Here are the books by female authors that Indian men are reading

In the age of dark academia and performative males itrsquos finally cool for men to read But even as they pick up a paperback when it comes to literature women authors are often overlooked as their work is deemed as ldquolightweightrdquo and not serious enough Often male experiences are treated as default which is why women authors are left behindA study commissioned by The Guardian found that for the top 10 bestselling female authors only 19 per cent of their readers are men and 81 per cent women But for the top 10 bestselling male authors the split is much more even 55 per cent men and 45 per cent womenSo women will happily read male authors but men wonrsquot return the sentiment Barriers in publishing and media not enough inclusion in school syllabi and a sexist tendency for male readers to avoid books by women is why when one imagines an ldquoauthorrdquo a man comes to mind by defaultThis Womenrsquos Day take some inspiration from these men and pick up new women authorsThe student activistBryan Lobo a mass media student at St Xavierrsquos College Mumbai says that the last book he read written by a woman was the Harry Potter series by JK Rowling When asked about why men are less likely to read books written by women the 19yearold points out ldquoI donrsquot think enough men read in the first place Moreover maybe a lot of books written by women are geared towards a female audience and may not appeal to men I think men should just read more in general otherwise you are limiting your own chances to growrdquoBryan LoboYash Shah a secondyear law student at the Faculty of Law Delhi University is a big fan of ldquotrauma literaturerdquo in particular the works of Mahashweta Devi ldquoI could go on about Mahashweta Devi She was one of the first Indian authors I picked uprdquo says the 19yearold ldquoI really admire that her stories feel like quiet observant glimpses into her charactersrsquo lives One of my absolute favourites is Hazar Chaurashir Maa which follows a mother who discovers her son was killed as a Maoist known only as lsquoCorpse 1084rsquo Rudali is another favourite of mine It tells the story of a woman compelled by caste duty to mourn professionally for the elitesrdquoYash ShahFor the love of the gameChaitanya SrivastavaChaitanya Srivastava who works at Bloomsbury Publishing India says that when he picks up a book he doesnrsquot consciously look at the authorrsquos gender ldquoInterestingly many of the books I end up picking and loving thereafter happen to be written by women Irsquove noticed how women authors bring a distinct attentiveness and nuance to emotional interiors the quiet yearning flirtation sensuality and vulnerability that shape storiesrdquo He appreciates writers like Patti Smith Ann Patchett Sally Rooney Rachel Reid and Taylor Jenkins Reid who according to him approach characters with generosity ldquoThis Womenrsquos Day though Irsquom reading Everything I Know About Love by Dolly Alderton which is a memoir that delves deep into new adulthood friendship and of course love Itrsquos everywhere on social media and I thought itrsquos about time I finally picked it uprdquoA selfhelp kingVarun DuggiralaVarun Duggirala 43 who is an entrepreneur and author recommends the book The Gifts of Imperfection Let Go of Who You Think Yoursquore Supposed to Be and Embrace Who You Are by Breneacute Brown ldquoItrsquos a book which changes your relationship with yourselfrdquo he says ldquoI have actually followed Breneacute Brown for years I have read all her books and she has fundamentally changed how I live my liferdquo Another book he likes is Letter from Japan by Marie Kondo which he picked up a few days ago at an airport ldquoIrsquom halfway through it and itrsquos such a beautiful book about a culture I have deep curiosity for She brings up nuances of Japanese culture and why they live the way they dordquoVarun Duggirala recommends The Gifts of Imperfection by Breneacute Brown and Letter from Japan by Marie Kondo PICVARUN DUGGIRALADid You KnowWomen are more likely to be avid readers The Pew Research Center reported in the United States 32 per cent men have not read a book in the past year compared to 22 per cent of womenPedrorsquos print picksPicthreadskarileywritesgtgt thinspAll Fours by Miranda Julygtgt Are You There God Itrsquos Me Margaret by Judy Blumegtgt Autobiography of Red by Anne Carsongtgt Beloved by Toni Morrisongtgt Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead by Olga TokarczukJacobrsquos mustreadsgtgt thinspPrima Facie by Suzie Millergtgt The Secret History by Donna Tarttgtgt Frankenstein by Mary Shelleygtgt Cost of Living by Martyna Majokgtgt Wuthering Heights by Emily BronteumlSaifrsquos bookshelf selectionsgtgt thinspBlack River by Nilanjana S Roygtgt thinspPandorarsquos Jar Women in the Greek Myths by Natalie Haynesgtgt thinspThe Fountainhead by Ayn Randgtgt thinspVetaal amp Vikram Riddles of the Undead by Gayathri Prabhugtgt thinspThe Girl Who Could Not Stop Laughing by Meera Ganapath