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4.47 AVERAGE
4.47 AVERAGE
It took a lot of courage for the women to come forward and for Ronan to uncover all of the lies and horrible actions by men with power. This was a good listen. One thing Ronan Farrow is going to have is RECEIPTS before he ever puts anything damning out there about someone. People are just mad because their faves are rapists.
challenging
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Every bit as horrifying as you can imagine the cover up of Harvey Weinstein’s evil deeds would be, and then some.
Only a white man with the privilege of family money and connections could have reported on this story and not have their entire career taken down by it. My positive take away is that Ronan used his power and the privilege of his voice to elevate the voices of the women who needed to be heard and it’s heartening to know men like him and the camera man who helped him exist.
Only a white man with the privilege of family money and connections could have reported on this story and not have their entire career taken down by it. My positive take away is that Ronan used his power and the privilege of his voice to elevate the voices of the women who needed to be heard and it’s heartening to know men like him and the camera man who helped him exist.
dark
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challenging
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This account of the Harvey Weinstein investigation was gripping, horrifying, and vindicating in equal parts. I also thought that Ronan Farrow putting on different voices and accents for the various characters was a little bit distracting and a little bit hilarious.
Over and over, Farrow depicts an ouroboros of power and corruption. Through blackmail, coercion, bribery and menace, the Hollywood power structure cannibalises itself to protect its own. While much of reporting describes horrific and malicious behaviour, one of the most chilling parts for me was an anecdote about an executive pressuring NBC staff to drop a story about another Hollywood power broker. The person telling it to Farrow mused that the exec had done this not because he wanted to cover the offending party's actions, but because he was sick of fielding calls.
Listening to this book eight years after the allegations against Weinstein were first reported was a temporally disorienting experience. So many other complicit parties escaped with their careers unscathed that at times I felt a sense of futility at how unbreakable The System still appears to be. That being said, the flow of the narrative is so well-paced that I was thrilled by the twists and turns of the investigation despite knowing how it ends.
Overall I thought this was a brilliant and sensitive portrayal of sexual violence and complicity. The descriptions of sexual assault are horrific, but sparse, and Farrow grounds the perspective of his own experience, which prevents it from being too sensational. He also addresses his own family's history with sexual trauma with thoughtfulness and sensitivity, acknowledging its impact without dwelling on it or allowing it to overshadow the experience of his subjects.
Over and over, Farrow depicts an ouroboros of power and corruption. Through blackmail, coercion, bribery and menace, the Hollywood power structure cannibalises itself to protect its own. While much of reporting describes horrific and malicious behaviour, one of the most chilling parts for me was an anecdote about an executive pressuring NBC staff to drop a story about another Hollywood power broker. The person telling it to Farrow mused that the exec had done this not because he wanted to cover the offending party's actions, but because he was sick of fielding calls.
Listening to this book eight years after the allegations against Weinstein were first reported was a temporally disorienting experience. So many other complicit parties escaped with their careers unscathed that at times I felt a sense of futility at how unbreakable The System still appears to be. That being said, the flow of the narrative is so well-paced that I was thrilled by the twists and turns of the investigation despite knowing how it ends.
Overall I thought this was a brilliant and sensitive portrayal of sexual violence and complicity. The descriptions of sexual assault are horrific, but sparse, and Farrow grounds the perspective of his own experience, which prevents it from being too sensational. He also addresses his own family's history with sexual trauma with thoughtfulness and sensitivity, acknowledging its impact without dwelling on it or allowing it to overshadow the experience of his subjects.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Stalking, Gaslighting, Sexual harassment
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Thrilling story and well presented, but be warned audio book listeners, Ronan does voices.
That is all.
That is all.
Shines significant light on seedy abuses of power in our society- impacting what journalism/reporting we see, who remains in power, and how those in power both support and threaten each other. There are heroes in our midst but boy, they are few and far between. High five to Farrow, McHugh, Remnick and The New Yorker, and all the brave women who have come forward and continue to come forward. A must read.
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
inspiring
medium-paced