Mel West's favorite books for when you need to feel better about not having it all together

Book cover of Conversations with Friends Book cover of Writers & Lovers Book cover of Tart Book cover of Bridget Jones's Diary Book cover of Everything I Know about Love: A Memoir

The best novels about a woman writer finding her own voice

Book cover of The Wife Book cover of Yellowface Book cover of The Love Songs of W.E.B. Du Bois Book cover of Little Women Book cover of Writers & Lovers

The best books about women without kids (that aren’t sad)

Book cover of Motherhood Book cover of Writers & Lovers Book cover of To the Bright Edge of the World Book cover of The Pull of the Stars Book cover of Great Circle

The best novels to mix humor with serious topics [with a quirky character]

Book cover of Anxious People Book cover of The Dutch House Book cover of Writers & Lovers Book cover of Nothing to See Here Book cover of The World According to Garp

The best books of coming of age stories with intrepid heroines who want to be writers

Book cover of Atonement Book cover of Little Women Book cover of Fun Home Book cover of Writers & Lovers Book cover of I Capture the Castle

The best books about the pain of growing up

Book cover of Writers & Lovers Book cover of Slow Motion: A True Story Book cover of My Dark Vanessa Book cover of The Lying Life of Adults Book cover of Marlena

The best books by and about kick-ass, strong-willed, independent women

Book cover of Writers & Lovers Book cover of Hold Still: A Memoir with Photographs Book cover of The Year of Magical Thinking Book cover of Olive Kitteridge Book cover of The Loft Generation: From the de Koonings to Twombly: Portraits and Sketches, 1942-2011

The best novels about women who love their job and do not feel guilty about it

Book cover of The Lotus Eaters Book cover of Moon Tiger Book cover of Writers & Lovers Book cover of Landslide Book cover of Light from Other Stars

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Book cover of Olive Kitteridge Book cover of Anxious People Book cover of Fun Home Book cover of Atonement Book cover of Little Women Book cover of The Year of Magical Thinking

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