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3.64 AVERAGE
3.64 AVERAGE
I received this book free through Goodreads giveaways.
I had never heard of Jessica Valenti before I entered the giveaway, so I'm not familiar with her other works. In this memoir, I appreciate Valenti's raw honesty in examining many difficult and shocking events that have happened in her life. Her message that women are so frequently viewed as the playthings of men is loud and clear. However, at many times the work felt disjointed as she jumped from story to story. This made it easy to pick up and read a chapter or two before bed, but I wasn't able to dive into this memoir for more than 30 minutes at a time. Overall though, a solid read with a strong message.
I had never heard of Jessica Valenti before I entered the giveaway, so I'm not familiar with her other works. In this memoir, I appreciate Valenti's raw honesty in examining many difficult and shocking events that have happened in her life. Her message that women are so frequently viewed as the playthings of men is loud and clear. However, at many times the work felt disjointed as she jumped from story to story. This made it easy to pick up and read a chapter or two before bed, but I wasn't able to dive into this memoir for more than 30 minutes at a time. Overall though, a solid read with a strong message.
Full of righteous rage and equally righteous-rage-inducing. Particularly in our current climate, this book makes me want to punch people in the face. More of a memoir than I thought it would be, it covers the experiences Valenti has had that so many women have fallen subject to, mainly at the hands of men. She wraps everything up with a sort of end note consisting of a collection of some of the woman-hating communications she has received, from strings of "fuck you"s to statements that she should be raped and murdered. This is what happens when women dare to speak up against the patriarchy. But more than anything else, a line in very beginning of the book struck me strongest: "Who would I be if I didn't live in a world that hated women?"
Found the ending a bit weak, though. I get that it was supposed to entail hope for the next generation of women, as embodied by Valenti's daughter, but it just didn't resonate with me.
Found the ending a bit weak, though. I get that it was supposed to entail hope for the next generation of women, as embodied by Valenti's daughter, but it just didn't resonate with me.
Very good read
This book did a very good job of showing what it is like for some women growing up in a man's world. It is shocking, but sad because very few will open their minds up to others experiences as a woman in a world still dominated by men. It made me feel better and look to my own experiences, and for that I am thankful.
This book did a very good job of showing what it is like for some women growing up in a man's world. It is shocking, but sad because very few will open their minds up to others experiences as a woman in a world still dominated by men. It made me feel better and look to my own experiences, and for that I am thankful.
An interesting read, but not life changing. Some good perspective on how we self-censor and internailze social norms and expectations. She talks a lot about her own struggles with mental health and substance use.
I freaking loved this. It was so honest and engaging. Now I have to check out everything this awesome woman has ever done. While at times it was confronting it was also covering important topics. Would recommend for anyone interested in feminism, reproductive rights and so on.
The biggest problem I'm having with this book so far is how disjointed it is. One minute, she's talking about something that happened to her at her second college, the next she's talking about something that happened at her first, and this happens throughout the book. The experiences she's writing about are without a doubt important to know about, but I think this book was marketed wrong. As a lot of other reviewers said, it's not a feminist call to arms, it's a memoir. The book is marketed as an in-depth exploration of the harassment women face through her own experiences, but Valenti never dives into the broader connections, she focuses almost entirely on her own experiences. With this being said, it is a good book. It's easy to read and her story is definitely one that needs to be told.
Felt like my teen self was being told the truth in a lot of this book. There's so much that even I accept that Jessica Valenti made me think about a little bit deeper.
I'll admit I fell off a little bit in the last quarter of the book, but more just because it dealt with things I may be too young in mind and body to have to deal with in my own world yet.
Overall would definitely recommend this as a fab piece of feminist literature. My first encounter with Jessica Valenti and I shall be exploring further!
I'll admit I fell off a little bit in the last quarter of the book, but more just because it dealt with things I may be too young in mind and body to have to deal with in my own world yet.
Overall would definitely recommend this as a fab piece of feminist literature. My first encounter with Jessica Valenti and I shall be exploring further!
This is a memoir about living life while viewed by most of society as a commodity, rather than a person. It was a fairly uncomfortable read, and kind of repetitive in a way, but she does a good job of establishing her experiences as the norm rather than outliers.
This book is very honest. It's something you read and realize just how shitty the world can be. It is deeply personal and I really admire Jessica Valenti for writing it. This book was also very depressing. I read it fast so it wouldn't bring me down too much. Overall, I did not enjoy the subject matter, but I did enjoy its honest points leading me to remember how far this society has to go to be a decent place to live.
I've been reading Jessica Valenti since I was in college through Feministing and her other writing but this is my first book of hers and in was surprised to learn so much about her past that reminded me of how I used to feel in my own body as a woman. It was very impactful to have things I've felt my whole life explained in a way that I could never quite articulate otherwise. I'm glad I read this now, but I wish this was a book I read long ago