A Feminine Rage Reading List

January 21, 2025

Literature

Nesha Ruther

Writer at Bond & Grace

The term feminine rage has become a popular one in the zeitgeist, and while it sounds self-explanatory, this concept is far more complex than people realize.

There are few things as distinctly painful as a dream unfulfilled, an unrealized ambition. For generations, women have been using literature to understand the limitations society has placed upon them and explore means of resistance. In a world that demands women be polite, docile, and gentle, an expression of rage is an act of resistance in and of itself.

This collection of books explores what it means to be a woman—and to be angry about it.

The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath

The only novel Sylvia Plath ever published,The Bell Jar portrays the inner turmoil of Esther Greenwood, a young woman struggling with mental illness and societal pressures. As Esther’s mental state declines, she rages against the restrictive expectations placed upon her.

The Second Sex by Simone de Beauvoir

While not a novel, this groundbreaking work of philosophy and feminist critique forms the bedrock for much of today’s feminine rage genre. De Beauvoir analyzes and dismantles the historical treatment of women, giving voice to the fear and frustration that has come to define the experience of womanhood through the centuries.

Sula by Toni Morrison

Wild Sula and gentle and curious Nel have a friendship that seems able to withstand anything, even the dark secrets that define their adolescence. As adults, the pair struggle to build lives for themselves despite the pressures and limitations the world puts upon them. Although they choose different paths, their friendship continues until Sula betrays Nel in a way that may prove unforgivable.

Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys

This postcolonial and feminist prequel to Jane Eyre describes Mr. Rochester’s first marriage from the perspective of his wife Antoinette Cosway. Rhys imagines Cosway growing up in Jamaica before being hidden away in that desolate English mansion. This rich and vivid reimagining of a classic captures the toll that living in a restrictive society takes on a woman.

Sister Outsider by Audre Lorde

In this lyrical yet unflinching collection of 15 essays and speeches, Audre Lorde takes on the social -isms that defined her life and many of ours. Through incisive prose, Lorde offers social action not as a theory but as a tangible tool for transforming rage into power.

Her Body and Other Parties by Carmen Maria Machado

This strange and haunting collection of short stories takes the familiar struggles of women and places them among the bizarre and fantastic. From a reimagining of the iconic scary story of a girl with a ribbon around her neck to a novella that examines and dismantles every single episode of Law and Order SVU, Machado presents sexism and violence not as an unfortunate normality but as an alien horror.

Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn

This psychological thriller follows Camille Preaker, a journalist returning to her small hometown to cover the brutal murders of two young girls. As Camille revisits the epicenter of her childhood trauma, she discovers the town’s facade of mild-mannered politeness conceals unimaginable horrors.

Nightbitch by Rachel Yoder

In this satirical fairy tale, a stay-at-home mother begins experiencing strange, animalistic changes to her body. This shockingly original novel upends and reimagines motherhood not as quaint and charming but as the ravenous, protective instincts of something beastly and powerful.

My Year of Rest and Relaxation by Ottessa Moshfegh

As a young, beautiful, and wealthy woman living in New York, our anonymous narrator should be happy, but she’s filled with a growing pit of emptiness and apathy. To cope, she decides to take a year-long respite from life, to “hibernate” by chemically numbing herself through a cocktail of sedatives, sleeping pills, and other medications. A darkly original novel on what it means to be a woman in the 21st century.

My Dark Vanessa by Kate Elizabeth Russell

In 2000, fifteen-year-old Vanessa Wye fell in love and began a relationship with her forty-two-year-old teacher Jacob Strane. In 2017, Jacob is facing allegations of sexual abuse. Reconsidering her childhood self and the relationship that she believed was consensual, Vanessa must choose whether or not to speak out against the man who shaped and transformed her life. This timely and deeply unsettling novel brings a fresh perspective to the troubled relationship between bright young girls and powerful men.

If you’re feeling angry, frustrated, or simply numb with despair, we hope this list brings you back to life and reminds you of the generations of furious women who have your back.

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