Girl Up Suggested Readings
Books
Bad Feminist: this book explores being a feminist while
loving things that could seem at odds with feminist
ideology. (Roxane Gay, Harper Perennial: New York, 2014)
The Blue Sweater: Bridging the Gap Between Rich and
Poor in an Interconnected World: an inspiring auto-
biography of a woman who left a career in international
banking to spend her life on a quest to understand
global poverty and find powerful new ways of tackling it.
(Jacqueline Novogratz, Rodale: New York, 2009)
Cinderella Ate my Daughter: this book explores the
phenomenon of princess culture and in particular how
the concept is marketed to young girls. (Peggy Orenstein,
Harper: New York, 2012)
Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for
Women: a non-fiction book on the importance of investing
in the health and autonomy of global women. (Nicholas
Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn, Vintage: New York, 2010)
Feminine Mystique: a book which sparked the beginning
of second-wave feminism in the United States. In 1957,
Friedan was asked to conduct a survey, in which she
found that many women were unhappy with their lives
as housewives, prompted her to begin research for
The Feminine Mystique. (Betty Friedan, W. W. Norton &
Company: New York, 1963)
I Am an Emotional Creature: The Secret Life of Girls
Around the World: a volume that provides a searing look
at the inner lives of young females today in entries that
explore sex, violence, love, body image, materialism,
identity, family, friends, and the future. (Eve Ensler, Villard:
New York, 2010)
I Am Malala: an autobiography of Malala Yousafzai, the
Pakastani girl who was shot in the head by the Taliban on
her way to school and has since become a global icon for
education in the face of terrorism (Malala Yousafzai and
Christina Lamb, Orion Publishing Group, Ltd: London, 2013)
The Invisible Girls: an inspiring story about a girl scarred
by her past, a refugee mother uncertain of her future
and five little girls who brought them together. (Sarah
Thebarge, Jericho Books: New York, 2014)
In the Company of Women: an account of over 100
exceptional and influential women that describe how they
embraced their creative spirit, overcame adversity, and
sparked a global movement of entrepreneurship. (Grace
Bonney, Artisan: New York, 2016)
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Keeping Hope Alive: One Woman: 90,000 Lives Changed:
a memoir of Noble Peace Prize nominee, Dr. Hawa
Abdi, who provided both education and healthcare to
thousands of displaced Somalis (Hawa Abdi, Grand Central
Publishing: New York, 2013)
Kisses from Katie: an account of a courageous eighteen-
year-old from Nashville who gave up every comfort and
convenience to become the adoptive mother to thirteen
girls in Uganda. (Katie Davis, Howard Books: New York, 2011)
The Life You Can Save: a guide to how every person can
take a stand against global poverty (Peter Singer, Random
House: New York, 2009)
Monique in the Mango Rains: Two Years with a Midwife
in Mali: an inspiring story of an accidental midwife who
became a legend and the young Peace Corps volunteer
who became her closest confidante. (Kris Holloway,
Waveland Press, Inc: Long Grove, IL, 2007)
Sold: a series of short, vignette-style chapters, from the
point of view of a girl from Nepal named Lakshmi, who is
sold into sexual slavery in India. Lakshmi’s life becomes a
nightmare from which she cannot escape. Still, she lives
by her mother’s words — “Simply to endure is to triumph”
(Patricia McCormick, Hyperion: New York, 2006)
A Thousand Splendid Suns: a fictional novel that uses
the unique friendship of two Afghan women to advocate
for female autonomy. (Khaled Hosseini, Riverhead: New
York, 2008)
We Should All be Feminists: a book-length essay that
aims to give a definition of feminism for the 21st century.
(Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Fourth Estate: New York, 2015)
X, A Fabulous Child’s Story: a feminist story questioning
gender roles, and battling societies views on how they
raised baby X. (Lois Gould, Daughters: New York, 1978)
More Reads
Girls Count Series: A series of publications commissioned
by the Coalition for Adolescent Girls provides some of the
first critical research specifically focused on adolescent
girls in the developing world.
coalitionforadolescentgirls.org/girls_count
Girl Rising Book Club: Check out the Resources section of
the Girl Up Community for copies of the book Club resources.
Girl Up Suggested Films
Arranged (2007, not rated): Arranged follows two women,
one who is Orthodox Jewish and one who is Muslim,
who meet as new teachers in a Brooklyn, NY and form
a bond as they learn they are both going through
arranged marriages.
The Beauty Academy of Kabul (2004, not rated): Shot just
a few years after the US invaded Afghanistan, this hilarious
and moving documentary showcases Afghan women who
begin attending beauty schools after the fall of the Taliban,
a freedom they did not previously have.
Bliss (2007, not rated): Meryem is a young Turkish girl
who has been raped and sentenced to die to expunge
the dishonor her family feels. With the help of the village
leader’s son, Meryem flees the honor killing and embarks
on a journey to begin a new life.
The Color Purple (PG-13, 1985): A black Southern woman
struggles to find her identity after suffering abuse from her
father and others over four decades.
Difret (Not Rated, 2014): A young lawyer travels to an
Ethiopian village to represent Hirut, a 14-year-old girl
who shot her would-be husband as he and others were
practicing one of the nation’s oldest traditions: abduction
into marriage.
The Eagle Huntress (PG, 2016): Thirteen-year-old Aisholpan
trains to become the first female in twelve generations of
her Kazakh family to become an eagle huntress.
Freedom Writers (PG-13 2007): A young teacher inspires
her class of at-risk students to learn tolerance, apply
themselves, and pursue education beyond high school.
Get Together Girls — The Documentary (2013, not rated):
Filmed across slums in Kenya, this documentary follows
the lives of former street girls who are learning to become
fashion designers.
Girl Rising (2013, PG-13): The story of nine girls from nine
countries around the world rising up for their education.
Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for
Women Worldwide (Not Rated, 2012): A passionate call-
to-arms, urging us not only to bear witness to the plight
of the world’s women, but to help to transform their
oppression into opportunity. Our future is in the hands
of women everywhere.
He Named Me Malala (PG-13, 2015): A look at the events
leading up to the Taliban’s attack on Pakistani schoolgirl,
Malala Yousafzai, for speaking out on girls’ education
followed by the aftermath, including her speech to the
United Nations.
Hidden Figures (PG, 2016): The story of a team of female
African-American mathematicians who served a vital role in
NASA during the early years of the U.S. space program.
ITVS Women and Girls Lead: an innovative public media
initiative showcasing films about fearless women leaders
http://www.itvs.org/women-and-girls-lead
I Was a Teenage Feminist (PG, 2005): The film explores
the marked discomfort among many young, progressive
women to identify themselves as feminists and how that
discomfort came to be. Through personal narrative as well
as interviews with feminist icons and everyday women and
men, this film documents a complex, multi-generational
look at feminist identity in today’s world.
Iron Jawed Angels (PG-13, 2004): Defiant young activists
take the women’s suffrage movement by storm, putting
their lives at risk to help American women win the right
to vote.
Makers: Women Who Make America (TV-14, 2013): This
series documents stories of women’s contributions to some
of the most important moments in the history of America.
Miss Representation (2012, not rated): This exposé takes
an informative look at how the media portrays women and
how the over-sexualization of women by the media has had
a significant effect on today’s youth.
A Powerful Noise (2008, not rated): The stories of three
inspiring women are weaved into this documentary about
overcoming seemingly insurmountable challenges. There’s
Hanh, an HIV-positive widow from Vietnam; Nada, a
survivor of the recent Civil War in Bosnia; and Urbain, an
advocate for girls’ rights in Mali.
Pray the Devil Back to Hell (2008, not rated): Liberia, one
of Girl Up’s four program countries, has been devastated
by civil war. This documentary illustrates how Liberian
women united together to stand up to a dictator and bring
peace to their country.
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Queen of Katwe (PG, 2016): A Ugandan girl sees her
world rapidly change after being introduced to the game
of chess.
Samsara (PG-13, 2011): Filmed over nearly five years in
twenty-five countries on five continents, and shot on
seventy-millimetre film, Samsara transports us to the
varied worlds of sacred grounds, disaster zones, industrial
complexes, and natural wonders.
Seeds of Hope (2010, not rated): Hugh Jackman and
his wife Deborah Lee-Furnass travel to Ethiopia in this
powerful documentary which highlights the abject poverty
under which Ethiopians live.
She’s Beautiful When She’s Angry (Not Rated, 2014):
A documentary that resurrects the buried history of the
outrageous, often brilliant women who founded the
modern women’s movement from 1966 to 1971.
Suffragette (PG-13, 2015): The foot soldiers of the early
feminist movement, women who were forced underground
to pursue a dangerous game of cat and mouse with an
increasingly brutal State.
Wadjda (2012, PG): Follows the story of a 10-year-old
Saudi girl named Wadjda as she uses her fun-loving,
entrepreneurial skills to raise the funds she needs to buy
a bicycle.
A Walk to Beautiful (2007, not rated). This riveting
documentary focuses on five women in Ethiopia who are
suffering from devastating injuries they sustained during
childbirth. The film chronicles their journey to a hospital
in Addis Ababa where they courageously begin to rebuild
their lives.

A Small Act (2010, not rated): Using a strong narrative

and highlighting the importance of education, seemingly
separate lives are woven into a cohesive whole. With
clarity and grace, the film bears witness to the ripple effect
a single action can create.

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