Now that is summer and I no longer have school or textbooks to read I am finally able to read books for pleasure! Hallelujah! I can't wait to read books that tell a story all while learning more about myself and the world around me. While I can't wait to have my eyes glued to the pages of these books I am sharing my list with all of you so you're able to get some inspiration to pick up a book or two as well. It is always a good idea to expand your mind with reading. Below are five books and their summaries that I have gathered for my summer reading list. I feel that all of these books are inspiring whether they are written for women, leadership, or business (some of these choices fit all three). I'm ready to dive into the pages!
1. Lean In For Graduates by Sheryl Sandberg
1. Lean In For Graduates by Sheryl Sandberg
In 2013, Sheryl Sandberg’s Lean In became a massive cultural phenomenon and its title became an instant catchphrase for empowering women. The book soared to the top of best-seller lists both nationally and internationally, igniting global conversations about women and ambition. Sandberg packed theaters, dominated op-ed pages, appeared on every major television show and on the cover of Time magazine, and sparked ferocious debate about women and leadership. Now, this enhanced edition provides the entire text of the original book updated with more recent statistics and features a passionate letter from Sandberg encouraging graduates to find and commit to work they love. A combination of inspiration and practical advice, this new edition will speak directly to graduates and, like the original, will change lives.
2. Welcome to the Real World by Lauren Berger
2. Welcome to the Real World by Lauren Berger
The essential book every workplace novice needs—a smart, practical, and fun guide to help them navigate the minefield of personalities, learn to work with their boss, identify priorities, and ultimately kick butt at their first job.
It’s a challenging time to be young and new in the workplace. Your parents can’t help—the rules have all changed, and faster than guide books can keep up. In Welcome to the Real World, career expert and entrepreneur Lauren Berger arms a new generation of workers like you with the tools you need to succeed. She feels your pain. She’s been in your shoes. Just a few years ago, she was you.
In a world defined by uncertainty, she argues you need to be bold, take risks, and understand your value. She shows you how to think of your job as a link that will eventually connect you to the opportunity of your dreams. It’s time to get comfortable getting uncomfortable, she advises. Her essential handbook tells you everything you should know to make the most of your first on-the-job experience.
3. Mighty Be Our Powers by Leymah Gbowee
It’s a challenging time to be young and new in the workplace. Your parents can’t help—the rules have all changed, and faster than guide books can keep up. In Welcome to the Real World, career expert and entrepreneur Lauren Berger arms a new generation of workers like you with the tools you need to succeed. She feels your pain. She’s been in your shoes. Just a few years ago, she was you.
In a world defined by uncertainty, she argues you need to be bold, take risks, and understand your value. She shows you how to think of your job as a link that will eventually connect you to the opportunity of your dreams. It’s time to get comfortable getting uncomfortable, she advises. Her essential handbook tells you everything you should know to make the most of your first on-the-job experience.
3. Mighty Be Our Powers by Leymah Gbowee
As a young woman, Leymah Gbowee was broken by the Liberian civil war, a brutal conflict that tore apart her life and claimed the lives of countless relatives and friends. Years of fighting destroyed her country—and shattered Gbowee’s girlhood hopes and dreams. As a young mother trapped in a nightmare of domestic abuse, she found the courage to turn her bitterness into action, propelled by her realization that it is women who suffer most during conflicts—and that the power of women working together can create an unstoppable force. In 2003, the passionate and charismatic Gbowee helped organize and then led the Liberian Mass Action for Peace, a coalition of Christian and Muslim women who sat in public protest, confronting Liberia’s ruthless president and rebel warlords, and even held a sex strike. With an army of women, Gbowee helped lead her nation to peace—in the process emerging as an international leader who changed history. Mighty Be Our Powers is the gripping chronicle of a journey from hopelessness to empowerment that will touch all who dream of a better world.
4. #GIRLBOSS by Sophia Amoruso
4. #GIRLBOSS by Sophia Amoruso
#GIRLBOSS includes Sophia’s story, yet is infinitely bigger than Sophia. It’s deeply personal yet universal. Filled with brazen wake-up calls (“You are not a special snowflake”), cunning and frank observations (“Failure is your invention”), and behind-the-scenes stories from Nasty Gal’s meteoric rise, #GIRLBOSS covers a lot of ground. It proves that being successful isn’t about how popular you were in high school or where you went to college (if you went to college). Rather, success is about trusting your instincts and following your gut, knowing which rules to follow and which to break.
A #GIRLBOSS takes her life seriously without taking herself too seriously. She takes chances and takes responsibility on her own terms. . She knows when to throw punches and when to roll with them. When to button up and when to let her freak flag fly.
5. I Am Malala: The Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban by Malala Yousafzai
A #GIRLBOSS takes her life seriously without taking herself too seriously. She takes chances and takes responsibility on her own terms. . She knows when to throw punches and when to roll with them. When to button up and when to let her freak flag fly.
5. I Am Malala: The Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban by Malala Yousafzai
I Am Malala is the remarkable tale of a family uprooted by global terrorism, of the fight for girls' education, of a father who, himself a school owner, championed and encouraged his daughter to write and attend school, and of brave parents who have a fierce love for their daughter in a society that prizes sons. I Am Malala will make you believe in the power of one person's voice to inspire change in the world.
All of these books are written by women who have paved the way for other women all over the world. I can't wait to dive in and be inspired in the next couple of months. Here's to a summer of reading!
All of these books are written by women who have paved the way for other women all over the world. I can't wait to dive in and be inspired in the next couple of months. Here's to a summer of reading!
What's on your summer reading list? Let me know in the comments below!