The 100 best books about power and politics by women

No. 11 on this list. Diving into the Wreck · Adrienne Rich · 1973

The title poem appears in virtually every major American poetry anthology and is standard reading in feminist literature, American poetry, and contemporary poetry courses. The collection sits firmly in the literary canon, comparable to Beloved (85) in academic reach if not in the broadest syllabi. No database data was returned, but Rich's place in American poetry curricula is well established.

No. 12 on this list. The Conservationist · Nadine Gordimer · 1974

Mehring, a wealthy Johannesburg industrialist, has purchased a farm outside the city—less for profit than as refuge from his collapsing marriage, his estranged radical son, and his unsatisfying affair. When a dead Black man is found on his land, hastily buried by police who cannot identify the body, Mehring treats it as bureaucratic nuisance rather than moral crisis. He prides himself on being a progressive landowner who pays fair wages and respects his workers, yet his liberalism cannot acknowledge the corpse as ancestral claim or historical reckoning. Gordimer narrates through Mehring's evasive consciousness, her prose registering the minutiae of farm management—cattle diseases, pasture conditions, labor arrangements—while circling obsessively around the burial site he tries to forget. The narrative crosscuts between his weekend visits and the farm's rhythms in his absence, where workers Jacobus and Solomon maintain routines inflected by meanings Mehring cannot access. When floods exhume the body, the workers perform proper burial rites, restoring him to the land in ceremonies that supersede Mehring's title deeds. Gordimer withholds resolution: Mehring remains uncomprehending, his ownership revealed as legal fiction layered atop deeper claims the novel anatomizes but does not resolve.

No. 13 on this list. Six Feet of the Country · Nadine Gordimer · 1956

Widely recognized as a cornerstone of post-colonial and South African literature. Appears consistently in university curricula and anthologies of significant twentieth-century short fiction. Represents a crucial moment in articulating apartheid-era social consciousness.

No. 14 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.

No. 15 on this list. The Man Who Loved Children · Christina Stead · 1940

After Randall Jarrell's landmark 1965 introduction rescued it from obscurity, the novel achieved masterpiece status, appearing on TIME's 100 Best English-language Novels 1923-2005. It remains continuously in print and features prominently in Women's Studies curricula. However, it lacks the universal recognition of Fitzgerald, Joyce, or Faulkner, occupying a tier below absolute canonical dominance despite critical consensus on its brilliance.

No. 16 on this list. The House of the Spirits · Isabel Allende · 1982

Taught in schools: Literatura, Diseño Curricular – Provincia de Buenos Aires (Argentina), UNAM Escuela Nacional Preparatoria – programas de Literatura (Mexico)

The House of the Spirits appears on a substantial number of university syllabi in Latin American literature, world literature, and postcolonial studies courses across the US and Europe. It features on several '100 best novels' lists and is considered essential reading in its genre. While not as universally assigned as canonical Anglo-American works, it holds a firm place in the world literature curriculum, particularly in Spanish-language departments and courses on magical realism.

No. 17 on this list. The Beggar Maid · Alice Munro · 1980

Widely taught in Canadian literature courses and short fiction seminars as exemplary of Munro's mastery and the linked story collection form. The book helped establish Munro's international reputation and remains central to discussions of contemporary short fiction. It's considered essential reading for understanding both Canadian literature and the possibilities of the story cycle.

No. 18 on this list. The House of Mirth · Edith Wharton · 1905

It is on the Modern Library 100 Best Novels list and on 928 university syllabi, placing it in the 74th percentile. It is a standard text in American literature and Gilded Age courses.

No. 19 on this list. The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie · Muriel Spark · 1961

Taught in schools: CSEC English B – Caribbean Examinations Council

Regularly taught in British literature and women's studies courses, considered essential modern Scottish fiction. Appears on A-level syllabi and university 20th-century literature surveys. Not as universally taught as The Great Gatsby, but firmly established in academic curricula focused on postwar British fiction and modernist technique.

No. 20 on this list. The Dream of a Common Language · Adrienne Rich · 1978

The Dream of a Common Language is taught widely in feminist literary studies, women's poetry, and American poetry courses at the university level. It has no dedicated Wikipedia article in the database but Rich herself is a foundational figure in the canon of late twentieth-century American poetry, and this collection is consistently cited as central to her legacy and to the feminist poetry movement of the 1970s.

No. 21 on this list. Parable of the Talents · Octavia E. Butler · 1998

Winner of the Nebula Award for Best Novel (1999). Widely taught in speculative fiction, Afrofuturism, and American dystopia courses. The Parable duology is among the most assigned works in contemporary SF syllabi and is firmly canonical within the genre; its canonical standing in broader American literary culture continues to grow.

No. 22 on this list. Burger's Daughter · Nadine Gordimer · 1979

Burger's Daughter appears on 68 university syllabi (Open Syllabus Project, 45.8th percentile), placing it firmly in postcolonial and African literature courses though not in the top tier of globally canonical texts. Wikipedia articles exist in 7 languages — modest compared to landmark novels — but the article runs to over 61,000 characters and includes a dedicated reception section, indicating sustained critical discourse.

No. 23 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.

No. 24 on this list. Alias Grace · Margaret Atwood · 1996

Appears on 292 university syllabi (61.6th percentile), making it a regular fixture in Canadian literature, postmodern historical fiction, and feminist literary studies courses. Wikipedia coverage in 8 languages reflects strong domestic reputation and moderate international reach. The 2017 Netflix adaptation renewed its teaching presence in contemporary courses on adaptation and narrative.

No. 25 on this list. Blasted · Sarah Kane · 1995

Now recognized as one of the most important British plays of the late twentieth century. A landmark of in-yer-face theater and a standard text in contemporary drama courses.

No. 26 on this list. Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry · Mildred D. Taylor · 1976

Taught in schools: CSEC English B – Caribbean Examinations Council, Singapore-Cambridge GCE O-Level Literature in English (2065)

Newbery Medal winner and a cornerstone of Black children's literature. Widely taught and frequently appears on essential reading lists.

No. 27 on this list. A Thousand Acres · Jane Smiley · 1992

A Thousand Acres won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1992 and secured major recognition as a contemporary American realist masterpiece. It occupies a prominent place in contemporary literary canon, particularly within discussions of feminist revision of literary inheritance and the domestic novel.

No. 28 on this list. The Earthsea Quartet · Ursula K Le Guin · 1968

Across four novels spanning decades, Le Guin builds the archipelago of Earthsea—a world of islands, sailing, and true-name magic where knowing a thing's true name gives power over it. A Wizard of Earthsea follows the young wizard Ged as he releases a shadow-creature and must pursue it across the world. The Tombs of Atuan follows a priestess freed from underground servitude. The Farthest Shore follows Ged, now Archmage, pursuing a wizard who has broken the boundary between life and death. Tehanu, written sixteen years later, returns to Earthsea with a feminist perspective, following the abused child Therru and the former priestess Tenar in a world where women's power has been systematically suppressed. Le Guin's magic system—where speaking a true name is the fundamental magical act—is the most elegant in fantasy. The prose is spare, rhythmic, and precise, closer to myth than novel.

No. 29 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.

No. 30 on this list. Tracks · Louise Erdrich · 1988

A central work in Erdrich's interconnected cycle and widely taught in American literature courses. Considered one of her strongest early novels.