Empowering Books For Women, By Women

The Emerging Women Conference being held in New York (October 8 -11) hosts the who's who from women's business and empowerment.

The exclusive conference is an opportunity for women across the globe to hear from the likes of Arianna Huffington, Brené Brown, Eve Ensler, Kris Carr and Danielle Laporte as they get down and frank about their own amazing successes and failures.

Attendees will learn pivotal lessons and strategies from a truly formidable panel of women, while also making life long connections to help them on their chosen path. So, for those of us who can't cross the pond to attend this exciting event, here are 8 brilliant books written by women for women to help you live the life you deserve. Playing Big by Tara Mohr For anyone who feels they’re being held back in their career or in business, this is the book for you. Mohr offers fascinating insights on how to pursue your passion to the next level. Whether you're starting a new job or a new enterprise, this book will provide you with practical strategies that you can employ when you find yourself at a critical life juncture. It's a well-researched how-to manual you shouldn’t miss.

Lean In: Women, Work, and the Will to Lead by Sheryl Sandberg Sandberg, renowned for her work as COO of Facebook, offers a revealing yet common sense guide for women in the workplace. She examines the reasons women are hitting the glass ceiling and provides insights in how best to get to the next step through a combination of personal experience, market driven data and hours of meticulous research. A sturdy tale that is even more compelling given her own success.

The Desire Map by Danielle Laporte Canadian motivational speaker and author of four books, Laporte is a well-known mover and shaker. This book examines goal setting and the fundamental reasons why, more often than not, we fail at achieving goals. Laporte successfully leads the reader on a quest to achieve, while at the same time taking into consideration the emotional roller coaster of life.

Thrive by Arianna Huffington Attempting to redefine the word success; Ariana Huffington, of The Huffington Post, believes that our natural instinct is to pursue money and power, but those can only sustain us for so long before we fall. She believes women (and men) need a third metric to truly enjoy a fulfilled life. In this personal portrait, Huffington speaks first-hand about her family and career and her own challenges; the first two chapters are the best and most provocative.

Not that Kind of Girl by Lena Dunham As Dunham puts it 'there is nothing gutsier to me than a person announcing that their story is one that deserves to be told'. And Dunham is nothing if not gutsy. Best known for her role in the hit show Girls, this book clearly identifies her as a vibrant, honest literary voice. Laugh out loud funny – you couldn’t make this stuff up if you tried - this is her guide to getting the best out of life.

Daring Greatly by Brené Brown A new business, a new career, even a new relationship, is all about courage and having the means to take it to the next step. In her book, Brown examines vulnerability and encourages her readers to question the belief that it’s bad to be vulnerable. Deep.

Miracles Now by Gabrielle Bernstein New York Times best seller Gabrielle Bernstein’s approach is a dynamic list of 108 techniques to combat the most common problems women face – be it fear, anxiety or even fully fledged burn-out. This step by step guide will provide readers with digestible and smart ways to see fast results.

Between Two Worlds by Zainab Salbi Written back in 2006, Between Two Worlds is as poignant today as it was then – Salbi, an Iraqi-American humanitarian, entrepreneur and author who at the tender age of 23 founded Women for Women International (a global development organisation dedicated to helping women who have survived war), tells a compelling, very personal tale. As the daughter of Saddam Hussein’s personal pilot she finds her life inescapably linked to his and the wake of his tyranny. An absolute must read and you’ll applaud Salbi for her strength and grace, but most of all her courage.