The Feminist Know-It-All: You know her. You can’t stand her. Good thing she’s not here! Instead, this column by gender and women’s studies librarian Karla Strand will amplify stories of the creation, access, use and preservation of knowledge by women and girls around the world; share innovative projects and initiatives that focus on information, literacies, libraries and more; and, of course, talk about all of the books.
Hello, feminist reader friends! Each month, I provide Ms. readers with a list of new books being published by writers from historically excluded groups. The aims of these lists are threefold:
- I want to do my part in the disruption of what has been the acceptable “norm” in the book world for far too long—white, cis, heterosexual, male;
- I want to amplify indie publishers and amazing works by writers who are women, Black, Indigenous, Latinx, APIA/AAPI, international, queer, trans, nonbinary, disabled, fat, immigrant, Muslim, neurodivergent, sex-positive or of other historically marginalized identities—you know, the rest of us; and
- I want to challenge and encourage you all to buy, borrow and read them!
In this column, I always spotlight the work and creativity of those who take a risk on writing. This month, it’s me! Well, me and 25+ other outstanding scholars and creatives who have contributed to a new book, Feminists Talk Whiteness, which will be published on Oct. 4 by Routledge.
Edited by Leigh-Anne Francis and Janet Gray, this volume explores how and why whiteness is a feminist issue through essays, poems, histories and more. Topics span lesbian studies, “Karens,” Frances Ellen Watkins Harper, colorism, allyship, shame, settler colonialism, and many more. Contributors include Ruby Hamad, Stephanie Andrea Allen, Anais Peterson, Denise Zubizarreta, Melissa K. Ochoa, and others whose pieces are thoughtful, creative, impeccably researched and accessibly written.
My chapter, “White Women’s Participation in the Attempted Genocide of Native American Peoples,” is an examination of the active roles white women played in abducting Native children and taking them to boarding schools in an attempt to force assimilation. In writing the piece, I attempted to disrupt my historical training and lean into Indigenous research praxes as much as possible. I focused on critically examining my own positionality while basing most of my research on oral histories, research, and personal essays by Native peoples.
I hope you’ll check it out! I’m so happy that an open-access version of the book is freely available under a Creative Commons license.
And now, on to this month’s list of 16 releases I’m excited about!
Immortal Dark
By Tigest Girma (@tigestgirma). Little, Brown Books for Young Readers. 432 pages. Out Sept. 3.
Tigest Girma has written the thrilling dark academia vampire romantasy of our dreams. Original and full-throated, this debut is fierce, mysterious, vengeful and so bloody good. Luckily for us, it’s the first in a new series, and the deluxe limited edition is beautiful!
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Under the Eye of the Big Bird: A Novel
Written by Hiromi Kawakami. Translated by Asa Yoneda. Soft Skull. 288 pages. Out Sept. 3.
This fascinating novel-in-translation is a dystopian and speculative fiction lover’s dream come true. Complex and original, Kawakami’s latest focuses on the end of humankind and hauntingly explores reproduction, love, technology, evolution and more.
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The Unfinished
By Cheryl Isaacs. Heartdrum. 336 pages. Out Sept. 3.
In her compelling debut, Cheryl Isaacs (Mohawk) writes tradition into horror with the talent of a seasoned veteran. Full of monsters and mystery, Isaacs centers her story on a high school athlete whose life is turned upside down after straying from the path as her elders warned her.
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We’re Alone: Essays
By Edwidge Danticat. Graywolf Press. 192 pages. Out Sept. 3.
The incomparable Edwidge Danticat has written this superlative collection of essays covering current events, Haiti, COVID-19, incidents in her own life, and more. With her signature presence, Danticat makes the personal universal and the universal personal with wisdom, grace and candid vulnerability.
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Where They Last Saw Her: A Novel
By Marcie R. Rendon (@marcierendon). Bantam. 336 pages. Out Sept. 3.
I love Marcie Rendon’s Cash Blackbear series, and her latest standalone novel is a hard-hitting and heartfelt examination of the epidemic of missing and murdered Indigenous women. Focused on family, visibility, trauma and bystander culture, this is not one I’ll forget soon.
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Reservoir Bitches: Stories
Written by Dahlia de la Cerda (@dahliadelacerda). Translated by Heather Cleary and Julia Sanches. The Feminist Press at CUNY. 160 pages. Out Sept. 10.
This debut by one of Mexico’s most exciting new writers is a cut-throat, no-holds-barred delight. Wickedly satirical and shockingly candid, these linked stories focus on 13 Mexican women who live (and die) in tradition, sexism, violence and power. I couldn’t put it down.
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Tías and Primas: On Knowing and Loving the Women Who Raise Us
By Prisca Dorcas Mojica Rodríguez (@priscadorcas). Seal Press. 304 pages. Out Sept. 10.
Founder of Latina Rebels, Prisca Dorcas Mojica Rodríguez’s latest is a glorious ode to Latine women who care, share, teach, learn and love. Mojica Rodríguez explores archetypes through storytelling, sharing personal experiences and providing accessible and loving insights into the Latinas we love.
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We Choose To: A Memoir of Providing Abortion Care Before, During, and After Roe
By Dr. Curtis Boyd, MD, and Dr. Glenna Halvorson-Boyd, RN. Disruption Books. 240 pages. Out Sept. 10.
Since the 1960s, Dr. Curtis Boyd has been performing abortions. After he and Dr. Glenna Halvorson-Boyd teamed up professionally and personally, their commitment to women’s health, freedom and choice is unshakeable, and together, they created a holistic practice based on trust, wellness and empowerment.
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We Need No Wings
By Ann Dávila Cardinal. Sourcebooks Landmark. 304 pages. Out Sept. 10.
Focused on grief, growth, love and healing, Ann Dávila Cardinal’s latest tells the story of Tere, who begins to levitate after a year of mourning her husband. Most refreshing is Cardinal’s centering of the magic in the lives of older women.
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Frighten the Horses
Oliver Radclyffe (@oliverradclyffe). Roxane Gay Books. Out Sept. 17.
This debut memoir is one of unshakeable honesty and truth in identity. Radclyffe describes his journey from straight wife and mother to queer trans man beginning at 37 years old. Radclyffe’s story is one of flaws and fears, vulnerabilities and triumphs; don’t miss it.
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We Will Be Jaguars: A Memoir of My People
By Nemonte Nenquimo (@nemonte.nenquimo) with Mitch Anderson. Abrams Press. 288 pages. Out Sept. 17.
Nemonte Nenquimo was born in Ecuador’s Amazon and is an internationally renowned activist and leader of the Waorani people. Her captivating memoir is both a dire warning and fierce manifesta. It is powerful, pointed and vital to understanding the climate change crisis and ecological devastation we are currently experiencing.
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What If We Get It Right?: Visions of Climate Futures
By Ayana Elizabeth Johnson (@ayanaeliza). One World. 496 pages. Out Sept. 17.
For a joyful and hopeful peek into the possibilities of how we might handle the climate crisis, look no further than Ayana Elizabeth Johnson’s latest. With the help of experts and activists such as Jade Begay, Leah Penniman, Ayisha Siddiqa and Xiye Bastida, Johnson provides insights, ideas and inspiration for the future.
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All Our Ordinary Stories: A Multigenerational Family Odyssey
By Teresa Wong (@by_teresawong). Arsenal Pulp Press. 240 pages. Out Sept. 24.
In her latest graphic memoir, Teresa Wong focuses on her relationship with her immigrant parents. She illustrates the ups and downs, the bridges and gaps, with curiosity, insight and depth.
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Come By Here: A Memoir in Essays from Georgia’s Geechee Coast
By Neesha Powell-Ingabire (@womanistbae). Hub City Press. 224 pages. Out Sept. 24.
In a courageous and bold debut, Neesha Powell-Ingabire writes about what she knows best: her hometown of Brunswick, Georgia. This coastal town is a model of collective resistance to systemic racial oppression; Powell-Ingabire gives a much-needed voice to the work and the witness.
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The Sapling Cage: A Novel
By Margaret Killjoy (@margaretkilljoy). The Feminist Press at CUNY. 320 pages. Out Sept. 24.
With her latest novel, Margaret Killjoy begins a captivating new series, “Daughters of the Empty Throne.” A sweet and entrancing coming-of-age story, The Sapling Cage is centered on autonomy, friendship, belonging and bravery. With magic, adventure and trans witches, I loved this one.
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Vengeance Feminism: The Power of Black Women’s Fury in Lawless Times
By Kali Nicole Gross. Seal Press. 256 pages. Out Sept. 24.
The latest book by esteemed historian Kali Nicole Gross shares well-researched and previously untold stories of Black women who fought back against the violence, oppression and inequity they experienced, often in ways outside the realm of civility or respectability.
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