Experts Tell Us the Best Asian Feminist Books

A continuing story from The New York Times bestseller Dawn of the Arcana. Rangetsu lives in a world where her kind, the ajin, are to slave away for humans. Going against social norms, Rangestu decides to choose her own destiny by disguising as an imperial male beast servan and teams up with her master. Her mission is to avenge her twin brother’s death.

A timely reminder of the power you have as a Queen. Well-written by a Filipina with actionable items that immediately transform your mindset. Empowering especially for Asian women who were socially-conditioned to be afraid to speak out and value others’ opinions over theirs. Read this and unleash the powerful Queen inside you!

Asian Women Who Boss Up profiles the stories of 18 Asian women who have broken the mold to achieve, overcome difficulties or inspire change through the relentless endeavor. Hailing from across the globe, diverse walks of life and varied disciplines including STEM, healthcare, finance, coaching and non-profits, Women Who BossUp is a welcome companion to any boss or boss in the making.

The book beautifully portrays the ill effect of wars and migration, especially on the womenfolks. It throws light on the power and violence of a woman against another woman set against the backdrop of cultural revolution. It shows the stark reality of how a revolution in China led to the wiping out of so many families and forced them to live the life of destitute even though they had everything to lead a normal life.

As the first female Prime Minister of a Muslim majority country, Ms.Buttho had already guaranteed her place in feminist history. Daughter of Destiny is a detailed account of her personal and political life both in the UK and Pakistan. Benazir was truly an incredible woman who demonstrated courage and strength in a male-dominated society. Tragically assassinated two months after her return to Pakistan in 2007, she remains one of the most inspirational women of our time. A must-read and a book I found difficult to put down.

Author Mieko Kawakami is courageous in expressing her views on the portrayal and placement of women within Japanese society. When she shared a stage with probably the most famous Japanese author working today, Haruki Murakami, she took the opportunity to ask him about the prevalence of female characters in his work who seemed to exist only to serve some kind of sexual function. She saw it as her duty to raise the question. Breasts and Eggs sees her raising similar questions about the gender politics that exist in her home country, and, indeed across other parts of Asia. The work uses the story of a bar hostess, single-mother of a certain age, and her relationship with her brooding adolescent daughter to explore these issues. What is the female form in the context of the male gaze? What are the expectations of mothers and maternity. Why are women expected to act in a certain way? First published in English in 2021, Breasts and Eggs asserts Mieko Kawakami as one of the most fearless voices in Japanese Feminist Literature.

Written by Indira Gandhi’s aunt, Krishna Hutheesing, this book depicts the life of Indira Gandhi before the emergency by her in the mid-1970s. It is a book that explains the psychology behind the leader’s decisions and service to the nation. The former prime minister of India was a prominent figure of the Indian National Congress and still remains to be the only female prime minister of India. This book gives us an intriguing opportunity to know about the life of the leader.

Bell hooks study the nature of feminism and its positive promise to remove sexism, sexist exploitation, and suppression. With her characteristic clarity and purity, hooks encourage readers to see how feminism can touch and change their lives―to see that feminism is for everybody. In this book hook has mentioned that Feminism is NOT about hating men, it’s all about everybody’s problems and situations. A great read for all like-minded activists!

We all have the princess inside us and this is a perfect book for young at hearts. It is an excellent story of Asian feminism wherein Mulan stood up for herself despite her being in a world dominated by men. You will not be bored in reading this because it has twists and different directions compared to the original one which makes it more exciting and fun to read.

As a website founder, I have been reading a lot of books to equip myself with continuous knowledge and learnings, as well as to get inspiration when writing my articles. One of the books that I can suggest for those who want to learn more and understand about feminism will be, “Sister Outsider: Essays and Speeches by Audre Lorde, 2017”. It is a fine and light read because through her speeches and essays, she explains the importance of knowing your role in acting accordingly in society. You should know the basics of what you are fighting for, and what are the essential factors that affect such behavior.

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen is the contemporary feminist book that I will really recommend to those who want to start reading classic books. It is very empowering because knowing what you want and sticking to what you believe in is very powerful for a woman, especially in their time. However, love really sways women easily so you’d be the judge.

I suggest this book since you will learn that people come and people go in love. It’s always pleasant to hear an explanation from those who left us. However, we must accept it and move forward. The time we don’t get the answers we want, we have grown up about ourselves.

It is one of my recommendations since it draws attention to the experiences of women in society. Women can relate to this one since most of us had to go through stress and hardships. Furthermore, it discusses women’s sexual harassment and discrimination in which exists until now.