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235 reviews for:
Full Frontal Feminism: A Young Woman's Guide to Why Feminism Matters
Jessica Valenti
3.78 AVERAGE
235 reviews for:
Full Frontal Feminism: A Young Woman's Guide to Why Feminism Matters
Jessica Valenti
3.78 AVERAGE
More like 3.5.
Overall, I thought this book was great as an intro into feminist ideas and topics. While everything Jessica says isn't perfect, I think it would be hard to do so in such a basic overview of a wide range of topics. Going into this book already self-described as a feminist, parts of it weren't very interesting but I realize that the audience intended for this book is younger people who may not know what feminism is all about!
"It's not important that we all agree all the time as it is that we all respect each other's opinions. How can we move forward without killing each other?" (p. 174-175)
Overall, I thought this book was great as an intro into feminist ideas and topics. While everything Jessica says isn't perfect, I think it would be hard to do so in such a basic overview of a wide range of topics. Going into this book already self-described as a feminist, parts of it weren't very interesting but I realize that the audience intended for this book is younger people who may not know what feminism is all about!
"It's not important that we all agree all the time as it is that we all respect each other's opinions. How can we move forward without killing each other?" (p. 174-175)
Feminism is better with a liberal sprinkling of swearing and sarcasm.
This book made me feel like I had a big sister giving me advice and looking out for me.
I am a feminist, and I'm not ashamed to admit it.
I feel that this book is a must read for anyone who identifies as female, or knows someone who identifies as female. It's a perfect beginner's guide to feminism.
Full Frontal Feminism is very informative, and is written in an informal way that makes it fun to read and understand. Valenti's voice is really strong and you can tell she's passionate about what she does.
Most of the stuff in this book isn't new to me; I've come across a lot of the info in feminist blog. But for people who know nothing about feminism, I think this could be a real eye-opener. so I really recommend this book to those people.
One thing I really disliked, though, was that Valenti was a bit too opinionated in some aspects. Feminism, for me, is all about choice. But in the chapter about marriage, Valenti goes on a rant about women who change their last names and how that's not very feminist. While she's entitled to her own opinion, it feels very judgemental and scathing to read something like that. I'm sure there are many feminists out there who have married and taken their spouses name.
I dunno, it just bothered me. She also ranted about how binge-drinking is "tres gross" and how girls should stop getting drunk if they want to avoid unwanted attention. Now, I'm sorry, but that reeks of victim blaming.
There was also a huge lack of transgendered issues, which, I guess for a beginner's guide I can understand, but for someone as informed as me, I found it a bit jarring, and plain offensive for any trans*folk. It's almost as if they don't exist.
I was also hoping for more of an explanation of race/sexuality/class, but, except for one very quick chapter and a few asides here and there, it was pretty much written for the white, hetro, middle-to-upper-class cis woman. And I dunno, I found that annoying.
Apart from those few issues, though, I found this to be quite informative, and an enjoyable read.
Anyone who thinks that women get the short end of the stick (even those who don't think that) should read this book.
I feel that this book is a must read for anyone who identifies as female, or knows someone who identifies as female. It's a perfect beginner's guide to feminism.
Full Frontal Feminism is very informative, and is written in an informal way that makes it fun to read and understand. Valenti's voice is really strong and you can tell she's passionate about what she does.
Most of the stuff in this book isn't new to me; I've come across a lot of the info in feminist blog. But for people who know nothing about feminism, I think this could be a real eye-opener. so I really recommend this book to those people.
One thing I really disliked, though, was that Valenti was a bit too opinionated in some aspects. Feminism, for me, is all about choice. But in the chapter about marriage, Valenti goes on a rant about women who change their last names and how that's not very feminist. While she's entitled to her own opinion, it feels very judgemental and scathing to read something like that. I'm sure there are many feminists out there who have married and taken their spouses name.
I dunno, it just bothered me. She also ranted about how binge-drinking is "tres gross" and how girls should stop getting drunk if they want to avoid unwanted attention. Now, I'm sorry, but that reeks of victim blaming.
There was also a huge lack of transgendered issues, which, I guess for a beginner's guide I can understand, but for someone as informed as me, I found it a bit jarring, and plain offensive for any trans*folk. It's almost as if they don't exist.
I was also hoping for more of an explanation of race/sexuality/class, but, except for one very quick chapter and a few asides here and there, it was pretty much written for the white, hetro, middle-to-upper-class cis woman. And I dunno, I found that annoying.
Apart from those few issues, though, I found this to be quite informative, and an enjoyable read.
Anyone who thinks that women get the short end of the stick (even those who don't think that) should read this book.
This book was fine, but the rhetoric was a bit 101 for me. The style is very conversational, which would likely be great for anyone new to feminist reading, but I took issue with some of the casual slang that tends to work against an intersectional agenda via ableism ('crazy,' 'lame,' 'insane,' etc.). I was also somewhat confused by the introduction for the updated edition--it seemed to want to correct the exclusion of trans people from the original edition, but the body of work at large didn't reflect that.
I also took issue with the way Valenti addresses eating disorders and domestic violence. While the actual issues were covered in comprehensive and sympathetic ways, the sections on each ended in very dismissive "just eat more" and "just leave him" attitudes. This contributes to shaming women who struggle with disordered eating or fear the consequences of leaving an abusive partner. Both issues are complex; neither has a simple solution and it's harmful to suggest that they do.
Final gripe: another of Valenti's works, "The Purity Myth," contains many identical quotes and statistics to those in this book. It wouldn't be an issue to new readers of hers, but anyone who has read both has surely experienced a bit of déjà vu.
I also took issue with the way Valenti addresses eating disorders and domestic violence. While the actual issues were covered in comprehensive and sympathetic ways, the sections on each ended in very dismissive "just eat more" and "just leave him" attitudes. This contributes to shaming women who struggle with disordered eating or fear the consequences of leaving an abusive partner. Both issues are complex; neither has a simple solution and it's harmful to suggest that they do.
Final gripe: another of Valenti's works, "The Purity Myth," contains many identical quotes and statistics to those in this book. It wouldn't be an issue to new readers of hers, but anyone who has read both has surely experienced a bit of déjà vu.
This is the book that made me realize that I was a feminist and VERY proud to be one
it is amazing to me that a person writing book about feminism for young women would opt to talk down to her readers. I am hurtling toward old age, and I have been a feminist for many years, in fact I have already raised a feminist. I was a Women's Studies minor when the voices we were hearing from were people like Dworkin and MacKinnon and though they pissed me off plenty, and I disagreed with them mightily on many issues, they never wrote down to me. They expected me to do the work I needed to support, ignore, or oppose what they were selling. Valenti writes as if to someone who has lived in a sealed room exposed to nothing but Quiverfull theology and The Bachelor and Mel Gibson movies for entertainment and who therefore needs to be eased into reality. Its as though she is trying to make feminism simple, and who wants to do that? The second star is a gift.
informative
