The 100 best contemporary books by women

The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood, Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel and Happening by Annie Ernaux lead the 100 best contemporary books by women, ranked by literary regard. To start, Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi is the most approachable of the highly regarded books here, about 2.2 hours to read.

Each point of light is one of the 100, placed by how hard it is to read. The brighter, the higher it ranks. The dotted line is one way up.

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No. 1 of 100

The Handmaid's Tale

Margaret Atwood · 2017

Difficulty 59/1007.7 hours

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Showing 100 books

About 819 hours for 99 of 100 books with measured lengths. Estimates use 250 words a minute, adjusted for each book's difficulty. At 2 hours a day, about 410 days for those books.

1–10 · 109 hours

  1. No. 1 on this list. The Handmaid's Tale

    Margaret Atwood · 2017

    Challenging7.7 hours

    Taught in schools: AQA GCSE and A-level English Literature (UK), OCR GCSE and A-level English Literature (UK), Pearson Edexcel GCSE and A-level English Literature (UK)

    The novel is a staple of high school and university courses on dystopia and feminist literature. It was shortlisted for the Booker Prize, appears on the 1001 Books list, and is published as a Penguin Modern Classic.

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  2. The historical novel that changed the genre's literary status. Thomas Cromwell's rise, rendered in present tense and close third person, made Tudor politics feel immediate. Core text in contemporary fiction and historical fiction courses.

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  3. No. 3 on this list. Happening

    Annie Ernaux · 2000

    Challenging1.8 hours

    Happening has become one of Ernaux's most discussed and translated works, widely taught in French literature courses at university level and increasingly prominent in Anglophone curricula following her 2022 Nobel Prize. Its frank treatment of illegal abortion in 1960s France grants it significant cultural-historical standing alongside landmark autofictional texts.

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  4. The final book in the Thomas Cromwell trilogy, following Cromwell from Jane Seymours death to his own execution.

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  5. Lorde is taught across literature, gender studies and Black studies.

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  6. The Dispossessed (1974) is one of the most taught science-fiction novels, read in courses on utopian literature, political philosophy and science fiction alike. It appears on most lists of essential science fiction and in the Library of America's edition of Le Guin's Hainish novels.

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  7. The Fifth Season won the Hugo Award for Best Novel in 2016, the first book in what became an unprecedented trilogy of consecutive Hugo wins for Jemisin—a feat unmatched in the award's history. It appears on contemporary science fiction and fantasy syllabi and in critical discussions of the genre's formal and political possibilities. Its position in the canon is still consolidating, but its influence on subsequent speculative fiction is already evident.

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  8. Pulitzer Prize finalist (2009) and the first entry in a trilogy whose second volume, The Round House, won the National Book Award. Taught in university courses on contemporary American and Native American literature, with an established academic presence in postcolonial and ethnic studies. Widely regarded as one of Erdrich's most formally accomplished novels.

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  9. One of Munro's most celebrated collections, frequently cited as the peak of her mature work. Winner of the Giller Prize and numerous international honors.

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  10. Gilead won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and sits firmly within the American literary canon. It appears on university syllabi and in lists of essential contemporary American literature, securing Robinson's place among 21st-century literary institutions. However, it lacks the canonical inevitability of works like Gatsby or Beloved.

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11–20 · 55 hours

  1. No. 11 on this list. Persepolis · Marjane Satrapi · 2000

    Persepolis is one of the most widely taught graphic narratives in schools and universities, a standard text in courses on memoir, comics and the modern Middle East. It sits beside Art Spiegelman's Maus at the core of the graphic-memoir curriculum.

    Easy2.2 hours

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  2. No. 12 on this list. Salvage the Bones · Jesmyn Ward · 2011

    Salvage the Bones is widely taught in contemporary American literature, African American literature, and Southern literature courses. Its National Book Award win brought it immediate and sustained academic attention, and Ward's subsequent acclaim has only reinforced the book's position on university reading lists. With 400 syllabus appearances it sits in the mid-canonical tier — solidly established but not yet at the frequency of works like Beloved or Their Eyes Were Watching God.

    Moderate6 hours

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  3. No. 13 on this list. Fun Home · Alison Bechdel · 2006

    Fun Home is foundational in graphic novel studies, queer memoir, and contemporary comics curricula at the university level. It appears on syllabi in English, gender studies, and art courses across North America, though it does not yet occupy the traditional Western canon. Its inclusion in Time's All-TIME 100 Graphic Novels list marks it as essential reading within its form.

    Challenging5.3 hours

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  4. No. 14 on this list. Interpreter of Maladies · Jhumpa Lahiri · 2000

    Since winning the Pulitzer Prize in 2000, the collection has become a staple of American literature and creative writing curricula, particularly in courses on immigration, diaspora, and the contemporary short story. It occupies a secure position in late-20th-century American literature anthologies and is widely taught in high schools and universities.

    Moderate4.1 hours

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  5. No. 15 on this list. Trust Exercise · Susan Choi · 2019

    Won the 2019 National Book Award, establishing Choi as a significant contemporary voice. The novel represents a major contribution to metafictional literature and MeToo-era examinations of institutional abuse. While too recent for full canonical assessment, it has quickly entered graduate syllabi and is widely taught in creative writing programs as exemplary contemporary metafiction.

    Challenging7.9 hours

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  6. No. 16 on this list. Parable of the Sower · Octavia E. Butler · 1993

    Routinely assigned in university courses on Afrofuturism, dystopian fiction, and American speculative literature, with placement accelerating sharply after 2010 as Afrofuturism became an academic discipline. Named one of NPR's top 100 science fiction and fantasy novels. Not yet as universally taught as Beloved or 1984, but firmly canonical within speculative fiction and gaining ground in mainstream American literature curricula.

    Moderate6.7 hours

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  7. No. 17 on this list. The Years · Annie Ernaux · 2019

    The Years is the central work of a Nobel laureate, widely discussed in Francophone literary circles and increasingly taught in contemporary world literature courses. With 0 syllabus appearances in the Open Syllabus database and Wikipedia data appearing to conflate it with Virginia Woolf's novel of the same name, its institutional footprint is still growing — expected for a book whose English translation appeared only in 2017.

    Challenging5.3 hours

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  8. No. 18 on this list. A Visit from the Goon Squad · Jennifer Egan · 2011

    The novel won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 2011 and was shortlisted for the Women's Prize. With 910 syllabus appearances and a 74th-percentile ranking in academic course adoption, it is firmly established on contemporary American literature syllabi. It is widely treated as a defining novel of the 2010s and a landmark of formally experimental popular fiction.

    Moderate5.1 hours

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  9. No. 19 on this list. Piranesi · Susanna Clarke · 2021

    Winner of the Women's Prize for Fiction (2021), with a Wikipedia presence in 39 languages — strong recognition for a novel published in 2020. Clarke's second novel after the celebrated Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, it arrived with significant literary anticipation and met it. Not yet in syllabi, which reflects recency rather than lack of merit.

    Difficult7.8 hours

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  10. No. 20 on this list. The Vegetarian · Han Kang · 2016

    The Vegetarian appears on 121 university syllabi according to Open Syllabus, placing it at the 53rd percentile — well-established in world literature and contemporary fiction courses but not yet a fixture of the Western canon. Its Wikipedia article spans 19 languages with a dedicated reception section, indicating growing international academic recognition following the 2024 Nobel Prize. Canonical status is rising rapidly but has not yet reached the 1,000+ syllabus level of established Nobel texts like Beloved (85).

    Challenging4.5 hours

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21–30 · 73 hours

  1. No. 21 on this list. 4.48 Psychosis · Sarah Kane · 2000

    Recognized as one of the most important plays of the late twentieth century and Kane's masterpiece. Widely performed, translated, and studied internationally.

    Challenging22 min

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  2. No. 22 on this list. A Girl Is a Half-Formed Thing · Eimear McBride · 2014

    Eimear McBride's novel tells the story of a young woman's relationship with her brother who is living with the after effects of a brain tunour. Not so much a stream of consciousness, as an unconscious railing against a life that makes little sense, and a shocking and intimate insight into the thoughts, feelings and sensual urges of a vulnerable and isolated protagonist, to read A Girl is a Half-Formed Thing is to plunge inside its narrator's head, experiencing her world first-hand. This isn't always comfortable - but it is always a revelation. Eimear McBride's debut tells, with astonishing insight and in brutal detail, the story of a young woman's relationship with her brother, and the long shadow cast by his childhood brain tumour. Not so much a stream of consciousness, as an unconscious railing against a life that makes little sense, and a shocking and intimate insight into the thoughts, feelings and chaotic sexuality of a vulnerable and isolated protagonist, to read A Girl Is A Half-Formed Thing is to plunge inside its narrator's head, experiencing her world first-hand. This isn't always comfortable - but it is always a revelation. Touching on everything from family violence to sexuality and the personal struggle to remain intact in times of intense trauma, McBride writes with singular intensity, acute sensitivity and mordant wit. A Girl is a Half-formed Thing is moving, funny - and alarming. It is a book you will never forget. The story is about a young woman's relationship with her older brother, who suffers a brain tumour in childhood that later returns when he is a young man. It spans roughly 20 years and is set largely in an isolated farming community in the west of Ireland at a time when the Catholic Church dominated every facet of a person's life. The first thing that strikes you about the novel is the prose style, which ignores all the usual conventions about use of the English language and quite brilliantly furrows its own unique groove. While it sputters along in fits and starts using half-formed sentences, incorrect grammar and isolated words, there are enough bursts of fluid and lucid writing to orientate the reader.

    Challenging5.6 hours

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  3. No. 23 on this list. A Number · Caryl Churchill · 2002

    One of Churchill's most frequently performed plays and a standard text in contemporary drama courses. Widely recognized as a landmark of twenty-first-century theater.

    Difficult58 min

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  4. No. 24 on this list. The Testaments · Margaret Atwood · 2019

    Co-winner of the Booker Prize in 2019 and a sequel to one of the most taught novels in the English-speaking world. Syllabus adoption is moderate — it appears in some university courses, particularly feminist literature and dystopian fiction, but less frequently than its predecessor. Its canonical status derives substantially from the cultural weight of The Handmaid's Tale rather than independent standing.

    Difficult13 hours

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  5. No. 25 on this list. Sing, Unburied, Sing · Jesmyn Ward · 2018

    Sing, Unburied, Sing appears on 71 university syllabi — a solid midrange presence, placing it in the 46th percentile of works in the database. It is widely taught in contemporary American literature, Southern literature, and African American literature courses, though it has not yet achieved the deep canonical entrenchment of Morrison or Faulkner. Its teaching presence reflects a novel still being absorbed into the curriculum in the decade since its 2017 publication, with significant room for that footprint to grow.

    Challenging6 hours

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  6. No. 26 on this list. Dear Life · Alice Munro · 2012

    Munro's final collection, published the year before her Nobel Prize. Regarded as a fitting capstone to one of the great careers in short fiction.

    Easy4.6 hours

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  7. No. 27 on this list. Don't Let Me Be Lonely · Claudia Rankine · 2004

    Don't Let Me Be Lonely is taught widely in contemporary American poetry courses, hybrid-genre writing seminars, and courses on race and American literature, though no syllabus data was returned by the database. Rankine's later book Citizen eclipsed it in mainstream visibility, but this volume is recognized as the formal and thematic origin of her "American Lyric" project. It occupies a firm position in serious literary syllabi without approaching the ubiquity of canonical novels.

    Difficult2.7 hours

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  8. No. 28 on this list. Half of a Yellow Sun · Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie · 2007

    Appears on 835 university syllabi (73rd percentile, Open Syllabus Project), making it a standard text in postcolonial literature, African studies, and diaspora fiction courses. Wikipedia articles exist in 18 languages with a substantial article (38,294 characters) including dedicated reception and adaptations sections, indicating broad but not globally ubiquitous cultural reach.

    Challenging14 hours

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  9. No. 29 on this list. White Teeth · Zadie Smith · 2002

    White Teeth appears on 1,210 university syllabi (77th percentile by Open Syllabus), placing it well above cult favorites like Infinite Jest while falling short of Nobel-author anchors like Beloved. Its Wikipedia article spans 12 languages with dedicated Reception and Adaptations sections, reflecting a book that has entered postcolonial and British literature courses worldwide. Named to TIME's All-TIME 100 Novels list in 2005, it is now a standard text in contemporary fiction and multicultural British literature curricula.

    Difficult18 hours

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  10. No. 30 on this list. The Accidental · Ali Smith · 2005

    The Accidental has achieved recognition as a significant 21st-century British novel, appearing on university syllabi and contemporary fiction reading lists. While not yet established in the permanent canon, it represents Smith's breakthrough to major literary prominence and exemplifies post-2000 experimental domestic fiction. Its status continues to grow with Smith's increasing reputation.

    Challenging7.1 hours

    Start this book
31–40 · 93 hours

  1. No. 31 on this list. Topdog/Underdog

    Suzan-Lori Parks · 2001

  2. No. 32 on this list. The Slynx

    Tatyana Tolstaya · 2000

  3. No. 33 on this list. Those Who Leave and Those Who Stay

    Elena Ferrante · 2013

  4. No. 34 on this list. Human Acts

    Han Kang · 2014

  5. No. 35 on this list. The Door

    Magda Szabó · 1987

    Taught in schools: Hungarian literature curriculum (magyar nyelv és irodalom) (Hungary)

  6. No. 36 on this list. A Mercy

    Toni Morrison · 2008

  7. No. 37 on this list. Flights

    Olga Tokarczuk · 2007

  8. No. 38 on this list. Penelopiad

    Margaret Atwood · 2005

  9. No. 39 on this list. The Luminaries

    Eleanor Catton · 2013

  10. No. 40 on this list. Jack

    Marilynne Robinson · 2020

41–50 · 59 hours

  1. No. 41 on this list. Brown Girl Dreaming

    Jacqueline Woodson · 2014

  2. No. 42 on this list. Purple Hibiscus

    Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie · 2004

    Taught in schools: Leaving Certificate English – NCCA / State Examinations Commission (Ireland)

  3. No. 43 on this list. We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves

    Karen Joy Fowler · 2014

  4. No. 44 on this list. Circe

    Madeline Miller · 2019

  5. No. 45 on this list. Hamnet

    Maggie O'Farrell · 2020

    Taught in schools: Leaving Certificate English – NCCA / State Examinations Commission (Ireland)

  6. No. 46 on this list. The Round House

    Louise Erdrich · 2012

  7. No. 47 on this list. Pas pleurer

    Lydie Salvayre · 2014

  8. No. 48 on this list. Bring Up the Bodies

    Hilary Mantel · 2012

  9. No. 49 on this list. Nox

    Anne Carson · 2010

  10. No. 50 on this list. Three Strong Women

    Marie NDiaye · 2009

51–60 · 95 hours

  1. No. 51 on this list. Lila

    Marilynne Robinson · 2015

  2. No. 52 on this list. Unaccustomed Earth

    Jhumpa Lahiri · 2008

  3. No. 53 on this list. The Buddha in the Attic

    Julie Otsuka · 2012

  4. No. 54 on this list. The Story of a New Name

    Elena Ferrante · 2012

  5. No. 55 on this list. LaRose

    Louise Erdrich · 2016

  6. No. 56 on this list. Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead

    Olga Tokarczuk · 2019

  7. No. 57 on this list. My Brilliant Friend

    Elena Ferrante · 2011

  8. No. 58 on this list. Brokeback Mountain

    Annie Proulx · 2005

  9. No. 59 on this list. The Goldfinch

    Donna Tartt · 2014

  10. No. 60 on this list. The Paying Guests

    Sarah Waters · 2015

61–70 · 64 hours

  1. No. 61 on this list. Foster

    Claire Keegan · 2010

  2. No. 62 on this list. Checkout 19

    Claire-Louise Bennett · 2022

  3. No. 63 on this list. Close Range: Wyoming Stories

    Annie Proulx · 2000

  4. No. 64 on this list. The Secret River

    Kate Grenville · 2006

  5. No. 65 on this list. The Silence of the Girls

    Pat Barker · 2019

    Taught in schools: Leaving Certificate English – NCCA / State Examinations Commission (Ireland)

  6. No. 66 on this list. Flight Behaviour

    Barbara Kingsolver · 2013

  7. No. 67 on this list. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

    J.K. Rowling · 2005

  8. No. 68 on this list. Autumn

    Ali Smith · 2017

  9. No. 69 on this list. The Marriage Portrait

    Maggie O'Farrell · 2023

  10. No. 70 on this list. The Seven Ages

    Louise Glück · 2001

71–80 · 74 hours

  1. No. 71 on this list. NW

    Zadie Smith · 2013

  2. No. 72 on this list. Devotions

    Mary Oliver · 2017

  3. No. 73 on this list. The Dew Breaker

    Edwidge Danticat · 2004

  4. No. 74 on this list. The Beauty of the Husband

    Anne Carson · 2001

  5. No. 75 on this list. Varieties of Disturbance

    Lydia Davis · 2007

  6. No. 76 on this list. On Beauty

    Zadie Smith · 2005

  7. No. 77 on this list. Visitation

    Jenny Erpenbeck · 2008

    Taught in schools: Bavarian Lehrplan Deutsch (Germany), North Rhine-Westphalia Abitur Deutsch (Germany)

  8. No. 78 on this list. The Namesake

    Jhumpa Lahiri · 2004

    Taught in schools: Common Core text exemplars (Appendix B) (US)

  9. No. 79 on this list. Blonde

    Joyce Carol Oates · 2000

  10. No. 80 on this list. The City We Became

    N.K. Jemisin · 2020

81–90 · 87 hours

  1. No. 81 on this list. Love and Information

    Caryl Churchill · 2012

  2. No. 82 on this list. Red Doc>

    Anne Carson · 2013

  3. No. 83 on this list. Girl, Woman, Other

    Bernardine Evaristo · 2019

  4. No. 84 on this list. Milkman

    Anna Burns · 2018

  5. No. 85 on this list. Binti

    Nnedi Okofor · 2015

  6. No. 86 on this list. Mr Loverman

    Bernardine Evaristo · 2013

  7. No. 87 on this list. Station Eleven

    Emily St. John Mandel · 2014

  8. No. 88 on this list. Carpentaria

    Alexis Wright · 2006

  9. No. 89 on this list. Harrow

    Joy Williams · 2021

  10. No. 90 on this list. Small Island

    Andrea Levy · 2005

    Taught in schools: AQA GCSE and A-level English Literature (UK)

91–100 · 110 hours

  1. No. 91 on this list. The Inheritance of Loss

    Kiran Desai · 2006

  2. No. 92 on this list. Hurricane Season

    Fernanda Melchor · 2020

  3. No. 93 on this list. The Hate U Give

    Angie Thomas · 2017

  4. No. 94 on this list. The Long Song

    Andrea Levy · 2010

  5. No. 95 on this list. Tomb of Sand

    Geetanjali Shree · 2022

  6. No. 96 on this list. Her Body and Other Parties

    Carmen Maria Machado · 2017

  7. No. 97 on this list. A Little Life

    Hanya Yanagihara · 2015

  8. No. 98 on this list. Americanah

    Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie · 2014

  9. No. 99 on this list. Transit

    Rachel Cusk · 2017

  10. No. 100 on this list. Burial Rites

    Hannah Kent · 2014

About this list

These 100 books are the highest-scoring eligible contemporary books by women currently in the catalogue. About 819 hours of reading in all, for the 99 with measured lengths. Difficulty runs from 51 to 66 out of 100 for the middle half of the list; the summit is The Slynx at 85.

This list is ranked by literary regard, with a consistent order for equal scores. Membership follows authors and co-authors, not translators or editors. A book is here when ReadingRate files it under Contemporary Literature as one of its primary reading domains, and only when its author’s lifetime places it in the period. Catalogue coverage and the historical canon both limit what this list can represent.

When we matched the Canons dataset to our catalogue in October 2026, our canonical-status scores rose with the number of school curricula, publisher series and lists in it that cite a work: the median score was 72 for books one such source cites, 84 at two, 88 at three, 92 at four and 93 at five or more. Prizes are left out of that count. Outside the state curricula, the dataset’s sources choose mostly from what has been translated into English or French, so it is a weaker check on other literatures. Source: Canons (Andrew Piper), CC BY 4.0

Questions people actually ask

What are the best contemporary books by women?
By literary regard, which weighs canonical status, critical standing and influence: The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood, Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel, Happening by Annie Ernaux, The Mirror and the Light by Hilary Mantel and The Selected Works of Audre Lorde by Audre Lorde. ReadingRate ranks 100 such books, each with a difficulty score and a reading-time estimate.
Which contemporary books by women should I read first?
Start from difficulty, not from rank. The most approachable books on this list that still carry top literary regard are Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi (about 2.2 hours), Runaway by Alice Munro and The Mirror and the Light by Hilary Mantel.
What are the shortest of the best contemporary books by women?
Among the top 25, the shortest are 4.48 Psychosis by Sarah Kane (about 22 min), A Number by Caryl Churchill (about 58 min) and Happening by Annie Ernaux (about 1.8 hours), at an average pace of 250 words a minute adjusted for each book's difficulty.
Which of the best contemporary books by women are the established classics?
By canonical status, how firmly a book sits in curricula, anthologies and the canon: The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood, Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi, Happening by Annie Ernaux, The Selected Works of Audre Lorde by Audre Lorde and The Fifth Season by N.K. Jemisin.
How long would it take to read the top ten?
About 109 hours, at an average pace of 250 words a minute adjusted for each book's difficulty: 55 days at two hours a day. Set your own pace on the page and the list's reading times change to it.
How hard are contemporary books by women to read?
Most of this list sits between 51 and 66 on ReadingRate's 100-point difficulty scale, where 40 to 55 is moderate. The summit is The Slynx at 85. Every entry carries its own score, so a reader can pick a great book at a difficulty they will finish.
How is this list ranked?
On literary-regard data: how canonically established a work is, its critical standing, and its influence on later writing. It is not a readers’ poll, which is why recent bestsellers rarely appear. Membership follows authors and co-authors, not translators or editors. Lists by country, author, period, theme or difficulty keep to literature (fiction, poetry, drama and philosophy), their novels, poems and plays first and their philosophy after them; a list of a kind of book, such as memoir or criticism, keeps every book of that kind. Every list holds at most three works by one author. A book is here when ReadingRate files it under Contemporary Literature as one of its primary reading domains, and only when its author’s lifetime places it in the period.