The New Feminist Know-It-All

[First subtopic]

The Feminist Know-It-All: You know her. You can’t stand her. Good thing she’s not here!

Instead, this column by gender and women’s studies librarian Karla Strand will amplify stories of the creation, access, use and preservation of knowledge by women and girls around the world; share innovative projects and initiatives that focus on information, literacies, libraries and more; and, of course, talk about all of the books.

Each month, I provide Ms. readers with a list of new books being published by writers from historically excluded groups.

The aims of these lists are threefold:

1. I want to do my part in the disruption of what has been the acceptable “norm” in the book world for far too long—white, cis, heterosexual, male;
2. I want to amplify amazing works by writers who are women, Black, Indigenous, Latinx, APIA/AAPI, international, LGBIA+, TGNC, queer, disabled, fat, immigrant, Muslim, neurodivergent, sex-positive or of other historically marginalized identities—you know, the rest of us;
3. and I want to challenge and encourage you all to buy, borrow and read them!

[Second subtopic]

Happy new year, feminist readers! Here I am with my annual plea for you to read.

As we enter a new year and an uncertain future, it’s clear that some of us need to read more than others, but we all need to read for relaxation, inspiration and knowledge.

I hope you’ll make it a goal to carve out some time to read, and I’m here to give you my top books that I am excited about this year.

I’m proud to say that I’ve always focused on independent and university publishers, debut writers and, of course, authors of the global majority. By this, I mean writers who are women, queer, aro/ace, intersex, trans, nonbinary or gender expansive; those who are fat, neurodivergent, poly, sex workers, immigrants, justice-involved or speak English as a second or third language; those who have, for any number of reasons, been marginalized or excluded.

While I do include books from the big publishers, it’s only on the talent or reputation of the author or because an imprint is doing some valuable work. Because of this focus, you may notice that I’ve not included some of the year’s most talked-about books on this list. It’s not that I think they are undeserving or that you shouldn’t read them; I just want to shine a light on those that are just as deserving (or more so) but that might not have the funding or marketing machines behind them. Every year, I also unintentionally miss some or release dates may change, especially for those publishing later in the year. Apologies in advance, but I do what I can!

I scour catalogs and websites, search my favorite authors, keep up with socials and try to get through as much email as I can to find the gems that I know Ms. readers will love and learn from. I look for feminist, queer, anti-racist, anti-colonial, original, radical and reflective books. Subversive books. Books that’ll make you think and feel. It’s a lot of work, but as a librarian and Ms. Feminist Know-It-All, it’s what I do! And it’s labor I love.

So, here are the top 100 books I am looking forward to in 2025. Whether these or others, let’s read. Read and encourage others to do so. Gift books to others. Read one and pass it on. Visit and support your local libraries. But please read. Read as though your life (or someone else’s) depends on it. Because it just might.

[Third subtopic]

**January**

• By Mary Frances Phillips. NYU Press. 320 pages. Out now.

  This groundbreaking volume is more than the first book-length treatment of Ericka Huggins. Phillips’ most poignant contribution is focused on Huggins as a spiritual seeker and leader.

• By Freda Epum. Feminist Press. 224 pages. Out now.

  In her debut memoir, Freda Epum tackles identity, mental illness, self-acceptance and belonging with candor, curiosity and poetry.

• By Dean Spade. Algonquin Books. 352 pages. Out now.

  Dean Spade is a force, and I am psyched for his latest, which challenges us to put our money where our mouths are in relationships.

• By Bianca Mabute-Louie. Harper. 256 pages. Out now.

  Goddess knows I love a good manifesto. And thanks to sociologist and activist Bianca Mabute-Louie, we have this accessible, intersectional, anti-colonial, anti-assimilationist guide for Asians in Diaspora.

• By Tao Leigh Goffe. Doubleday. 384 pages. Out now.

  This is a long-overdue examination of the history, mythology, significance and legacy of the Caribbean.

• By Cheryl L. Neely. Beacon Press. 264 pages. Out now.

  In this urgent and necessary volume, sociologist Cheryl L. Neely examines the infuriating and terrifying impacts that racial prejudice in policing has on Black women and girls.

• By Imani Perry. Ecco. 256 pages. Out Jan. 28.

  It’s about blue, it’s about Black, it’s about how they mesh and meld, how they web and weave. Imani Perry has given us something bold and original—again!

• By Tara Roberts. National Geographic. 400 pages. Out Jan. 28.

  Tara Roberts is a National Geographic explorer-in-residence who documents shipwrecks of the transatlantic slave trade. Her memoir describes her journey and findings, both personal and universal.

**February**

• By Loretta J. Ross. Simon & Schuster. 288 pages. Out Feb. 4.

  In this volume, Loretta J. Ross has committed her invaluable work on “calling in” to paper. Through poignant and personal storytelling, Ross candidly calls us all in, and you’ll want to answer.

• By Erin Crosby Eckstine. Ballantine Books. 368 pages. Out Feb. 4.

  On the precipice of the Civil War, a young girl enslaved on an Alabama plantation awakens her sister’s ghost when confronted with secrets, changes and choices in this haunting debut.

• Written by Maria Medem. Translated by Aleshia Jensen and Daniela Ortiz. Drawn & Quarterly. 332 pages. Out Feb. 4.

  This graphic novel is centered on a woman in a deserted town who finds her purpose in a flower until she meets someone who shows her there may be life and hope beyond her current surroundings.

• Written by Ann-Helén Laestadius (Sámi and Tornedalian). Translated by Rachel Willson-Broyles. Scribner. 448 pages. Out Feb. 4.

  I can’t wait to read this historical fiction based on Laestadius’ own family’s story. It centers on five Indigenous children stolen from their homes to attend a government-run boarding school in 1950s Sweden.

• By Keeonna Harris. Amistad. 224 pages. Out Feb. 7.

  As a young mother with an incarcerated partner, Keeonna Harris knows firsthand how challenging life as a “mainline mama” can be. In her debut memoir, she shares her experiences, wisdom and lessons for an abolitionist future.

• By Arati Kumar-Rao. Milkweed Editions. 280 pages. Out Feb. 11.

  I love reading about nature and people’s relationship to the land. In a volume illustrated with her own photos and drawings, Arati Kumar-Rao