play–in the creation of video games.
Youth Picks:
Women Discoverers: Top Women in Science by Marie Moinard: 20 women who made a difference in science are presented here. From Ada Lovelace (computing) to Marie Curie (Physics and Chemistry) these exceptional women enabled the world to advance in all fields of science including space exploration (Mae Jamison), telecommunications (the actress and genius discoverer Hedy Lamarr), and Biology (Rosalind Franklin). This book is an inspiration going counter to preconceived notions about women and science, presenting a diverse group from around the world.
Rad American Women A-Z by Kate Schatz: Like all A-Z books, this one illustrates the alphabet–but instead of “A is for Apple”, A is for Angela–as in Angela Davis, the iconic political activist. B is for Billie Jean King, who shattered the glass ceiling of sports; C is for Carol Burnett, who defied assumptions about women in comedy; D is for Dolores Huerta, who organized farmworkers; and E is for Ella Baker, who mentored Dr. Martin Luther King and helped shape the Civil Rights Movement. And the list of great women continues, spanning several centuries, multiple professions, and 26 diverse individuals. There are artists and abolitionists, scientists and suffragettes, rock stars and rabble-rousers, and agents of change of all kinds.
The book includes an introduction that discusses what it means to be “rad” and “radical,” an afterword with 26 suggestions for how you can be “rad,” and a Resource Guide with ideas for further learning and reading. American history was made by countless rad–and often radical–women. By offering a fresh and diverse array of female role models, we can remind readers that there are many places to find inspiration and that being smart, strong, and brave is rad.