Here are 100 books that Like a Girl fans have personally recommended if you like
Like a Girl.
Book DNA is a community of 12,000+ authors and super readers sharing their favorite books with the world.
In grade school, when Apollo 11 landed on the moon, I was immediately swept up in the craze for space and dreamt of being an astronaut. Until I was told by my teacher that girls werenāt allowed to be astronauts. I added that to a growing list of things I was told girls couldnāt do. Flash-forward to 2017, when a prominent man insisted that females should ādress like a womanā at work. Women from all walks of lifeāathletes, astronauts, emergency workers, and scientists posted photos of themselves in gear appropriate for their jobs, not the dress-and-heels implied. I was inspired by those photos and my childhood feelings of injustice.
Celebrate girls who love to tinker and build! It begins with an idea for something big or small. Materials found, tools gathered, and building begins! If a creation wobbles or collapses, āfailure isnāt final,ā the book reassures.
I am grateful that my parents recognized my early love of woodworking and bought me a tool kit at a young age. This is the perfect picture book to pair with a set of tools for small hands!
A brilliant, inclusive ode to self-expression, girl power, and the many things readers can create.
Have you ever dreamed of building something? Maybe something littleālike a birdhouse? Or something bigālike a skyscraper? If you can envision it, you can build it! A Girl Can Build Anything is a playful celebration of all the different ways girls can make thingsāfrom tinkering to tool wielding, from ideas on paper to big, lived-out dreams that require brick and mortar. This fun and empowering ode to self expression will inspire readers to jump up and immediately start to build. Because they can. They canā¦
In 1894, Annie Cohen Kopchovsky set out to ride her bicycle. Not to the market. Not around the block. Not across town. Annie was going to ride her bike all the way around the worldābecause two men bet no woman could do it. Ha!
This picture book, with watercolor illustrationsā¦
In grade school, when Apollo 11 landed on the moon, I was immediately swept up in the craze for space and dreamt of being an astronaut. Until I was told by my teacher that girls werenāt allowed to be astronauts. I added that to a growing list of things I was told girls couldnāt do. Flash-forward to 2017, when a prominent man insisted that females should ādress like a womanā at work. Women from all walks of lifeāathletes, astronauts, emergency workers, and scientists posted photos of themselves in gear appropriate for their jobs, not the dress-and-heels implied. I was inspired by those photos and my childhood feelings of injustice.
This book captured my heart from the first time I read it. As a toddler, the main character is praised for being āa big girl,ā but as she continues to grow, she discovers that being a ābig girlā soon becomes a negative thing that prevents her from doing what she wishes.
The illustrations are amazing, and fold-out pages can barely contain the growing main character and the empathy youāll have for her.Ā
A book you will hug when youāre done reading it, then immediately read it again.
3
authors picked
Big
as one of their favorite books, and they share
why you should read it.
This book is for kids age
4,
5,
6, and
7.
What is this book about?
Once there was a girl with a big laugh and a big heart and very big dreams. She grew and grew and grew. And it was good... until it wasn't.
When the girl grows big, the world begins to make her feel small. She feels out of place and invisible, and soon she isn't herself at all. But with the girl's size comes huge inner strength - and this helps her look past the hurtful words to see how perfect she really is.
With beautiful illustrations and a gatefold flap, this quietly reassuring story explores the experience of being bigā¦
In grade school, when Apollo 11 landed on the moon, I was immediately swept up in the craze for space and dreamt of being an astronaut. Until I was told by my teacher that girls werenāt allowed to be astronauts. I added that to a growing list of things I was told girls couldnāt do. Flash-forward to 2017, when a prominent man insisted that females should ādress like a womanā at work. Women from all walks of lifeāathletes, astronauts, emergency workers, and scientists posted photos of themselves in gear appropriate for their jobs, not the dress-and-heels implied. I was inspired by those photos and my childhood feelings of injustice.
Cars and trucks and things that go are not exclusively the realm of boys. In this rhythmic read-aloud, a dozen girls hit the road and sky with a rumble, vroom, and roar.
Kids will love the sound words and the repetitive āGo, Girls, Go!ā The bold illustrations are a joy. And an invitation near the end (āWhat about you?ā) encourages little imaginations to race away with possibilities.
Come along for a rollicking ride in this picture book celebration of vehicles that puts girls in the driver's seat!
Girls can race...and girls can fly. Girls can rocket way up high!
Piloting fire trucks, trains, tractors, and more, the girls in this book are on the go! Join them for an exuberant journey that celebrates how girls can do-and drive-anything.
The summer holidays have finally arrived and Scout canāt wait for her adventure in the big rig with Dad. Theyāre on a mission to deliver donations of dog food to animal rescue shelters right across the state. Thereāll be dad-jokes, rock-collecting, and a brilliant plan that will make sure everyoneāsā¦
In grade school, when Apollo 11 landed on the moon, I was immediately swept up in the craze for space and dreamt of being an astronaut. Until I was told by my teacher that girls werenāt allowed to be astronauts. I added that to a growing list of things I was told girls couldnāt do. Flash-forward to 2017, when a prominent man insisted that females should ādress like a womanā at work. Women from all walks of lifeāathletes, astronauts, emergency workers, and scientists posted photos of themselves in gear appropriate for their jobs, not the dress-and-heels implied. I was inspired by those photos and my childhood feelings of injustice.
I canāt resist adding this book about being a writer since itās my job and my passion. As a child, I donāt recall ever reading a picture book about writing. There were spelling books and penmanship books, but nothing about turning an idea into a story.
If you know a budding writer, this book is the perfect place to begin. Written in simple steps, it offers encouragement to keep going and even gives tips on revising. The journey of a future author could start with this book!
The inspiring sequel to the 2015 Parent's Choice Winner, How to Read a Story!
Step 1: Choose an idea for your story. A good one.
Step 2: Decide on a setting. Don't be afraid to mix things up.
Step 3: Create a heroine-or a hero.
Now: Begin.
Accomplished
storytellers Kate Messner and Mark Siegel playfully chronicle the
process of becoming a writer in this fun follow-up to How to Read a Story,
guiding young storytellers through the joys and challenges of the
writing process. From choosing an idea, to creating a problem for their
character to resolve, to coming toā¦
Iām someone who believes the accomplishments of women have been glossed over for far too long. I'm passionate about sharing the stories of women and girls that the world at large still tends to ignore. Itās critical to share these stores and to give face and voice to women. Social entrepreneurship, the topic of my recent book Girls Solve Everything, has fascinated me for some time: creative problem solving, tackling problems in our communities and the world, creating a business to find and facilitate the solution. Representation matters. Iām determined to write about and share the stories of strong, innovative, creative women and girls. Our future depends on them.
Athletes, Activists, Achievers. Rad Girls Can is chock-o-block with engaging biographical sketches of girls and young women who have taken the world by storm in nearly every discipline. Whether theyāre succeeding in traditionally male-dominated sports, fighting for climate action, or for education for girls, or accomplishing great things as scientists and inventors, each story is compelling and awe-inspiring. I wish this existed when I was young ā it literally gives concrete examples of real girls doing just about anything they put their minds to. The wide-ranging topics and diverse women enhance the engagement factor. I loved how readers are free to browse and focus on the stories that most appeal to them (chances are good, that will be most, if not all of them). Comprehensive, engaging, inspiring. What more can you ask for?
From the New York Times best-selling authors of Rad Women Worldwide and Rad American Women A-Z, a bold and brave collection of stories and art about inspiring and accomplished girls who have made positive impacts on the world before the age of 20.
You might know the stories of Malala Yousafzai, Anne Frank, Jazz Jennings, and Joan of Arc. But have you heard about Yusra Mardini, a Syrian refugee who swam a sinking boat to shore, saved twenty lives, then went on to compete as an Olympic swimmer? Or Trisha Prabhu, who invented an anti-cyberbullying app at age 13? Orā¦
Born and raised in New York City, my plans to become an artist got sidetracked by an interest in psychology. While in school, I graduated college, majoring in Fine Arts and Psychology, combining my two interests. I continued my education as a Graphic Designer at The School of Visual Arts. I worked as a freelance graphic artist for a while before starting a career in the creative arts therapies. While I enjoy a dark, brooding, suspenseful mystery, sometimes I need a little humor to round out those dark edges. Despite some bad things happening in the world, most people do silly, goofy, and often stupid things and you have to laugh.
My new best find is the Lacey Luzzi Mysteries by Gina LaManna. Along with smart titles and snappy dialogue, I fell in love with almost stripper Lacey Luzzi and her mafia family. The first book is a lovely introduction to unforgettable characters. Reminiscent of Evanovichās Stephanie Plum series, La Manna introduces us to gangsters, secret family history, questionable friends (Meg!), and her cousin. Itās a light and easy read for those dipping a toe into humorous cozy mysteries.
Lacey Luzzi's roller coaster of a life has been filled with the highest of highs and the lowest of lows. She just never expected the lows to be so...sparkly.
After falling on her face during an attempt to follow in her recently deceased mother's stripper boots, Lacey realizes she is not cut out for life onstage. She sets out on a yearlong investigation to find her true family, never expecting she'll find it with a capital F.
With a rumbling stomach, a need for money ("check engine" lights don't fix themselves!), and a conscience that operates at 78 percent onā¦
Eleven-year-old Sierra just wants a normal life. After her military mother returns from the war overseas, the two hop from home to homelessness while Sierra tries to help her mom through the throes of PTSD.
A thing I love about detective stories is that, from the moment they were probably invented by Edgar Allen Poe in 1841, authors have been playing with the form. Poeās The Murders in the Rue Morgue begins with a display of Dupinās ratiocinative powers, and detective stories do often involve a protagonist reasoning through clues and red herrings on the way toward the resolution of a central mystery. But the kinds of ācluesā we use to make sense of (or make peace with) the world are varied, and the mysteries that obsess us are vastāas illustrated over and over again in this mutable genre.
In classical detective fiction, the story of the crime is like a puzzle, and piece by piece, clue by clue, we arrive at the big picture. Subdivision is, in some ways, a classic puzzle mystery (it even involves a puzzle!)āexcept it doesnāt start at a crime scene. It starts with a woman arriving at a guesthouse in the surreal and Kafkaesque Subdivision where she now lives. She canāt remember why she is there or really anything from her past. Unlike more classical detective fiction, she is not a guide; I followed herātracking, assembling, interpretingābut when certain elements of the real (maybe) slid into focus, they did so mostly despite her. I couldnāt put it down, and notwithstanding its fairly cerebral tone, I cried at the end.
An unnamed woman checks into a guesthouse in a mysterious district known only as the Subdivision. The guesthouse's owners, Clara and the Judge, are welcoming and helpful, if oddly preoccupied by the perpetually baffling jigsaw puzzle in the living room. With little more than a hand-drawn map and vague memories of her troubled past, the narrator ventures out in search of a job, an apartment, and a fresh start in life.
Accompanied by an unusually assertive digital assistant named Cylvia, the narrator is drawn deeper into an increasingly strange, surreal, and threatening world, which reveals itself to her through aā¦
Iāve admired old buildings, hotels in particular, for many years. When immersed in a historic building, I find myself leaning in to discover what the walls might tell me if only I could listen closely enough. When I began writing The Hotel Hamilton series, I scoured the archives for historic hotels, learning how they came to be and how they've evolved through the years. One of the most fascinating aspects of hotel life for me is the juxtaposition of experiences felt by the guests versus those of the hotel staff. The upstairs/downstairs vibe of hotel life is ripe for creating tension within a novel, and that always intrigues me.
I slid into the grandeur and opulence of The Savoy with my imaginary suitcase in hand. Set in the 1920s and featuring Londonās heyday after the devastation of WWI, it is easy to escape with this novel.
I roamed the city streets in my mindās eye and watched with anticipation as Dolly set her sights on a life in the theatre. I love a good mystery, and this one had me dashing, right alongside Dolly, as she tried to outrun her past and make a future for herself with only her dreams to fuel her. I adore Hazel Gaynorās novels, and this book did not disappoint.
Privately and professionally, I've always been addicted to literature and history and stirred by the experiences that these studies reveal. Yet as a novelist (retired from college lecturing) I instinctively assume the comic or satirical mode. Whereas in analysing the poetry of perhaps T.S. Eliot, I'm totally serious, when creating a story I start to giggle. Psychiatrists might label this a defence mechanism ā but I suspect it's the result of formative years spent reading social satirists such as Huxley, Greene, Wodehouse, and Waugh. While certainly no imitator, I feel that this type of literature has become insidiously bred in the bone ā hence my listed choices being socially directed and often comic or acerbic.Ā
Part of Bensonās much-loved Lucia series. Gentler than Saki, this comedy of manners (also set in a bygone England) is deliciously entertaining, with its eccentric characters gleefully etched. Miss Mapp herself ā prim and genteel but with lethal eyes ā is a social snooper par excellence, and whose insidious wiles and steely shafts create havoc among the gossiping residents of sedate Tilling (firmly based on the ancient Sussex town of Rye, once home to Henry James.) As they negotiate the delicate snares of bridge, golf, and ācharmingā tea parties, cronies and quarries alike are pawns in her ruthless game of one-upmanship. It is a game she plays with relish and practised ease... that is until, elsewhere in the series, she is upstaged by the awesome Lucia. Hilarious.
The acclaimed author of Mapp and Lucia introduces the beloved Miss Elizabeth Mapp, a devious social climber, in this charming British comedy of manners.
In the English seaside village of Tilling, Miss Elizabeth Mapp keeps a thorough notebook about everyoneās business, including her servants. Whatever information she canāt collect through gossip, she discovers with the aid of opera glasses. Looking out from her window over High Street, she pays especially avid attention to her neighbor, Maj. Benjamin Flint, whom she has been planning for years to marry. Ā The second novel in E.Ā F. Bensonās popular Mapp and Lucia series, whichā¦
Zeni lives in the Flint Hills of Southeast Kansas. This tale begins with her dream of befriending a miniature zebu calf coming true and follows Zeni as she works to befriend Zara. Enjoy full-color illustrations and a story filled with whimsy and plenty of opportunity for discussions around the perspectivesā¦
I had always wanted a grand adventure and Iāve always loved reading about epic journeys. When I was a teen, I read an article in National Geographic about walking the Appalachian Trail and thought, I need to do that. I grew up in an outdoorsy family and married a man who loved the outdoors even more. But we never got to an adventure until we were empty nesters. In our late fifties we decided to walk 1400 miles from the cold North Sea to the warm Mediterranean on the legendary long-distance trail the GR5. After finishing our epic journey, I needed to share my love of European walking with others.
Wanderers is not a memoir. Andrews, who is a professor of literature in the UK, presents ten chapters on ten famous women writers who also walked.
I found it interesting to learn how some of the women left town before dawn to walk so that they would not be seen. Society at that time felt it was not safe for a woman to walk by herself. I was amazed at some of the distances that they walked; for example, in the early 1800s Ellen Weeton walked 35 miles in a day.Ā
I found the interconnection of walking to help writing and writing about walking fascinating. I will return to read this again and again.Ā
Now in B-format paperback, this book describes ten women over the past three hundred years who have found walking essential to their sense of themselves, as people and as writers. Wanderers traces their footsteps, from eighteenth-century parson's daughter Elizabeth Carter - who desired nothing more than to be taken for a vagabond in the wilds of southern England - to modern walker-writers such as Nan Shepherd and Cheryl Strayed. For each, walking was integral, whether it was rambling for miles across the Highlands, like Sarah Stoddart Hazlitt, or pacing novels into being, as Virginia Woolf did around Bloomsbury. Offering aā¦
