Go up to the third floor of Thomas Library and take a right. Go just a little further, over by the study carrels and desks, and there you will find them: books about women. Among the books about marriage and divorce, sexuality, families, and life skills, you will find books about gendered histories and masculinities; about feminist theory and feminist quotations; and about the role women have played in society, and what society expects of them. However, this is not the only place where you can find books about women and gender. Just about every class in the Library of Congress system has books devoted to women, you just have to know how to search.
A good way to find books about women is to search using the Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH). The LCSH is a controlled list of vocabulary used to describe the content of a book, movie, document, or any other item. When we say controlled, we mean that a certain word has been selected out of a group of words that mean the same thing. You can find the right subject heading by going to the Library of Congress’s website. The LCSH for books about women is, straightforwardly enough, women. If you want a book about female potters, you could use the search term women potters. If you are having trouble using subject headings, try searching by keyword.
Recommended Titles
For this month we have a wide selection of recommended titles for Women’s History Month. Take a look and see what interests you.
*To access the Choice Reviews, click on the link, then click on the photo in the catalog. Select Reviews.
Women and philosophy in eighteenth-century Germany
See what Choice Reviews has to say about this book: “The book is challenging, insightful, and should be required reading alongside the philosophies of Leibniz, Kant, and other male philosophers in order to gain a better understanding of the period.”
Griot Potters of the Folona: the history of an African Ceramic tradition
See what Dr. Mary Jo Arnoldi has to say about this book: “Who are the potters of the Folona region of Mali, the wives of griots and not blacksmiths? These women clearly do not fit the dominant occupational paradigm of potters in the Mande world. What then are their histories? In order to answer this question and to uncover these women’s complex identities that have been forged over generations, Barbara Frank takes the reader on a compelling journey across a wide swath of West Africa.”
Older women who work : resilience, choice, and change
See what Choice Reviews has to say about this book: “Older women who work: Resilience, choice, and change, edited by Cole (Russell Sage College) and Hollis-Sawyer (Northeastern Illinois Univ.), is an engaging feminist collection of studies on an increasingly important sector of the worldwide workforce.”
Sexual citizenship and queer post-feminism : young women’s health and identity politics
See what Choice Reviews has to say about this book: “Informed by the tenets of (post)feminism, neoliberalism, and queer theory, Grant (Univ. of Tasmania, Australia) identifies the material and discursive barrier that queer cis women and non-binary persons can encounter as they try to live healthy, agentic, and responsible sexual lives…A theoretical, practical, deliberate, and sensitive book that will improve sexual inclusivity across a variety of relational, educational, and medical situations and contexts.”
Women’s empowerment and disempowerment in Brazil : the rise and fall of President Dilma Rousseff
See what Leslie Schwindt-Bayer says about this book: “Dos Santos and Jalalzai’s impressive book breaks new ground by employing a women’s political empowerment approach to the election and governing of Brazil’s first female president, Dilma Rousseff. Their careful and thorough analysis shows that Rousseff empowered women more than any of her male predecessors or successors.”
Violence against women : what everyone needs to know
See what Flavia Bellieni says about this book: “This book is complex and yet refreshing. It brings the contentious issue of violence against women to the forefront of the Australian and international academic debate. True’s work is indispensable reading for all those with an interest in gender and international relations, politics and gender, women’s rights, feminist theory, conflict studies, feminist legal theory, and women’s empowerment in the workplace.”
The flowering : the autobiography of Judy Chicago
See what Choice Reviews says about this book: “Judy Chicago’s detailed autobiography is the definitive telling of her personal life and studio practice…Chicago changed the way people look at the work of women artists. This autobiography, which includes the highlights and the low points of her life and career, demonstrates her determination and persistence, which are truly inspirational.”
By her hand : Artemisia Gentileschi and women artists in Italy, 1500-1800
See what Choice Reviews says about this book: “In recent years, women artists of the early modern period have received increasing attention from scholars, writers, collectors, and the general public. This exhibition catalogue—as the exhibit itself did, of course—builds on that momentum.”
Black women and public health : strategies to name, locate, and change systems of power
See what Kisha B Holden says about this book: “This exceptional volume interweaves contributions from leading scholar-activists dedicated to social justice for—and the physical and mental wellness of—American Black girls and women. Well-researched and richly contextual, it provides a space and a place to ‘hear; from Black women themselves about how race, gender, and class negatively impact their health.”