
Women’s History Month is a perfect time to seek out the many accomplishments of women throughout history that are often overlooked. This digital display highlights the challenges, successes, and future of women, feminists, and intersectionality.
All the items on this digital display are available for free online with your NPL library card.
Click on each section below to browse our recommendations. Each title is available through one (or more) of the Naperville Public Library's digital resources.
Absolutely Alfie and the Furry, purry Secret
Warner, SallySeven-year-old Alfie Jakes isn't thrilled when her mom organizes end-of-summer playdates with her soon-to-be classmate, Hanni. Hanni is kind of bossy. So Alfie is relieved when Hanni is more fun to play with then she thought. Even better, she shows Alfie her cat--who has kittens!

Dress Coded
Firestone, CarrieIn this debut middle-grade girl-power friendship story, an eighth grader starts a podcast to protest the unfair dress code enforcement at her middle school and sparks a rebellion. Molly Frost is FED UP... Because Olivia was yelled at for wearing a tank top. Because Liza got dress coded and Molly didn't, even though they were wearing the exact same outfit.

Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls: 100 Tales of Extraordinary Women
Favilli, Elena & Francesca CavalloTo the rebel girls of the world: dream bigger, aim higher, fight harder, and, when in doubt, remember you are right. Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls reinvents fairy tales, inspiring girls with the stories of 100 heroic women from Elizabeth I to Serena Williams and illustrated by 60 female artists from every corner of the globe.

Rad American Women A-Z
Schatz, KateProfiled are 26 American women from the 18th through 21st centuries, who have made-or are still making--history as artists, writers, teachers, lawyers, or athletes. The women come from a variety of economic and ethnic backgrounds and many had to overcome extreme hardships. One woman represents each alphabetical letter beginning with Angela Davis, an activist, teacher, and writer, and concludes with Zora Neale Hurston, an anthropologist and writer.



Shark Lady: The True Story of How Eugenie Clark became the ocean's most fearless scientist
Keating, JessAt 9 years old, Eugenie Clark developed an unexpected passion for sharks after a visit to the Battery Park Aquarium in New York City. At the time, sharks were seen as mindless killing machines, but Eugenie knew better and set out to prove it.

Bold & Brave: TenHeroes who won women the right to vote
Kalman, MairaHere are the stories of ten leaders who strove to win the right to vote for American women--a journey that took more than seventy years of passionate commitment. From well-known figures, such as Susan B. Anthony and Sojourner Truth to lesser known women such as Alice Paul and Mary Church Terrell, these are heroes who dreamed big and never gave up.

Women Who Changed the World
Fabrizio, AlexThe sky’s the limit in this feminist primer filled with activists, scientists, world leaders, and more. With charming illustrations of familiar figures like Harriet Tubman and Queen Elizabeth I, this little book introduces your child to extraordinary women from around the globe.

Shaking things up: 14 Young Women who changed the world
Hood, SusanShaking Things Up introduces fourteen revolutionary young women—each paired with a noteworthy female artist—to the next generation of activists, trail-blazers, and rabble-rousers. From author Susan Hood, this is a poetic and visual celebration of persistent women throughout history.

Helen's Big World
Rappaport, DoreenThis biography is an excellent and accessible introduction for youngsters to learn about one of the world's most influential luminaries. Helen Keller's poignant narrative is beautifully captured in this unforgettable portrait of a woman whose vision for innovation and progress changed America and the world forever.


Pashmina
Nidhi ChananiIndian-American teen, Priyanka "Pri" Das, attempts to reconnect with her mother's homeland through a magical pashmina shawl. Priyanka Das has so many unanswered questions: Why did her mother abandon her home in India years ago? What was it like there? And most importantly, who is her father, and why did her mom leave him behind?


You Should See Me in a Crown
Leah JohnsonLiz Lighty has always done her best to avoid the spotlight in her small, wealthy, and prom-obsessed midwestern high school, after all, her family is black and rather poor, especially since her mother died; instead she has concentrated on her grades and her musical ability in the hopes that it will win her a scholarship to elite Pennington College and their famous orchestra.

Glow
Megan BryantDiscovering a series of antique paintings containing hidden glowing images, a young thrift-store aficionado investigates their origins and discovers the haunting true story of a group of young women artists, the Radium Girls, who used dangerous radioactive paint to create the world's first glow-in-the-dark products.

Juliet Takes a Breath
Gabby RiveraFor fans of Bloom and Spinning, critically-acclaimed writer Gabby Rivera (Marvel's America) adapts her bestselling novel alongside artist Celia Moscote in an unforgettable queer coming-of-age story exploring race, identity and what it means to be true to your amazing self.


Saving Savannah
Tonya BoldenSavannah Riddle feels suffocated by her life as the daughter of an upper class African American family in Washington, D.C., until she meets a working-class girl named Nella who introduces her to the suffragette and socialist movements and to her politically active cousin Lloyd.


The Good Girls
Claire Eliza BartlettThe troublemaker. The overachiever. The cheer captain. The dead girl. Like every high school in America, Jefferson-Lorne High contains all of the above. After the shocking murder of senior Emma Baines, three of her classmates are at the top of the suspect list: Claude, the notorious partier; Avery, the head cheerleader; and Gwen, the would-be valedictorian.

The Life and (Medieval) Times of Kit Sweetly
Jamie PactonWorking as a Wench--i.e., waitress--at a cheesy medieval- themed restaurant in the Chicago suburbs, Kit Sweetly wishes she could be a Knight like her brother. She has the moves, is capable on a horse, and desperately needs the raise that comes with knighthood, so she can hold a spot at her dream college and help her mom pay the mortgage.


Feminism Inshallah: A history of Arab feminism
Feriel Ben MahmoudThe struggle for Muslim women's emancipation is often portrayed stereotypically as a showdown between Western and Islamic values, but Arab feminism has existed for more than a century. This groundbreaking documentary recounts Arab feminism's largely unknown story, from its taboo-shattering birth in Egypt by feminist pioneers up through viral Internet campaigns by today's tech-savvy young activists during the Arab Spring.

Hamilton & Peggy
L.M. ElliotPeggy Schuyler has always felt like she’s existed in the shadows of her beloved sisters: the fiery, intelligent Angelica and the beautiful, sweet Eliza. The three of them have a magnetic pull—they are stronger together than they are alone. But it’s in the throes of a chaotic war that Peggy finds herself a central figure amid Loyalists and Patriots, spies and traitors, and friends and family.

Women's March
Mischa HedgesShot on location in five U.S. cities, WOMEN'S MARCH is a story about democracy, human rights, and what it means to stand up for your values in today's America. On January 21, 2017, hundreds of thousands of women marched on Washington, D.C. That same day, hundreds of sister marches took place nationally and globally to become the largest one-day protest in American history.

Union Maids
Jim Klein, Julia Reichert, Miles MogulescuSitdowns, scabs, goon squads, unemployment, hunger marches, red baiting and finally the energetic birth of the CIO: the 1930s were a landmark period for the American labor movement. UNION MAIDS is the story of three women who lived that history and make it come alive today. It was the first film of its kind-an oral history, using a wealth of footage from the National Archives to chronicle the fight to form industrial unions as seen through the eyes of rank and file women. The film was widely distributed in 16mm, including theatrical dates in about 20 cities.

A Place of Rage
Pratibha ParmarThis exuberant celebration of African American women and their achievements features interviews with Angela Davis, June Jordan and Alice Walker. Within the context of the civil rights, Black power and feminist movements, the trio reassess how women such as Rosa Parks and Fannie Lou Hamer revolutionized American society.

Suffrage : Women's Long Battle for the Vote
Ellen Carol DuBoisDuBois explains how suffragists built a determined coalition of moderate lobbyists and radical demonstrators in forging a strategy of winning voting rights in crucial states to set the stage for securing suffrage for all American women in the Constitution. In vivid prose DuBois describes suffragists’ final victories in Congress and state legislatures, culminating in the last, most difficult ratification, in Tennessee.

A Black Women's History of the United States
Daina Ramey Berry and Kali Nicole GrossA Black Women's History of the United States is a critical survey of black women's complicated legacy in America, as it takes into account their exploitation and victimization as well as their undeniable and substantial contributions to the country since its inception.

Barracoon : The Story of the Last
Zora Neale HurstonBased on interviews, featuring Cudjo’s unique vernacular, and written from Hurston’s perspective with the compassion and singular style that have made her one of the preeminent American authors of the twentieth-century, Barracoon masterfully illustrates the tragedy of slavery and of one life forever defined by it. Offering insight into the pernicious legacy that continues to haunt us all, black and white, this poignant and powerful work is an invaluable contribution to our shared history and culture.

In West Mills
De'Shawn Charles WinslowFor readers of The Twelve Tribes of Hattie and The Turner House, an intimately told story about a woman living by her own rules and the rural community that struggles to understand her. Azalea “Knot” Centre is determined to live life as she pleases. Let the people of West Mills say what they will; the neighbors’ gossip won’t keep Knot from what she loves best: cheap moonshine, nineteenth-century literature, and the company of men. And yet, Knot is starting to learn that her freedom comes at a high price.

Hitting a Straight Lick with a Crooked Stick
Zora Neale HurstonHitting a Straight Lick with a Crooked Stick is an outstanding collection of stories about love and migration, gender and class, racism and sexism that proudly reflect African American folk culture. Brought together for the first time in one volume, they include eight of Hurston's "lost" Harlem stories, which were found in forgotten periodicals and archives.



The Flapper Queens : Women Cartoonists of the Jazz Age
Trina RobbinsFantagraphics celebrates The Flapper Queens, a gorgeous oversized hardcover collection of full-color comic strips. In addition to featuring the more well-known cartoonists of the era, such as Ethel Hays, Nell Brinkley, and Virginia Huget.

Sister Citizen
Melissa V. Harris-PerryIn this groundbreaking book, Melissa V. Harris-Perry uses multiple methods of inquiry, including literary analysis, political theory, focus groups, surveys, and experimental research, to understand more deeply black women's political and emotional responses to pervasive negative race and gender images.

Spymistress : The Life of Vera Atkins, The Greatest Female Secret Agent of World War II
William StevensonA rousing tale of espionage and unsung valor, this is the captivating true story of Vera Atkins, Great Britain's spymistress from the age of 25. With her fierce intelligence, blunt manner, personal courage, and exceptional informants, Vera ran countless missions throughout the 1930s. After rising to the leadership echelon in the Special Operations Executive (SOE), a covert intelligence agency formed by Winston Churchill, she became head of a clandestine army in World War II.

Feminism : A Graphic Guide
Cathia Jenainati ; [illustrated by] Judy Groves & Jem MiltonIn this unique, illustrated introduction, we’ll explore the early history of conscious struggle against sexist oppression, through the modern “waves” of feminism, up to present-day conversations about MeToo, intersectional feminism, and women’s rights in the Middle East.

Can we all be feminists? : new writing from Brit Bennett, Nicole Dennis-Benn, and 15 others on intersectionality, identity, and the way forward for feminism
Edited by June Eric-UdorieEach of the essays in this collection, compiled by UK writer Eric-Udorie, address from different perspectives the challenges of identifying as feminist in light of intersectional struggles within a community.


Empathy in Business: Design for Success
Bonnie SieglerIn this course, instructor Bonnie Siegler covers empathy in society, design, and communications, then walks you through an empathy workshop. First, Bonnie defines empathy and teaches why you need it in your business. She discusses empathy in the public space, plus how to win friends and influence people.
