Adult Bookclub Re-launch Day: Who's Your Favourite Female Author?

I still remember the joy and pain of connection when, as a teenager, I read my first Toni Morrison. I had been raised on books and always loved to read. I'd aced my English Lit O' level a year early and demolished tomes of child and adult fiction recommended to me by teachers  or well-intentioned adults. It wasn't, however, until I picked up a copy of the Bluest Eye that I was finally initiated into the necessary indulgence of reflecting self on the page. Here was finally someone who was articulating my experience and giving words to my story. It didn't matter that we were a continent apart, I was finally enabled to see myself within the pages of her novels and it was an empowering experience. It was a kind of rites of passage for me; an introduction to the world of self-exploration and discovery through black literature.

Its not just children who need to see themselves reflected on the pages of a book, adults do too. What female authors have made a difference in your life and why?

Join and expand our discussion this Saturday 30th March.