6 Terrific Books for Getting Girls Into Tech

March 20, 2019 0 By JohnValbyNation

WIRED ICON

Susan Wojcicki, CEO of YouTube

NOMINATES

Geetha Murali, CEO of Room to Read

Geetha Murali’s mother grew up in Chennai, India, in a family in which child marriage was common. When she was 13, she rebelled and went to school instead. “Education became a driving force in her life,” Murali says. “She instilled that obsession in me.” Murali went on to earn two master’s degrees (in statistics and South Asian studies) and a PhD. In 2013, as the chief development officer of literacy nonprofit Room to Read, an education nonprofit , she caught the attention of Susan Wojcicki, who later joined the board. Inspired by her own 9-year-old daughter, Murali shared her picks for budding technologists.

Lab Girl

by Hope Jahren
This memoir describes the geobiologist’s relationships with her scientist father and, later, a female coworker. I like that it shows a girl having mentors that are male and female.

Brazen: Rebel Ladies Who Rocked the World

by Pénélope Bagieu
A graphic novel in which women rebel against societal norms and conquer their respective fields, from exploration to invention.

Headstrong: 52 Women Who Changed Science and the World

by Rachel Swaby
Swaby shines a light on dozens of pioneers in science and mathematics.

The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate

by Jacqueline Kelly
The tale of a 19th-century girl exploring the secrets of Charles Darwin’s book On the Origin of Species. I love how the heroine is driven by her own curiosity.

Girls Think of Everything: Stories of Ingenious Inventions by Women

by Catherine Thimmesh
Did you know a woman invented the windshield wiper blade?

Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls

by Elena Favilli and Francesca Cavallo
My 9-year-old daughter loves this book because it makes her imagine herself as the hero of her own story.

Photography by Halie Chavez

This article appears in the October issue. Subscribe now.

MORE FROM WIRED@25: 2013-2018

Editor's Letter: Tech has turned the world upside down. Who will shake up the next 25 years?
Opening essay by Virginia Heffernan: Things break and decay on the internet—that's a good thing
Edward Snowden and Malkia Cyril: Turnkey tyranny
Satya Nadella and Jenny Lay-Flurrie: Mindful tech
Jennifer Doudna and Jiwoo Lee: Taming Crispr
Sundar Pichai and R. Kim: Every eye tells a story

Join us for a four-day celebration of our anniversary in San Francisco, October 12–15. From a robot petting zoo to provocative onstage conversations, you won't want to miss it. More information at www.Wired.com/25.