By Miranda Park (she/her)
CW: Rape
If you’re currently self-isolating at home and the cabin fever has kicked in, or you just need a little respite from all the COVID-19 news, maybe you can find some escape with one of these books. There’s no rhyme or reason to this list, just a couple of good reads written by women about women, that I’ve found particularly moving. I hope you do too.
1. Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys
This was on my book list for years and when I finally got around to reading it, I was kicking myself for putting it off for so long. Still one of the most poignant and evocative books I’ve read to date, Wide Sargasso Sea is a response and prequel to Charlotte Brontë’s Jane Eyre. Writing from the perspective of Mr Rochester’s first wife, ‘Bertha’ Antoinette Mason, Jean Rhys gives voice and complexity to a character who has existed in the margins of this well-loved classic.
Wide Sargasso Sea is an incredibly visceral narrative that comments on the deleterious effects of colonialism and the way Western literature carries, yet obscures, its enduring legacy of trauma. Artfully fusing parts of Brontë’s Victorian novel with her own contemporary language and mode of storytelling, Rhys humanises the famous ‘madwoman in the attic’ and sheds light on the racial, sexual and gendered tensions behind the madwoman archetype.
Wide Sargasso Sea is a relatively short read, but it’s jam packed with some fantastic prose. You don’t necessarily have to be familiar with the plot of Jane Eyre to understand and enjoy this book, and while it covers some heavy content, Rhys writes in a way that softens the narrative with her beautiful imagery and almost poetic writing style.
2. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë
If you’re going to read Wide Sargasso Sea, you may as well read the book that inspired it. Despite being a literary classic, Jane Eyre could easily be confused for one of those stuffy, ye olde worlde books where meek and mild women fawn over eligible men. But if you’re at all sceptical about this suggestion, rest assured, Jane Eyre is no damsel in distress (spoilers below)!
I mean, there’s nothing meek and mild about a girl who endures the ill-treatment of her spiteful aunt and years at a draconian boarding school, only to grow up to be a sharp-witted, yet compassionate and humble, young woman, who is the intellectual equal of her (dark and brooding) employer despite being decades younger than him, leaves the man she loves because staying with him would undermine her moral code, refuses to marry another man because it would go against her sense of self, then finally marries on her own terms after she becomes a wealthy heiress.
If that doesn’t scream 19th–century power woman, I don’t know what does.
3. Persuasion by Jane Austen
I’m a bit of a diehard Austen fan so I couldn’t resist putting this one on the list. While Persuasion is often eclipsed by its predecessors like Pride and Prejudice or Sense and Sensibility, I’ve always found Austen’s last completed novel to be my favourite. Austen loosely based this story on her own experience of persuading her niece against an ‘unsuitable’ match, but interestingly, she chose to write Persuasion from the perspective of the persuaded. It tells the story of sweet-tempered Anne Elliot, who at a young age was swayed from marrying Captain Frederick Wentworth. But 8 years later—and still deeply regretting her decision—she is forced to confront the consequences of her choices when Wentworth suddenly reappears in her life.
Why is this my favourite Austen novel? Perhaps it’s because Anne is such an underdog that she earns your wholehearted support as a reader. Or, maybe it’s the way Austen portrays Anne’s development from a mild-mannered pushover to a confident and autonomous woman that I find so satisfying. Whatever it is, I promise that this book will leave you with a smile at the end.
4. Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
This coming of age story holds a special place in my heart. I always return to Little Women with a renewed love for its vibrant characters and tender portrayal of sisterhood. With an affection that reflects her own lived experience of having sisters, Louisa May Alcott tells this story of Meg, Jo, Beth and Amy March and the loving (and sometimes fraught) bond they share.
It might come as a disappointment to some that Little Women is not exactly the trailblazing feminist novel which recent film adaptations have made it out to be. Indeed, Alcott remains quite conservative at times with her depiction of womanhood and traditional gender roles. But it’s easy to forget the pressures imposed on women attempting to forge their own career in a male-dominated industry, as Alcott was doing with her writing. In any case, you’re bound to find some enjoyment from this great read about sisterhood and young women’s pursuit of their ambitions.
*On a side note, while there have been many excellent film adaptations of Little Women—Greta Gerwig’s 2019 version being the latest one—my favourite would have to be the 1994 version by Australian director Gillian Armstrong. Armstrong has a well-known penchant for directing films focusing on strong women protagonists (My Brilliant Career starring Judy Davis is a fantastic example). I would highly recommend both films for your viewing pleasure.
5. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
It was my good fortune to stumble upon this gem of a book in a dusty corner of my house, because I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings is truly a gift for its readers. I was completely captivated by Maya Angelou’s flair for storytelling as she recounts her childhood in the American South during the 1930s. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings is the first of five autobiographical books by Angelou and it’s rich with delightful stories about her family, the people she grew up with, and the importance of religion and literature in shaping her perception of the world. I love the way she depicts her fierce and Godfearing grandmother, Momma, especially the rather amusing combination of awe and trepidation that her grandmother instilled in her as a child.
Angelou also writes eloquently about the powerlessness she felt in the face of adult selfishness and cruelty, her experiences of poverty and racial prejudice as a Black girl, and the trauma of rape by her mother’s boyfriend when she was eight. Her ability to confront these traumas with a clarity that is both brutally honest and deeply moving, is a true testament to her incredible resilience and mastery of language. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings is a beautifully thought-provoking read for those who seek a book that will both challenge and comfort them.
6. Everything I Know About Love by Dolly Alderton
I thought I’d save the best till last. Everything I Know About Love is a compilation of hilarious anecdotes, hangover-friendly recipes and parodic emails that trace the messy debauchery that has been Dolly Alderton’s pursuit of love throughout her adolescence and twenties. Written with a candid self-awareness and served with a fantastic side of British humour, Alderton pieces together the experiences and the people that have shaped her perceptions of love over time.
Whether Alderton is recounting three-day Tinder flings or reflecting on twenty-year-long friendships with her closest friends, this book is a meditation on lost love and a celebration of the love that is discovered in strange places and wonderful people. It also ruminates on the kind of love that is often the most difficult to obtain—self-love.
The first time I read Everything I Know About Love, I devoured it in one sitting. What I find most satisfying about this book is that at its core, it is a homage to female friendships. Among the many nuggets of wisdom it has to offer, it has taught me to cherish the friendships I have with the women in my life, because it is in those friendships that you find the kind of love which nurtures and sustains you.
Let us know your isolation recommendations in the comments below!
Book covers included here are for the purposes of review/criticism as allowed under ‘fair dealing’ copyright exception in Australia.