Top Ten Tuesday: Female Friendships (Happy Galentine’s Day!)

Tomorrow is Valentine’s Day, so the prompt for this week’s Top Ten Tuesday is a freebie about love. But since today, February 13, is Galentine’s Day, I thought I’d highlight a different kind of love: friendships. I love when I find books with strong female friendships. Often books, especially YA books, can have petty and strained female relationships, but I wish there were more healthy female friendships. So grab your waffles because here are ten books that I think display awesome female friendships!

“Oh it’s only the best day of the year. Every February 13th, my lady friends and I leave our husbands and our boyfriends at home, and we just come and kick it, breakfast-style. Ladies celebrating ladies. It’s like Lilith Fair, minus the angst. Plus frittatas.” -Leslie Knope, Parks and Recreation

(This week’s Top Ten Tuesday prompt is a Love Freebie [Romances, swoons, OTPs, kisses, sexy scenes, etc.])

Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery: A list of wonderful female friendships would not be complete without the kindred spirits of Anne and Diana. I think these two bosom buddies were one of my first introductions into a good female friendship and I can only hope that my own friendships are just as meaningful.

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen: The Bennet sisters are some of my favorite sister relationships in literature, but I also admire their strong friendship. I love when sisters can also be friends as my sister is one of my closest companions. And even though the Bennet sisters may fight or have disagreements, they still love each other, which is the most important thing of all.

Christy Miller series by Robin Jones Gunn: In the Christy Miller books, Christy and Co. refer to each other as “forever friends,” which is quite fitting for a group of friends that stick with one another through the thick and thin. I have several friendships that I would consider “forever friends,” and just like Christy, I’m grateful these people are in my life.

The Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer: The whole gang of The Lunar Chronicles is wonderful, but I love how close knit the female characters become over the course of the book. Cinder, Scarlet, Cress, Winter, and yes, even Iko, are wildly different from one another, but they were able to push past their differences, their opinions and mindsets, and their strengths and weaknesses to save the world.

Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor: Karou and Zuzana’s friendship is amazing. I love how honest they are with one another and that they keep each other’s lives interesting. I have no doubt both of them would do whatever it took to help the other, which is proven over and over throughout the trilogy.

Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo: All of Leigh Bardugo’s books have wonderful female friendships, but my favorite is the relationship between Nina and Inej. As the only girls in the Dregs gang, they stick together and build each other up. I can definitely get behind girls who help one another, instead of tear each other down.

Foolish Hearts by Emery Lord: I love the budding friendship between Claudia and Iris in Foolish Hearts. Their friendship, which evolves over the course of the book, is surprising yet relatable. Claudia’s compassion for Iris and their shared love for a boy band is a fun dynamic among all the relationships in this book. Plus, Claudia’s relationship with her best friend Zoe is wonderful too.

Geekerella by Ashley Poston: Elle befriends Sage because they work together, but when they start hanging out to make a cosplay costume and watch Starfield, their friendship takes off. And I absolutely love it. I love that Elle stands up for Sage despite what people say about her, and I love that Sage would do anything to help Elle out, even drive four hours in a clanky food truck to make sure she attended the convention. Their friendship was fun and I’m grateful it was a part of the story.

The Disappearances by Emily Bain Murphy: As if I needed another reason to gush over this book, The Disappearances includes a wonderful yet surprisingly friendship. Aila isn’t well respected in the town of Sterling because of her mother, so when she moves there, it’s hard for her to fit in. But Beas shows her a little kindness and soon they are friends, passing notes in class and sharing in jokes. I absolutely love their friendship and how deep it becomes over the course of the book. While it’s not the focus of the story, it was a nice relationship that helped develop the book even more.

Library Wars by Kiiro Yumi: Iku Kasahara and Asako Shibazaki couldn’t be more different, but they don’t let that interfere with their friendship. As roommates, they are entrenched into each other’s lives, helping one another out with whatever problems they may face, whether it’s work related, wardrobe related, or even romance related. They stick together and have each other’s backs, which is necessary since they are some of the only ladies in their field of work. Their friendship adds a nice touch to the already well developed story.

Who are your favorite female friendships in literature? Don’t forget to join the link-up!