Turn The Page: 12 Books By Women, For Women You Must Read This Summer
Search online for “women’s leadership books,” and the first four books that pop up are by men. Search again with the keywords “women business books” and you get offers for dozens of daily bound planners. And does anyone really use those anymore?
Sigh.
So Take The Lead took the lead on finding the best inspirational books for you to read this summer.
No, they are not fictional dives into fantasy. These are titles chosen because they address issues we all can face― from overcoming challenges to discovering purpose. Some are out now, some out soon, so keep this alphabetical list handy for summer and fall reading.
Lead From Any Seat: 10 Ways to Get More Involved in Your Job, Make a Lasting Impact, and Advance Your Career Fast by Andrei Anca. You can lead as an intern or a CEO. Leadership is about more than your title, it is about how to be effective and create change in yourself and the workplace, regardless of the level or stage in your career.
Earn It!: Know Your Value and Grow Your Career, in Your 20s and Beyond Kindle Edition by Mika Brzezinski with Daniela Pierre-Bravo. I don’t know anyone who doesn’t need this book. Filled with advice on how to get what you deserve with pointers on salary negotiation and more, the author of several books and the co-host of MSNBC’s “Morning Joe,” Brzezinski pairs with her producer to put forth this bible of money making wisdom.
Time Is the Thing a Body Moves Through by T Fleischmann. Called “poetic, powerful and subversive,” this is a long-form essay on pushing the boundaries and exploring life through art, identity and community.
Everything Is Figureoutable by Marie Forleo. Her mother told her she could figure it all out, so this entrepreneur is going to help you do just that. The creator of MarieTV, with over 47 million views, and host of The Marie Forleo Podcast, translates the lessons of B-School into guides to getting to where you want to be.
The Moment of Lift: How Empowering Women Changes the World Hardcoverby Melinda Gates. Yes, she is the wife of Bill Gates, but she is also the co-founder of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and a fierce philanthropist and entrepreneur. This book is not a how to succeed or how to marry well, but about how to listen and learn. Gates writes, “These are lessons I’ve learned from the extraordinary people I want you to meet. Some will make your heart break. Some will make your heart soar.”
The Memo: What Women of Color Need to Know to Secure a Seat at the Tableby Minda Harts. Successful entrepreneur and CEO of The Memo, and creator of the p odcast #SecureThe Seat, Harts delivers a no-holds barred guide to not only getting a seat at the table, but keeping it and speaking up while in it. She explains how challenges are real and what to do about them, and how building allies can help, as well as straightforward strategies to succeed.
Check out Minda Harts on Take The Lead’s Virtual Happy Hour.
Broken Places & Outer Spaces: Finding Creativity in the Unexpected by Nnedi Okorafor. In her new memoir, this science fiction author talks about finding space for creativity, even after paralysis and severe limitations. She is inspiring, pragmatic and uplifting.
My Seditious Heart: Collected Nonfiction By Arundhati Roy. This may take you all summer, at 1,000 pages and counting. The award-winning author of two novels and five earlier works of nonfiction, Roy probes history, globalism and scores of other subjects with penetrating insight. If you like to put the global landscape in context, here you go.
The Beautiful No: And Other Tales of Trial, Transcendence, and Transformation by Sheri Salata. The former Oprah executive producer shares her story about how she changed her life and overcame challenges, so that you can too. Formerly co-president of Harpo Studios and OWN, the Oprah Winfrey Network, Salata was named one of Fast Company’s 100 Most Creative People in Business, The Hollywood Reporter’s Women in Entertainment Power 100.
Do It Scared: Finding the Courage to Face Your Fears, Overcome Adversity, and Create a Life You Love by Ruth Soukup. For anyone who has ever felt paralyzed or even just a little stifled by fear, this book promised to help by having you identify your Fear Archetype™ and learn how to overcome it. She writes of creating your own Principles of Courage that will help you get to where you want to be.
Trick Mirror: Reflections on Self-Delusion, by Jia Tolentino. In her first essay collection, the New Yorker writer covers a range of topics in popular culture that touch on identity, politics and more. Not only is she a masterful writer, she has keen insights worth exploring.
Wolfpack: How to Come Together, Unleash Our Power, and Change the Gameby Abby Wambach. Outspoken, brave and bold, the Olympic gold medalist, FIFA World Cup Champion, activist and co-founder of Wolfpack Endeavor, sets out to explain how women can be leaders and succeed at work beyond sports and everywhere.
The Path Made Clear: Discovering Your Life’s Direction and Purpose by Oprah Winfrey. If you can’t get enough of Oprah even after reading O magazine each month, or seeing her on OWN, you may want to check out her advice on finding your purpose, or why you do what you do. She’s done pretty well herself on that front, so what she has to offer has got to be good.
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