Women's History Month Books - New Author Recommendations
Celebrate With AUTHORS for all Reader Types!
Readers are well aware of new books published by big-name authors. Serial Readers may collect all of Agatha Christie's books. Young At Heart readers rush to purchase any new edition of J.K. Rowling's books once they are released. But what about smaller authors, those without a big following…yet? What about debut authors? And what about those women author's hustling. Let's focus on them this Women's History Month!
Sometimes debut authors fly under the radar when their books first release. Many times readers aren’t recommended debut authors unless their novels explode on social media. This can be devastating for the author and potentially harm their chances of publishing another book.
So, let's not wait for books to go viral online. Instead, let's support the amazing debut authors who have hit the shelves within the last year or two. From non-fiction to romance and self-help to fantasy, we’ve put together a great collection of debut authors based on the Bookfinity Reader Types.
Browse by your reader type, interest, or author bio. Dip your toe in a brand new genre with a brand new author. Are you Young at Heart? Check out the adorable The Little Frog's Guide to Self-Care in the Spiritual Seeker section. Leading Lady reader types might enjoy Leslie Jones’s book in the Game Day Hero section or Selby Wynn Schwarts’s book on Sappho in the Work Up This Way section.
Check out our recommendations and support debut books from these talented women writers. You never know when you’ll find your next favorite author.
Beach Reader
The Quiet Tenant
by Clémence Michallon
NATIONAL BEST SELLER - A NEW YORK TIMES BEST CRIME NOVEL OF THE YEAR - GMA BUZZ PICK
Born and raised near Paris, Clemence Michallon studied journalism at City University of London and has written for The Independent since 2018. Her essays and features have covered true-crime, celebrity culture, and literature. She moved to New York City in 2014 and recently became a US citizen.
The Three of Us
by Ore Agbaje-Williams
Best Book of the Year | A Belletrist Book Club Pick
Ore Agbaje-Williams is a British-Nigerian writer and editor from North London who has written for gal—dem, Glamour UK and Wasafiri magazine. Her fiction writing has also been featured on Reflex Fiction.
Bookworm
Sea Change
by Gina Chung
A NEW YORK TIMES MOST ANTICIPATED BOOK
Gina Chung is a Korean American writer from New Jersey currently living in Brooklyn, New York. A recipient of the Pushcart Prize, she is a 2021-2022 Center for Fiction/Susan Kamil Emerging Writer Fellow and holds an MFA in fiction from The New School. She has also won many other writing awards.
Judas Goat: Poems
by Gabrielle Bates
Gabrielle Bates’s poetry has appeared in The New Yorker, Poetry, American Poetry Review, and other publications. A writer, visual artist, and cohost of The Poet Salon podcast, Bates is originally from Birmingham, Alabama, and now lives in Seattle, Washington.
Cool Mom/Dad
A Day with No Words
by Tiffany Hammond - Kate Cosgrove
An instant #1 New York Times bestselling picture book and Dolly Gray Award winner!
Tiffany Hammond is the voice behind the Fidgets and Fries platform. She is an Autistic mother, advocate, and storyteller who uses her personal experiences to guide others on their journey. Tiffany has a Masters in Developmental Psychology and spends her time teaching, coaching, and mentoring others in Disability Justice issues.
Different Thinkers: ADHD
by Katia Fredriksen - Yael Rothman - Jennifer Ball-Cordero
A child-friendly guide that strips away the stigmas, myths, and misconceptions associated with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
Dr. Katia Fredriksen graduated from Princeton University, having earned a bachelor's degree in psychology. She earned her doctoral degree in clinical psychology, and her clinical training included inpatient and outpatient psychotherapy and assessment with children, adolescents, and adults. She lives in the Washington, D.C., metro area with her husband, two children, a cat, and a parakeet.
Dissenter
The Story of Art Without Men
by Katy Hessel
Katy Hessel is an art historian, presenter, and curator dedicated to celebrating female artists. The founder of @thegreatwomenartists on Instagram and the podcast of the same name, she lives in London.
Game Day Hero
Leslie F*cking Jones
by Leslie Jones
A NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER | A BARNES AND NOBLE'S BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR | A TOWN & COUNTRY BEST CELEBRITY MEMOIR OF 2023 | A VULTURE BEST COMEDY BOOK OF 2023
Leslie Jones is a three-time Primetime Emmy Award nominee as well as a Writer’s Guild Award and NAACP Award nominee for her work on Saturday Night Live. She has also been honored as one of Time Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People. Additionally, Jones co-hosts the podcast THE FCKRY with comedian Lenny Marcus. Each week, Jones and Marcus interview guests and answer listener questions, while exposing “the fckry” of any given topic.
Leading Lady
Pineapple Street
by Jenny Jackson
A New York Times bestseller and A Good Morning America Book Club Pick
Jenny Jackson is a vice president and executive editor at Alfred A. Knopf. A graduate of Williams College and the Columbia Publishing Course, she lives in Brooklyn Heights with her family.
The Maid
by Nita Prose
#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER - GOOD MORNING AMERICA BOOK CLUB PICK
ONE OF THE TEN BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR: Reader's Digest
Nita Prose lives in Toronto, Canada, in a house that is only moderately clean. A #1 New York Times bestseller and a Good Morning America Book Club pick, The Maid won the Ned Kelly Award for International Crime Fiction, the Fingerprint Award for Debut Novel of the Year, the Anthony Award for Best First Novel, and the Barry Award for Best First Mystery.
Lifelong Learner
In Memoriam
by Alice Winn
GMA BUZZ PICK - INTERNATIONAL BEST SELLER AND AWARD WINNER
Patricia Hanlon lives with her husband, Robert, in West Gloucester, Massachusetts, at the edge of the Great Marsh, the largest continuous stretch of salt marsh left in New England. As a visual artist, she has painted this beautiful, edgy, ecosystem.
Eve: How the Female Body Drove 200 Million Years of Human Evolution
by Cat Bohannon
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
Cat Bohannon is a researcher and author with a PhD from Columbia University in the evolution of narrative and cognition. Her essays and poems have appeared in Scientific American, Mind, Science Magazine, and more. She lives in the US with her partner and two offspring.
Modern Romantic
Lunar Love
by Lauren Kung Jessen
Lauren Kung Jessen is a mixed-race Chinese American writer with a fondness for witty, flirtatious dialogue and making meals with too many steps but lots of flavor. She is fascinated by myths and superstitions and how ideas, beliefs, traditions, and stories evolve over time. She also has a food and film blog, A Dash of Cinema, where she makes food inspired by movies and TV shows.
The Nanny
by Lana Ferguson
USA Today Bestseller
Lana Ferguson is a sex-positive nerd whose works never shy from spice or sass. A faded Fabio book cover found its way into her hands at fifteen, and she’s never been the same since. When she isn’t writing—you can find her randomly singing show tunes, arguing over which Batman is superior, and subjecting her friends to the extended editions of The Lord of the Rings.
Mountain Climber
Up Home: One Girl's Journey
by Ruth J Simmons
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR: The New Yorker, Bloomberg, BET
Ruth J. Simmons is the former president of Smith College, Brown University, and Prairie View A&M University, Texas’s oldest HBCU, and the former vice provost of Princeton. The president of France named her chevalier of the French Legion of Honor and President Biden named her to the White House HBCU Advisory Board. She lives in Texas.
Wolfish: Wolf, Self, and the Stories We Tell about Fear
by Erica Berry
Oregon Book Award Finalist * Shortlisted for the 2024 Pacific Northwest Book Award * A Most Anticipated Book of 2023
Erica Berry is a writer based in her hometown of Portland, Oregon. A former Writer-in-Residence with the National Writers Series in Traverse City, Michigan, she is currently a Writer-in-the-Schools with Literary Arts in Portland. Wolfish is her first book.
Self-Starter
Fool Me Once: Scams, Stories, and Secrets from the Trillion-Dollar Fraud Industry
by Kelly Richmond Pope
Kelly Richmond Pope is a forensic accountant, professor at DePaul University and filmmaker who analyzes corporate crime. She teaches forensic accounting, managerial accounting, financial accounting and ethical leadership.
Rich AF: The Winning Money Mindset That Will Change Your Life
by Vivian Tu
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
Vivian Tu began her career as a J.P. Morgan Equities Trader. She then pivoted to become a BuzzFeed Strategy Sales Partner, helping brands execute multi-channel marketing campaigns. She made her first $1M by 27 and is the CEO & Founder of Your Rich BFF Media LLC.
Serial Reader
The Good Ones
by Polly Stewart
While The Good Ones is Polly Stewart’s debut novel, she has other books written under the name Mary Stewart Atwell. Her essays have appeared in the New York Times and Poets & Writers, among other publications. She runs the Craft of Crime Fiction interview series, formerly published on Fiction Writers Review and now appearing on Instagram.
The Golden Spoon
by Jessa Maxwell
Jessa Maxwell lives in Jamestown, Rhode Island, with her husband, two cats, and three-legged dog. The Golden Spoon is her first novel. However, she has authored and illustrated picture books for children. She has also written comics and cartoons that have been published in The New Yorker.
Spiritual seeker
Little Frog's Guide to Self-Care: Affirmations, Self-Love and Life Lessons According to the Internet's Beloved Mushroom Frog
by Maybell Eequay
Maybell Eequay is an Oakland-based artist who works in many different mediums. Born and raised in the breathtaking St. Croix River Valley, Maybell draws a lot of inspiration from her childhood homelife as well as her love of vintage children's books and knickknacks. Today, she enjoys making art that has a vaguely nostalgic feel paired with tender messages and light humour.
In the Shadow of the Mountain: A Memoir of Courage
by Silvia Vasquez-Lavado
Born and raised in Lima, Peru as a child she endured a period of sexual violence that would haunt her for much of her adult life. She founded Courageous Girls, a non-profit group dedicated to helping victims of sexual violence find their own sense of peace and closure through trekking. In 2016, she climbed Everest, and two years later completed all the Seven Summits, becoming the first openly gay woman to do so.
Subject Matter Expert
Ink Blood Sister Scribe: A Good Morning America Book Club Pick
by Emma Törzs
NAMED A NEW YORK TIMES NOTABLE BOOK OF THE YEAR & ONE OF THE BEST FANTASY NOVELS OF THE YEAR
Emma Törzs is a writer, teacher, and occasional translator based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Her stories have been published in journals such as Ploughshares, Uncanny Magazine, Lightspeed, Strange Horizons, and American Short Fiction. She has a cat named Igor.
The God of Endings
by Jacqueline Holland
Jacqueline Holland holds an MFA from the University of Kansas. Her work has appeared in Hotel Amerika and Big Fiction magazine, among others. She lives in the Twin Cities with her husband and two sons. The God of Endings is her first novel.
TIME TRAVELER
The East Indian
by Brinda Charry
Brinda Charry was born and raised in India, but moved to the United States for graduate school. She has always moved between creative writing and academic work and, at this point in her writing career, she considers herself a novelist-turned-academic-returned-novelist.
In Memoriam
by Alice Winn
GMA BUZZ PICK - INTERNATIONAL BEST SELLER AND AWARD WINNER
Alice Winn is the author of In Memoriam, a novel about two young men who fall in love in the trenches of World War One. She grew up in Paris and was educated in the UK. She has a degree in English literature from Oxford University. She lives in Brooklyn.
TRENDSETTER
Maame
by Jessica George
AN INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER! - A Today Show #ReadWithJenna Book Club Pick
Jessica George was born and raised in London to Ghanaian parents and studied English Literature at the University of Sheffield. After working at a literary agency and a theatre, she landed a job in the editorial department of Bloomsbury UK.
Your Driver Is Waiting
by Priya Guns
A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR: Autostraddle, Shondaland, Booklist
Priya Guns is an actor and writer previously published in short story anthologies, gal-dem, Spring magazine, and anonymously in the Guardian. She is a Creative Writing graduate from Kingston University.
Woke Up Like This
Vagabonds!
by Eloghosa Osunde
NAMED A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR BY THE NEW YORKER
LONGLISTED FOR THE CENTER FOR FICTION FIRST NOVEL PRIZE AND THE VCU CABELL FIRST NOVELIST AWARD
A Nigerian writer and artist, Eloghosa Osunde is an alumna of the Farafina Creative Writing Workshop, the Caine Prize Workshop, and the New York Film Academy, she has been published in The Paris Review, Gulf Coast, Guernica, Catapult, and other venues.
After Sappho
by Selby Wynn Schwartz
Though she has published numerous articles, Selby Wynn Schwartz’s debut novel, After Sappho was longlisted for the Booker Award. With a PhD in comparative literature, Schwartz currently teaches writing at Stanford University.
World Traveler
In the Shadow of the Mountain: A Memoir of Courage
by Silvia Vasquez-Lavado
Born and raised in Lima, Peru as a child she endured a period of sexual violence that would haunt her for much of her adult life. She founded Courageous Girls, a non-profit group dedicated to helping victims of sexual violence find their own sense of peace and closure through trekking. In 2016, she climbed Everest, and two years later completed all the Seven Summits, becoming the first openly gay woman to do so.
My Family and Other Enemies: Life and Travels in Croatia's Hinterland
by Mary Novakovich
Mary Novakovich is an award-winning freelance journalist and travel writer based in Hertfordshire. Since 1999, she has been focusing on travel writing and contributes regularly to UK publications. Although she has written several guidebooks to Croatia for Insight Guides and Berlitz over the years, My Family and Other Enemies is her first travelogue. Here she combines her travels in the region of Lika with a memoir exploring her family's complicated and often tragic history in Croatia.
Young At Heart
My Family and Other Enemies: Life and Travels in Croatia's Hinterland
by Mary Novakovich
Trang Thanh Tran writes speculative stories with big emotions about food, belonging, and the Vietnamese diaspora. They grew up in a big family in Philadelphia, then abandoned degrees in sociology and public health to tell stories in Georgia. When not writing, they can be found over-caffeinating on iced coffee and watching zombie movies.
The Davenports
by Krystal Marquis
*Instant New York Times Bestseller*
Krystal Marquis happily spends most of her time in libraries and used bookstores. A lifelong reader, Krystal began researching and writing on a dare to complete the NaNoWriMo Challenge, resulting in the first partial draft of The Davenports. When not writing Krystal enjoys hiking, expanding her shoe collection, and plotting ways to create her own Jurassic Park.
For more reader-type recommendations, debut authors, and curated book lists, check out MORE ON EXPLORE Bookfinity.
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