The Book of Women's Friendship

by Rachel Cooke (Editor)

The first anthology devoted to women’s friendship drawn from fiction, diaries, poetry, and letters.


As Marilyn Robinson writes in her 1980 novel Housekeeping, “having a sister or friend is like sitting at night in a lighted house.” Bringing together work by more than 100 writers, the Book of Women’s Friendship explores the rich subject of friendship between women from every its particular intensity and miraculous ease, its tendency to wax and wane, its role not only as a comfort and a privilege, but as vital to our health.


Editor Rachel Cooke excerpts novels, poems, diaries, letters, comics, and graphic novels about women’s friendship, placing work from a diverse array of artists in conversation across time and place. From Jane Austen to Edith Wharton and Virginia Woolf, from Dolly Alderton to Sarah Waters, and from Zadie Smith to Meg Wolitzer, The Book of Women’s Friendship celebrates and investigates friendship between women from first encounters to final goodbyes, from falling out to making up again.

Genres: Essays, Nonfiction, Anthologies

400 pages, Hardcover

First published December 2, 2025

Reviews

[Maddie Fink · Rating 4 out of 5]

Spoiler-free review: Book of Women Friendship
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

This was beautiful. I couldn’t wait to request this, as girlhood is such an important part of my life and I value my friendships with other women immensely. The cover is stunning too and I can’t wait to get my hands on a finished copy once published!

The compilation of text was well done and I thought the way Cooke organized them was brilliant. I highlighted so, so many sections and had lots of introspection about a number of segments.

My only critique is that I wish there was more analysis and discussion about the excerpts during or after providing them. I found myself looking forward to the commentary more than some of the actual quotes and I think I was just lacking a fuller context behind why some of them were included in the compilation. I believe that further analysis would have made the impact behind why the excerpts were chosen more meaningful.

Thank you so much to W. W. Norton & Company, Rachel Cooke, and NetGalley for this eARC! The opinions in this review are left here honestly and voluntarily.

[Lindsay]

This was my first anthology, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Reading the descriptions and shades of friendship felt like a deep study into the dynamics between women through the centuries. Female friendships are so special, so profound, and this book made me feel so grateful for the women in my life. Whether it's the childhood friend, the one who incites jealousy, or the steady hand, all are so full of meaning, and this collection touches the core of just about every kind of female friendship one can have.

[Christine · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is a collection of writings from various authors that speak to friendships between women. According to the editor in her introduction, she wanted to examine those friendships and the different types/phases. Each chapter works through a different type of phase of friendship - as children, as students, as young adults, as circumstances in life change, as friends grow apart, as one friend dies, etc.

I think this is a great concept and the editor clearly spent a significant amount of time pulling together the various pieces of writing that she included. Despite a brief introduction by the editor for each chapter, however, it was sometimes difficult to understand the context of each writing. When you are compiling several pieces and they are just short pieces from a much longer novel or other piece of work, it's really difficult sometimes to "get it". The other criticism I have - and this seems nitpicky but really was an issue for me - is that the editor chose to identify the pieces at the end of them rather than at the beginning. Again, I found I was reading things and had absolutely no context as to what they were and why they were there unless I turned the page ahead to see the reference at the end.

I received an advance review copy for free and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[Kayla Hollatz · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really enjoyed the introduction and was sure this anthology on women friendships would be a hit, but I was hoping for more context around why the author chose each writing. The collected essays, poems, and excerpts were interesting, but they felt out of place without additional commentary. Still, the literary research that went into this is admirable!

[Sophia Eck]

an anthology comprised of a multitude of excerpts detailing the totemic phases of female friendship, very tastefully curated and edited by Rachel Cooke! I really especially admired the breadth of companionship shown throughout the collection, and the included pieces are all quite classic and historical picks, tysm @w.w.norton for sending this over, such a thoughtful and beautifully crafted book!

[Alyssa Phelps]

I heard this features Elena Ferrante and Mona Awad, so I’m sold

[Sophie Robert · Rating 5 out of 5]

The author clearly respects the reader’s intelligence, and that made the experience more satisfying.

[Shriley · Rating 5 out of 5]

I appreciated the care taken with language. Nothing felt sloppy or rushed.