Blog: WIT reads: Books to stir your mind and soul
WIT reads: Books to stir your mind and soul
History isn‘t what happened. It‘s who tells the story. – Sally Roesch Wagner
Summer is a great time to lounge—beachside, poolside, hammock, dock, or deck—and read. Wherever your chosen location, why not pack some books that stir your soul, make you think, make you question? As we know from our HER Story blog series, sharing female narratives is tremendously powerful.
These seven recommended reads are all beautifully written non-fiction books from female authors. Each shares the author‘s experiences, awakening understanding of herself and the world, and uses the power of story to incite the reader into looking at the world, our own experiences and circumstances, a bit differently.
Hood Feminism: Notes from the Women that a Movement Forgot, by Mikki Kendall
Today‘s feminist movement has a glaring blind spot, and paradoxically it is women. Mainstream feminists rarely talk about meeting basic needs as a feminist issue, argues Mikki Kendall, but food security, access to quality education, safe neighborhoods, a living wage, and medical care are all feminist issues.
This book is timely. It may not be a comfortable read for some, but it will make you think.
If Women Rose Rooted, by Sharon Blackie
In this life-changing book that blends myth, memoir, and modern-day mentors, renowned psychologist Dr. Sharon Blackie journeys from the wasteland of modern society to a place of nourishment and connection.
If women remember that once upon a time we sang with the tongues of seals and flew with the wings of swans, that we forged our own paths through the dark forest while creating a community of its many inhabitants, then we will rise up rooted, like trees. And if we rise up rooted, like trees . . . well then, women might indeed save not only ourselves, but the world.
Cassandra Speaks, by Elizabeth Lesser
This book is about the stories we tell and how those stories become the culture. It‘s about the stories we still blindly cling to, and the ones that cling to us: the origin tales, the guiding myths, the religious parables, the literature and films and fairy tales passed down through the centuries about women and men, power and war, sex and love, and the values we live by. Stories written mostly by men with lessons and laws for all of humanity. We have outgrown so many of them, and still they endure. This book is about what happens when women are the storytellers, too—when we speak from our authentic voices, when we flex our values, when we become protagonists in the tales we tell about what it means to be human.
This is a lovely read (with great cover art) and seamlessly blends memoir, current events, and cultural observations with ancient myths and modern reimagining.
Atlas of the Heart, by Brené Brown
Hands down my favorite Brené Brown book yet and the book that she claims has been her most challenging and personal to write. I urge you to buy the physical book—not just an eBook or audio book—the book art throughout is stunning.
Brené takes readers on a journey through 87 of the emotions and experiences that define what it means to be human. She maps the necessary skills and an actionable framework for meaningful connection, gives us the language and tools to access a universe of new choices and second chances—a universe where we can share and steward the stories of our bravest and most heartbreaking moments with one another in a way that builds connection.
If we want to find the way back to ourselves and one another, we need language and the grounded confidence to both tell our stories and to be stewards of the stories that we hear. This is the framework for meaningful connection.
A classic. This is not an easy read, it is dense and packed with wisdom. If you have the time and energy to invest in reading this book though, there is much to be gained.
Within every woman there lives a powerful force, filled with good instincts, passionate creativity, and ageless knowing. She is the Wild Woman, who represents the instinctual nature of women. But she is an endangered species. For though the gifts of wildish nature belong to us at birth, society‘s attempt to civilize us into rigid roles has muffled the deep, life-giving messages of our own souls.
A powerful narrative that shows the power of access, education, and belief in another‘s capabilities. I could hardly put this down, and I was thoroughly engaged in Tara‘s developing understanding of the world.
Born to survivalists in the mountains of Idaho, Tara Westover was seventeen the first time she set foot in a classroom. Her family was so isolated from mainstream society that there was no one to ensure the children received an education, and no one to intervene when one of Tara‘s older brothers became violent. When another brother got himself into college, Tara decided to try a new kind of life. Her quest for knowledge transformed her, taking her over oceans and across continents, to Harvard and to Cambridge University. Only then would she wonder if she‘d traveled too far; if there was still a way home.
A Radical Awakening, by Dr. Shefali
The way Dr. Shefali uses honesty and humor about her own imperfections and her real-life experiences to awaken the reader is highly effective. It doesn‘t matter whether you agree or disagree with her observations on outdated institutions and belief systems—she just asks you to sit with it and think.
A Radical Awakening lays out a path for women to heal their psychic wounds and prepares them to discover their own powers to help heal others and the planet. Dr. Shefali helps women uncover the purpose that already exists within them and harness the power of authenticity in every area of their lives. The result is an eloquent and inspiring, practical and accessible book, backed with real-life examples and personal stories, that unlocks the extraordinary power necessary to awaken the conscious self.
If you read a great book that inspires you this summer (whether it‘s from this list or not) why not share it on social and tag @TheWITNetwork—let‘s inspire each other‘s To Read piles!
