The F-word discussion

It's that time again, feminist book friends! Opening up nominations for the first half of 2021. Please drop your feminist nominations below.

We will follow the group guidelines for books in this group, that they may contribute in one or more of the following ways:

1-Written by a feminist and/or a woman
2-Plot looks at how gender, race, class, sexuality, ability/disability, ethnicity, nationality, etc. shape us and our views of the world
3-Spark conversation about social justice and gender equality
4-Have strong female characters

-Please use the "add book/author" link to avoid any confusion, and be sure to include the name of the author with you nomination.

-Please indicate fiction and non-fiction nominations

-This is not a self promotion zone. Please feel free to self- promote your work in our blatant self promotion thread.

-Make sure to check out our bookshelf for books we've already read as a group, although if it has been a few years since the group read it, we may consider a re-read. The group bookshelf is also a great place to find nomination ideas .

We will be wrapping this up by the end of November, so 2 weeks for nominations followed by a 2 week polling period. The top 3 fiction and top 3 non-fiction will be alternating group reads for January through June.
*ETA: nominations will close November 15th when the polls go up. Polls will close November 28th

Nominations:

fiction:
The City We Became by N.K. Jemisin
The Mercies by Kiran Millwood Hargrave
Black Sun by Rebecca Roanhorse
Fiebre Tropical by Juliana Delgado Lopera
The Death of Vivek Oji by Akwaeke Emezi
We Are Not From Here by Jenny Torres Sanchez
The Adventures of China Iron by Gabriela Cabezón Cámara
The Core of the Sun by Johanna Sinisalo
The Unit by Ninni Holmqvist
The Goddess Chronicle by Natsuo Kirino
Girl, Woman, Other by Bernardine Evaristo
My Sister, the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite
Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Upright Women Wanted by Sarah Gailey

nonfiction:
Wow, No Thank You. by Samantha Irby
#VERYFAT #VERYBRAVE: The Fat Girl's Guide to Being #Brave and Not a Dejected, Melancholy, Down-in-the-Dumps Weeping Fat Girl in a Bikini by Nicole Byer
Leaving Isn't the Hardest Thing: Essays by Lauren Hough
Oak Flat: A Fight for Sacred Land in the American West by Lauren Redniss
Charged: Overzealous Prosecutors, the Quest for Mercy, and the Fight to Transform Criminal Justice in America by Emily Bazelon
After the Last Border: Two Families and the Story of Refuge in America by Jessica Goudeau
The Complete Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi
Educated by Tara Westover
Sharp: The Women Who Made an Art of Having an Opinion by Michelle Dean
Haben: The Deafblind Woman Who Conquered Harvard Law by Haben Girma
Wild Swans: Three Daughters of China by Jung Chang
A Burst of Light by Audre Lorde

Laurie wrote: "So in trying to keep my mind off political news, I'm going to dump everything on here that I really regretted not getting to in 2020. I don't know how many suggestions most people give, feel free t..."

That is a great list. quite a few of those were already on my tbr, and you know, now a few more are... thanks! :)
They can all go on the poll, but only the top three from each category make it to the group reads, so there isn't a limit, but just keep that in mind when nominating!

I'd like to nominate the following for fiction:
The Adventures of China Iron by Gabriela Cabezón Cámara
The Core of the Sun by Johanna Sinisalo
The Unit by Ninni Holmqvist
The Goddess Chronicle by Natsuo Kirino

My nominations are:

Fiction:
Girl, Woman, Other by Bernardine Evaristo
My Sister, the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite
Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Non-fiction
The Complete Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi
Educated by Tara Westover

Anita, if there are too many nominations and we need to cut down to 1 or 2 each that's fine by me!

Hannah wrote: "Anita, if there are too many nominations and we need to cut down to 1 or 2 each that's fine by me!"

Should be fine Hannah. We have a pretty large group so tastes are bound to vary. Everyone will have plenty of homework to do before voting, and I imagine many tbr shelves are groaning.

Ok, I will remove that one Laurie. There is no official limit to nominations, but everyone only gets one vote per category - 1 fiction vote and 1 non-fiction vote - so if anyone wants me to remove books just let me know, and everyone who hasn't nominated yet, don't be put off from nominating your books!

Fiction Nomination -
Upright Women Wanted by Sarah Gailey.

This was an 'accidental' discovery while perusing new books. One hundred pages in to the book, it could be succinctly described as a LGBTQ+ western meets the Handmaid's Tale. Sort of. Don't have a clue yet how it might end or the various story elements be resolved. An alternative dystopia set in the Southwesten US. Very readable and entertaining.

Non-Fiction Nomination -
Sharp: The Women Who Made an Art of Having an Opinion by Michelle Dean.

Seems like this one was nominated last year or before . . can't find if the F-Word has discussed it. Certainly does not appear on the booklist.

Sharp is the story of ten women who made their mark through wit and intellect. The interconnectedness of many of them is worth reading about if nothing else. Additionally several anecdotes about some of the figures in this work are rarely told and not in one place!

Great noms, CD, thank you!

Just a reminder that the polls will open on the 15th of this month, in 3 days (and voting ends on the 25th). Please keep your eyes peeled and drop any last nominations before then.

The non-fiction selections are so good! Samantha Irby is a really fun writer and her dry sense of humor comes across so well in her audiobooks (which she narrates).

I would like to recommend the following non-fiction:
Haben: The Deafblind Woman Who Conquered Harvard Law by Haben Girma
Wild Swans: Three Daughters of China by Jung Chang
A Burst of Light by Audre Lorde

Can't wait to see what the group picks!

Thank you Honore, added

Nominations are now closed and the polls are open.
Please vote here for your choice of both fiction and non-fiction in the new year.
(If you click on "comments and details," on each poll, you will be able to see the cover of each book and click for a link to book information to help you make your choices)
Polls will close November 25

We're entering the final days of the fiction and non-fiction polls. If you've voted for a book with very few votes, this is the time to change your vote to one of the top 4 or 5 and try to get one of your choices into the top 3 on each poll.
*remember there are 2 polls*

The polls have finished and the schedule has been set! Below, you will find our first 6 monthly reads. Thank you everyone who voted and nominated, and we look forward to good reads and good conversations in 2021. Don't forget, we're reading Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982 now for our final read of 2020.

The Complete Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi (Jan, NF)
My Sister, the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite (Feb, Fiction)
Wild Swans: Three Daughters of China by Jung Chang (March, NF)
The City We Became by N.K. Jemisin (April fiction)
Educated by Tara Westover (May NF)
Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (June fiction)

That's so strange, I've checked my libraries since seeing your post and am also unable to get them. I know I read the first Persepolis from there as well. I wonder if there is a new edition coming out or something and so they've pulled their copies?

Laurie wrote: "I'm so excited for these picks! Quick question on Persepolis, our city library doesn't have any copies at all - digital or physical. This is actually the first time I've seen them have 0 copies of ..."

So an edition titled: The complete Persepolis came out in 2007. For some reason when I tried to search for the title when I was not logged into my account, no book came up, but when I logged in they were there.

Maybe try searching by the Authors name: Marjane Satrapi
Check to see if you need to put the last name first! Or call and speak to your local librarian. I;m sure they would be happy to help you!

Laurie wrote: "Honore wrote: "Laurie wrote: "I'm so excited for these picks! Quick question on Persepolis, our city library doesn't have any copies at all - digital or physical. This is actually the first time I'..."

:) Glad I could help. Can't wait to read them with you!