Sarah Koppelkam: One of the most accessible Virginia Woolf novels, this saga will forever shape your perspective on gender. Way before its time!
Orlando, A Biography book by Virginia Woolf
Sarah Koppelkam: An essential for anyone who has struggled with body image or disordered eating… AKA most of us.
Intuitive Eating by Evelyn Tribole
Sarah Koppelkam: Toni Morrison is THE essential American author. You could read this ten times and still find more to learn and unpack
Beloved by Toni Morrison
Sarah Koppelkam: If you're a teacher, you need to read this book. The American education system would be a whole lot better if this was the approach we took to teaching.
The Courage to Teach by Parker J. Palmer
Sarah Koppelkam: A thoughtful and nuanced reflection on gender, transition, and parenthood. I <3 Maggie Nelson
The Argonauts by Maggie Nelson
Sarah Koppelkam: I was so lucky to read this right as I was coming out. Such a concise overview of intersectional queer theory.
Queer: A Graphic History by Meg-John Barker
Sarah Koppelkam: This book changed my perception of what a book can accomplish. A devastating exploration of white violence & a challenging call to understanding racism.
Citizen: An American Lyric by Claudia Rankine
Sarah Koppelkam: Did you know - Alison Bechdel is the originator of the Bechdel test? This is my favorite graphic memoir
Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic Alison Bechdel
Sarah Koppelkam: The poetry collection that got me into poetry.
There Are More Beautiful Things Than Beyoncé by Morgan Parker
Sarah Koppelkam: Such an inspiring read for anyone who is young and wants to make art.
Just Kids Patti Smith
Sarah Koppelkam: I was very lucky to get to teach this book to teenagers. An underappreciated genre is the play, and an underappreciated August Wilson play is Ma Rainey
Ma Rainey's Black Bottom by August Wilson
Sarah Koppelkam: Ross Gay has such a unique approach to writing about joy. Never trite; always beautiful
Catalog of Unabashed Gratitude by Ross Gay
Sarah Koppelkam: A deeply felt and loving book about the threat to life that young Black men experience
Men We Reaped by Jesmyn Ward
Sarah Koppelkam: Read this book without it changing your life forever I dare you
Emergent Strategy by adrienne maree brown
Sarah Koppelkam: Read this iconic speculative fiction alongside Emergent Strategy
Parable of the Sower by Octavia E. Butler
Sarah Koppelkam: If you haven't read this, you're about to understand so many more cultural references. An essential novel in the 21st century
The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood
Sarah Koppelkam: Did you know that it's possible to just… give people money? And potentially change the world?
Give People Money by Annie Lowrey
Sarah Koppelkam: An abolitionist teaching manifesto!!
We Want to Do More Than Survive by Bettina L. Love
Sarah Koppelkam: The book that brought me back to the joy of reading
The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid
Sarah Koppelkam: Glennon Doyle is controversial, but this came to me at the exact right time.
Untamed by Glennon Doyle
Sarah Koppelkam: So much more than just trees, but also trees are EVERYTHING
The Overstory by Richard Powers
Sarah Koppelkam: A theme of this list is reconnecting with nature, and this book does it better than any other
Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer
Sarah Koppelkam: Stunningly written, covering an abusive same sex relationship
In the Dream House by Carmen Maria Machado
Sarah Koppelkam: Did you know that there is a genre called “Queer Auto-Theory?" And this book does it the best?
How to Write an Autobiographical Novel by Alexander Chee
Sarah Koppelkam: James Baldwin is the king and this is the most beautiful depiction of a complicated relationship ever
If Beale Street Could Talk by James Baldwin
Sarah Koppelkam: THE best, most honest memoir I've ever read - and the writing is *chef's kiss*
Heavy by Kiese Laymon
Sarah Koppelkam: THE best, most honest memoir I've ever read - and the writing is *chef's kiss*
Heavy by Kiese Laymon
Sarah Koppelkam: Do you need to re-evaluate your relationship with alcohol? Most of us do, and this book is a great start
Quit Like a Woman by Holly Whitaker
Sarah Koppelkam: The title says it all (and the book backs it up)
Laziness Does Not Exist by Devon Price
Sarah Koppelkam: A true manifesto for the divine right to rest
