Benable — create shareable lists of things you recommend!
E.g., products you love, local businesses, travel recs - you can add anything to a Benable list!
Books for teenage girls in their 20s
29
items I’m a huge bookworm who loves a strong female lead. I read a little bit of everything. These are my all time favorites and recommendations for 20-somethings who are just trying to figure it out!
Ice skating, Taylor Swift songs, first love. The relationship dynamics are so all consuming. I read this book cover to cover in a day.
The Favorites: A Novel by Layne Fargo, Hardcover
A cottagecore love story set on a flower farm. I don't want to say too much and spoil it but this book uses a pretty common sci fi concept and takes it in an interesting direction I'd never seen before. One of my all time favorites.
The Unmaking of June Farrow by Adrienne Young
I fell in love with this quirky oddball cast of characters. Russell dishes out a history lesson about where America has been and what it means for us today using magical realism. Such a unique read.
The Antidote by Karen Russell
So magical and imaginative. Morgenstern is a master world builder. You’ll fall asleep dreaming of drifting through the circus exhibits.
The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
I'm obsessed!! <3 Dragons, magic, battles, enemies to lovers. Part of the cannon for bookworm fan girls.
Fourth Wing (The Empyrean, #1) by Rebecca Yarros
The lead, Daunis is such a badass female main character. A mystery thriller about growing up between cultures, family, and what it means to be Indigenous. I also loved the Great Lakes setting.
Firekeeper's Daughter #1 - Angeline Boulley
I really related to the neurotic, overthinking awkwardness of Lee as she navigates growing up and being part of (but very different from) her community.
Prep by Curtis Sittenfeld
Oona starts every New Year "traveling" through time, living the years of her life out of order. A very Thirteen Going on Thirty / Time Travelers Wife concept exploring what is important for living a good life.
Oona Out of Order by Margarita Montimore
Laugh out loud funny story about a woman living through a modern day civil war in America. If you are exhausted by the neoconservative bad place that is currently the US, this book is refreshing and hilarious commentary on what is happening today pol...
Hestia Strikes a Match by Christine Grillo
A glittering fantasy epic about family walking across the universe to find one another.
The Ten Thousand Doors of January by Alix E. Harrow
Wordslut unlocks a whole new perspective on how language shapes us and how our culture shapes language. Grappling with how feminism and patriarchy impact the way we talk and think about the world. Must read for anyone who's been made fun of for sayin...
Wordslut: A Feminist Guide to Taking Back the English Language
A witch-tale feminist fantasy love story set to a backdrop of the suffragette movement. This story explores the weight of womens' power across generations.
The Once and Future Witches by Alix E. Harrow
A uniquely structured memoir- each chapter is told using a different writing style. Machado beautifully articulates the experience of being in an abusive and volatile relationship.
In the Dream House by Carmen Maria Machado
“So who takes care of you?” “I do” - a story about unconditional romantic, familial, and platonic love while navigating great loss.
Go as a River by Shelley Read
Once you see it, you can’t unsee it and you will notice it everywhere. We live in a society designed by and for men- at the expense of women’s wellbeing. As an urban planner this books makes me strive to critically consider how women and gender diver...
Invisible Women: Data Bias in a World Designed for Men
A book about how moms and daughters, women and girls pay the price for men’s bad behavior. An American evangelical preacher moves his family to the Belgian Congo and turbulent political, cultural, and familial dynamics ensue.
The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver
A unique psychological mystery. I loved the central concept of this novel and the alternating perspectives of Jane and her psychiatrist.
The Strange Case of Jane O. by Karen Thompson Walker
I was amazed by the island setting and the premise of the seed bank. You really fall in love with the main characters and I definitely was not expecting the direction this book went in 👀
Wild Dark Shore by Charlotte McConaghy
A book about the marks we leave on the world and what happens if you couldn’t make meaningful human connections. A story of magic and love told over hundreds of years.
The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab | Goodreads
A crazy girl classic. This story explores what happens when resentment and distinction build in relationships.
Gone Girl - Flynn, Gillian: Books
Such a sweet romantasy and beautiful world building.
The Bridge Kingdom #1
Quirky and heartwarming, all about the nontraditional ways we can choose our families and show up for the people we love
Family Family: A Novel - Frankel, Laurie: Books
For girls figuring it out, finding their voice, and standing up for themselves
Queenie by Candice Carty-Williams
Fantastical with the coolest main character
A Fate Inked in Blood (Saga of the Unfated, #1) by Danielle L. Jensen
Laugh out loud funny. About a chaotic single, young mom trying to make the best life for her baby by becoming an OF star
Margo's Got Money Troubles by Rufi Thorpe
A modern reimaging of Antigone, but regardless of whether you have experience with the play, I recommend this book. I still think about it often.
Home Fire: 9780735217683: Shamsie, Kamila: Books
Short stories told with magical realism. Focused on women, coming of age/young adulthood. Love to mix it up with short stories every once in a while.
And I Do Not Forgive You: Stories & Other Revenges by Amber Sparks
The story of a tight knit town obsessed with hockey and how friends and family show up for each other through grief and trauma. Love love love.
Beartown (Beartown, #1) by Fredrik Backman
A sequel/companion book to the Firekeeper's Daughter. A mystery focused on missing indigenous women. I also learned so much about the repatriation of sacred and cultural items.
Warrior Girl Unearthed by Angeline Boulley