11 Non-Fiction Books About Famous Women That You Should Read

Cover of Notorious RBG, by Irin Carmon and Shana Knizhnik. Image via the Notorious RBG Tumblr and publisher Dey Street Books

10. Notorious RBG

Of course we have a book about the Notorious RBG on here. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg has a Tumblr dedicated to her, borrowing from rapper the Notorious B.I.G. And yes, the justice is aware of the memes and would prefer to be “notorious” rather than a queen.

Anyway, Notorious RBG: The Life and Times of Ruth Bader Ginsburg comes from the creator of the Notorious RBG Tumblr, Shana Knizhnik, and MSNBC reporter Irin Carmon. Together, they not only tell the story of how Ruth Bader Ginsburg became the notorious justice with killer dissents, but actually analyze excerpts from her opinions over the years. Instead of just dryly reprinting those opinions, the notes helpfully explain the allusions and explanations found in them to give readers a clearer sense of just what the justice is talking about.

Funny, informative, and oh-so-entertaining with chapter titles stemming from the Notorious B.I.G’s lyrics, Notorious RBG is almost compulsively readable. It also includes plenty of photographs and images collected from the Internet for illustrations. Goodreads praises it for its unabashedly feminist look at the life of Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

For more reading, you can check out My Own Words, a collection of her speeches and writings over the years.