Maddaddam by Margaret Atwood

You guessed it, this is the conclusion to my beloved Maddaddam trilogy in which our heroes work together to go on a quest and plan to rebuild civilization, with many of the same problems that existed before the Flood. It's a great one, showing you can still have moving scenes and true heroism in a satirical speculative fiction. 

The Year of the Flood by Margaret Atwod

You may have guessed it, this book is the sequel to Oryx and Crake, the 2nd in the Maddaddam trilogy. Like many good trilogies, this one stars a different set of characters and focuses on a religious cult that has predicted the events to come in Oryx and Crake (the end of humanity). The Year of the Flood gives a stronger glimpse of what life is like in this theoretical future for those who are both female and less fortunate than Jimmy and Crake. Needless to say, it's juicy and makes you wonder if the prophet was privy to the nature and source of the pending flood. 

Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood

This is the first entry in one of my favorite scifi trilogies to date. It's about the end of humanity as we know it and how it came to be in a world of (of course) extreme capitalism with prestigious schools who specifially choose students who lack empathy and value for any life other than their own. It's a very fun, immersive trip with shades of clever social commentary tucked into every scene. I highly recommend it to anyone who isn't touchy about their privilege and social norms. 

A Room of One's Own by Virgia Woolf

You might consider this Woolf's original (pre)feminist manifesto, originally used in lectures at the few women's colleges of the time. Even today, I think this could be an adequate foray into feminist ideas, especially for someone who has never thought about the work that has gone into patriachy, for patriarchy. Though I don't think Woolf used such terminology, mostly talking about the (then short) history of women in literature, and perhaps inventing the concept of Shakespeare's brilliant sister.

Woolf also had some very forward-thinking, though probably not applicable today, ideas about gender fluidity, seeing the writer within as a woman. That's why men were so threatened by women, superior writers, in fiction. However educational, I don't think this is the ideal book for any who seek empowerment while oppressed by today's weird world.