Books by women. Books about cool things women do. Books about how women shape our world. Here’s what I shared this month on Good Day Alabama on WBRC Fox 6.
By Becca Millstein and Vilda Gonzalez
I love tinned fish because it’s easy, interesting protein. I especially love Fishwife tinned fish because of the creative flavors. And now there’s a cookbook! Becca Millstein co-created Fishwife Tinned Seafood Co. in 2020 during Covid after recognizing a need for quality, sustainably tinned fish in the U.S. market. I love Fishwife tinned fish straight out of the can with some sourdough, fresh veggies or fruit, some butter or not, a glass of wine or not. My favorites include Smoked Rainbow Trout, Sardines with Hot Peppers, Smoked Salmon with Sichuan Chili Crisp and Sardines with Preserved Lemons. But this book, written with recipe developer Vilda Gonzalez, fancies this fish up even more by using Fishwife tinned fish as the basis for delightful dishes from around the world suitable for every occasion. Consider Tinned Smoked Salmon Deviled Eggs, Smoked Mackerel Udon, Fisherman’s Stew with Salmon, Mussels and Cockles. I can’t wait to try Rainbow Trout Tacos with Peach and Tomato Salsa once it warms up. There are meals for one, full dinners, late-night snacks and cocktail party bites. The book features beautiful photos of the dishes and the fish as well as the gorgeous signature, whimsical Fishwife illustrations. Gift this book with some of the pretty tins, and you’ll be the star!
by Samantha Harvey
This beautiful, thoughtful book, which won the 2024 Booker Prize, is unlike anything I’ve read in … perhaps ever. There’s no plot. No plot at all. The entire book takes place on the International Space Station, and it is, ultimately, a love letter to our planet. While only a couple of the six astronauts here are female, their voices seemed to resonate most with me. They are all there to do vital work and pave the way for more space exploration, but as they rotate around our earth—circling it roughly 16 times in a single day—spinning past continents, through night and day and night and day and across various seasons, they all are wondering: What is life without Earth? What is Earth without humanity? Even as they orbit above the silent blue planet, news from Earth reaches them: the death of a mother, a super typhoon spinning toward friends, the thrilling and occasional five minutes of conversation with a stranger on a homemade radio. We see how they live and work; the changes that space causes to their bodies; the constant distortion of time; astronauts and cosmonauts co-existing, sharing food, space in space. And the reader is privy to their private hopes and dreams and fears and the shared feeling of love for our fragile planet. Bonus: here’s a Q&A with the author: https://thebookerprizes.com/the-booker-library/authors/samantha-harvey
By Emma Josephine Rosen
Let’s celebrate the contributions of women for more than just one month. This book has 366 days of women’s history, spotlighting women who have shaped our world. This is a great resource for educators, and it’s a fun book for anyone, of any age, who loves history. History often focuses on men, regulating women to footnotes. In reality, women have been dynamic forces in every aspect of life. They are rulers and rebels, creators of all sorts. Despite the efforts of some historiographers to erase them, women have been shaping our world for millennia—they have always influenced our day-to-day. This empowering book about women from around the world offers a daily dose of inspiring female historical events. Divided into two parts, the first section offers a wide array of events for each day of the year, showcasing the contributions of inspiring women. The second section lists birth and death anniversaries and female Nobel Prize laureates.
I link to Amazon to show you exactly what book I’m talking about, but I love to shop locally at Church Street Coffee and Books, The Alabama Booksmith, Little Professor, and Thank You Books in Crestwood. And I visit my local library often in person and online!
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