A refreshing look beyond the distortions and rhetoric of the Islamaphobia industry in the US, Demystifying Shariah: What It Is, How It Works, and Why It’s Not Taking Over Our Country by Sumbul Ali-Karamali opens eyes to the rich & complex history & present of how Muslims try to faithfully follow God. Sumbul grew up in Southern California, and after becoming a corporate lawyer, she earned an additional degree in Islamic law.

The Thread Collectors. is a co-authored book, all the more compelling because of the family connections of the authors to the events of this story, set during the Civil War, much of it in Louisiana, and centering around two couples, one couple enslaved, and the other couple White & Jewish. Shaunna J.

Bahareh Zare Bahari is distinct in so many ways - as an Iranian woman who, in her early 20's, started her own school, soon shut down by the regime in Iran, who then moved to the Philippines to become a Doctor of Dentistry, and who won 3 beauty queen crowns, using the opportunity to both hold up the beauty & power of the Iranian women and people. Because of her witness, she has been threatened, nearly abducted, and had her nose broken.

The women's rights effort in Egypt looks different from that of the USA, with some overlap, addressing things like FGM (Female Genital Mutilation) and child marriage, but also economic, employment, & other civil rights. Reda Eldanbouki is the founder & executive director of the Women’s Center for Guidance and Legal Awareness (WCGLA), working to ensure that women enjoy all of their human rights. Reda has faced attacks & violence because of his support for women & women's rights.

Hellen Lunkuse Waiswa Tanyinga is a women's (and human) rights pioneer in Uganda and the founder of the Rape Hurts Foundation. At the age of 11 she was raped while doing the tradtionally female job of hauling water, and she transformed that pain into healing & power for herself, women, and all abused people.

Not All Poor People Are Black (and other things we need to think more about) is a collection of essays by Janet Cheatham Bell, treating the reader to the insights and experiences of a strong African American woman from Indiana. Janet speaks movingly, honestly, and inspirationally of racism, spirituality, politics, and much more. With astonishing candor and humble brilliance, Janet opens eyes and minds.