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claireescott's review against another edition
5.0
one of my top 3 books, absolutely incredible. stunning memoir woven with biographical information about the wives of modernism (particularly Zelda Fitzgerald and Vivienne Elliot) as well as other women writers of the 20th century (Sylvia Plath, Jean Rhys, Anais Nin, Mary McCarthy, and more). particularly interesting as it relates to mental illness diagnoses with women, online culture, the publishing industry, writing one's authentic voice... will return to this again and again (read it for the first, perfect time when I was 17)
notmckinzie's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
slow-paced
4.0
Both an educational read on the wives of modernist writers and a long-form feminist essay on what it means to be a woman writer. Very much of its time so can be quite girlboss-y in parts but overall enjoyable and inspiring. I definitely do relate to her struggles with feeling good enough as a writer to justify all it takes to “make it”, so I think this was overall a positive kick in the pants for me!
lizawall's review against another edition
5.0
The lesbian separatist in me had a hard time getting past the idea that all Kate's problems (and her heroines') could be solved by a complete indifference to men (like, just leave your husband and stop trying to look cute, amirite?) -- but once I was able to get past that it kind of blew my mind. Especially toward the end when she really brings it on home (namechecking [b:Close to the Knives|89213|Close to the Knives A Memoir of Disintegration|David Wojnarowicz|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1351500256s/89213.jpg|86102] wut wut), I was basically crying, rethinking my old beliefs about everything from heterosexuality (boring) to heavily-made-up Tumblr selfies (not furthering the revolution). Like, it's irritating sometimes, but maybe so is anything that can actually change your mind?
mcwat's review against another edition
5.0
I guess Kate Zambreno's message that we girls should just write (for God's sake!) eventually got through to me, because around page 200 I began writing in the margins of this book. That's something I never do, and once I started, I couldn't stop. I was going to say that I read Heroines at just the right moment in my life, but I realized that while that's true in some ways, I would've skipped over a lot of suffering if I'd read it a couple of years ago. That's the way it goes, I suppose. I'm grateful to have read it now. I feel so free. I feel like I have permission to write anything I want. And maybe I'll even do it.
camillaale's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
informative
reflective
slow-paced
3.5
mhmrose's review against another edition
emotional
informative
medium-paced
5.0
Okay, this book was absolutely amazing! After a slow start (about 1/5 in) I ate this up. Zambreno's feminist blog posts-turned-book is a rollercoaster of emotions for the women she speaks of and the hidden histories behind their myths;Zelda Fitzgerald, her literary career cut short by men (including her husband) and her unfortunate death in an asylum; Vivienne Haigh-Wood Eliot's mental health problems ignored by her husband and incarceration in an asylum where she, unfortunately, dies alone with only her husband's "supposed" reaction that is mythologised as him losing his true love; Sylvia Plath who battled her mental health and bravely penned them in her novel and poems but is more remembered for her passing; and Virginia Woolf and her suicide that left a hole in the Bloomsbury and literary society of the 1920s.
Focusing on the Modernists: on the wives of authors, who were writers, themselves, but placed in the shadows of their husbands who "reinvented" eras of writing, Heroines argues for these literary gems whose works are beautiful in their own rights and should be read.
Zambreno is a definite must-read feminist writer who blends history and opinions into a thought-provoking book. If I had the chance to read again, I would in a heartbeat. Heroines is a must-read for anyone interested in literary women writers, feminism, feminist theory or an alternate type of writing.
Focusing on the Modernists: on the wives of authors, who were writers, themselves, but placed in the shadows of their husbands who "reinvented" eras of writing, Heroines argues for these literary gems whose works are beautiful in their own rights and should be read.
Zambreno is a definite must-read feminist writer who blends history and opinions into a thought-provoking book. If I had the chance to read again, I would in a heartbeat. Heroines is a must-read for anyone interested in literary women writers, feminism, feminist theory or an alternate type of writing.
prosenotbros's review against another edition
5.0
I would fall upon my own sword for these women. I want to go back in time and ruin all the men mentioned in this book. Fitzgerald, Eliot, and Hemingway slander is not only tolerated, but encouraged.
andforgotten's review against another edition
5.0
After an admittedly slow start (a long stretch of exposition, focusing much more on Zambreno's marriage than the Heroines the book is titled for), once I got about 1/4 in, I was really in. It picks up considerable speed after that, evolving into some sort of maelstrom that sucks you (or sucked me, in any case) in and had me glued to my kindle for hours finishing the last third this morning.
Again, I was offered a whole lot of names of women writers to investigate further, but there's also plenty of discussion of the ones I know, creating a mixture that was perfect for me. Heroines establishes a history of female writers, focusing on the modernists, on the wives of famous authors who were not allowed to expand their own writer selves, but it then casts out a wider net, looking beyond the early 20th century, leaving a trail of names like breadcrumbs, and ending with a fierce defense of female blogging, which in turn legitimizes the self-involved and intimately personal beginnings of the book.
Again, I was offered a whole lot of names of women writers to investigate further, but there's also plenty of discussion of the ones I know, creating a mixture that was perfect for me. Heroines establishes a history of female writers, focusing on the modernists, on the wives of famous authors who were not allowed to expand their own writer selves, but it then casts out a wider net, looking beyond the early 20th century, leaving a trail of names like breadcrumbs, and ending with a fierce defense of female blogging, which in turn legitimizes the self-involved and intimately personal beginnings of the book.