For the Girls: The Best Female Characters & Books About Womanhood

This week’s episode is for the girls! We’re celebrating the female characters who live rent-free in our heads and the books that capture the many layers of girlhood and womanhood.

From messy and morally gray icons to tender portrayals of friendship, ambition, motherhood, and female rage, we’re diving into the stories that made us feel seen. We talk about some of our favorite women in fiction, the books that best capture the female experience, and why certain characters resonate so deeply with readers.