My night stand is piled high with books. Always has been. My parents were teachers and my aunt is a librarian, so I guess it’s genetic.
Lately I’ve put aside the health books and cookbooks to focus on an entirely new arena of deeply important tomes: autobiographies and biographies of amazing women.
These books are completely inspiring to me. I now realize that these women not only changed the course of the world, made history and became household names, but they often did it with few resources, fought against a well-entrenched system, and often had children or family members to care for as well.
Here is my most recent discovery that my readers might enjoy and get inspired from, as I did:
A Taste of Power by Elaine Brown
This young woman of color rose from extreme poverty to become the head of the Black Panther party – a truly revolutionary accomplishment. This woman was at the heart of an organization that, while you may not have agreed with their politics or tactics, changed America. They started the free breakfast program for kids, and many other incredible social programs.
Elaine Brown was fiercely brave in the face of physical danger, helped to mold the political and social theories of a national, grass-roots organization, was the backbone of the party’s newspaper and raised a daughter. She is truly and inspiring woman, and her story has given me a lot of strength. I hope to meet her some day and shake her hand.
