Shrewed by Elizabeth Renzetti. Renzetti, columnist for the Globe and Mail, raises many questions about feminism in this collection of essays. She tackles everything from why there are so few women in politics to the future of feminism and she does it all with wit and intelligence. While this book may make you cry it will certainly make you laugh.

What Does Consent Really Mean by Pete Wallis and Thalia Wallis. This is a graphic novel that explains consent through conversations amongst a group of teens. The reader will explore with the characters what consent looks and feels like with examples that range from tickling to being coerced into watching porn. The book also covers depictions of sexuality in the media and online and how these depictions influence society’s ideas around sexuality for both men and women. Aimed at teens this book covers many of the issues around consent and is a great starting point for conversations around this topic.

We Should All Be Feminists and Dear Ijeawele: A Feminist Manifesto in 15 Suggestions are two small and easy to read volumes by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. These two short books offer passionate suggestions for why our world needs to embrace feminism and equality. In each she argues that we need to celebrate women and girls in all of their talents but that we do boys and men a disservice by not teaching them to embrace equality and a more open world view. Dear Ijeawele would be a great starting point for young people.

We Should All Be Feminists and Dear Ijeawele: A Feminist Manifesto in 15 Suggestions are two small and easy to read volumes by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. These two short books offer passionate suggestions for why our world needs to embrace feminism and equality. In each she argues that we need to celebrate women and girls in all of their talents but that we do boys and men a disservice by not teaching them to embrace equality and a more open world view. Dear Ijeawele would be a great starting point for young people.

F Bomb: Dispatches from the War on Feminism by Lauren McKeon. While feminism is experiencing a moment right now, those against feminism, men and women alike, are still working hard to discredit this movement. In this book, McKeon unpacks those arguments and gets inside the issues that are leading to divisiveness within the feminist movement. She calls for a broader representation of voices that brings everyone forward and asks those with a voice to create opportunities for marginalized groups to be heard.

In Zoe Whittal’s novel The Best Kind of People, the author places us right in the middle of sex scandal. The family and community of Avalon Hills must deal with the fallout when a popular teacher at a private high school is accused of sexual misconduct on a ski trip. This excellent book offers no easy answers. The reader, like the citizens of this small town, is subject to rumours and opinions without actually knowing what happened. What is revealed is the social impact on this family, their status in a community that has rolled in on itself and the cruelty that is born from fear. All pretenses to civility are dropped as the community brings down their judgments about who is guilty and who will pay for those crimes.