Fiction is packed full of strong women from the fearless to the fearsome. The Green Party’s MP for Brighton, Pavilion, Caroline Lucas reveals the 10 best women in literature

Artwork: Su Blackwell

Reading has always been a great love of mine. Until the age of 12 or 13, I would devour Enid Blyton books over and over again until my despairing parents tried to wean me off with a copy of Little Women. Because in our house certain things happened at certain times every day. So after lunch (which was always at 1pm) my mum and dad would sit down with the papers and there would be silence for half an hour. Day in, day out. That’s when I would read.

Admittedly, when I first opened Little Women it was slightly begrudgingly, but in a short space of time I was completely hooked by the four March sisters, and their adventures during the US Civil War. It might have been because my own siblings were so much older than me (my brother is 7 years older and my sister is 9 years older) and after they went to university I felt like an only child, but I loved the idea of these girls who, despite ups and downs along the way, looked after and complemented each other. As I’ve done many times since, when buried in a book I love, I would daydream about which of the characters I’d best get on with, and what it would be like to be part of their gang.

From then on – whether talking passionately about Jane Eyre with my school friends or later recommending that same novel to my two sons (and failing – they still haven’t read it), my love of a good book was usually firmly rooted in the female characters. Time and again, it was the heroines who really stole my heart and had me hooked.

From Jane Eyre to Ifemelu in Americanah via Jo March in Little Women, I learned that being bolshy, having an opinion and doing things your own way wasn’t just possible as a woman, it was downright positive. And that just because you’re an outsider in some way, doesn’t mean you can’t speak up. Over the years, my favourite heroines have helped mould and shape me, enhancing my understanding of different cultures and experiences, not to mention my friends, family and even myself. So here are my 10 literary heroines who will leave you feeling totally inspired – and looking at the world just that little bit differently.

The 10 best women in literature, chosen by MP Caroline Lucas