Reads to Celebrate Women’s History Month

March 7, 2022

March is Women’s History Month, a celebration of the vital contributions and achievements of women in American history. Each year, the National Women’s History Alliance designates a theme, and this year’s is “Providing Healing, Promoting Hope.” As it says on their website, this theme is “both a tribute to the ceaseless work of caregivers and frontline works during this ongoing pandemic and a recognition of the thousands of ways that women of all cultures have provided both healing and hope throughout history.”

Throughout time, the world has been filled with incredible women! Check out MCPL’s Women’s History Page, and discover materials and resources to celebrate the fearless women that have, and will, inspire generations. And to get you started, here are a few great books about awe-inspiring women that I have enjoyed over the years:

The Woman They Could Not Silence by Kate Moore – In 1860, as the clash between the states rolls slowly to a boil, Elizabeth Packard, housewife and mother of six, is facing her own battle. The enemy sits across the table and sleeps in the next room. Her husband of 21 years is plotting against her because he feels increasingly threatened—by Elizabeth's intellect, independence, and unwillingness to stifle her own thoughts. So Theophilus makes a plan to put his wife back in her place. One summer morning, he has her committed to an insane asylum.
Life Undercover by Amaryllis Fox – A chronicle of an extraordinary life and of one woman's courage and passion, Life Undercover follows the author as she spends 10 years in the most elite clandestine ops unit of the CIA, hunting down the world's most dangerous terrorist while marrying and becoming a mother.
My Remarkable Journey by Katherine G. Johnson – In this memoir, Katherine shares her personal journey from child prodigy in the Allegheny Mountains of West Virginia, to becoming a “human computer” for NASA. In her life after retirement, she served as a beacon of light for her family and community alike. Her story is centered on the basic tenets of her life: no one is better than you, education is paramount, and asking questions can break barriers.
Smithsonian American Women (Smithsonian Institute, various contributors) – An inspiring and surprising celebration of U.S. women's history told through Smithsonian artifacts, illustrating women's participation in science, art, music, sports, fashion, business, religion, entertainment, military, politics, activism, and more. This book offers a unique, panoramic look at women's history in the United States through the lens of ordinary objects from, by, and for extraordinary women.