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angechen's review
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
3.5
The difference between MAKING A SCENE and other memoirs is that in other memoirs, the scene makes the person — the life is driven by the external hardship.
In her book, Constance Wu makes the scenes.
It takes courage to tell one’s story the way Wu does. She unabashedly exposes her flaws, her self-reflections are full of contradictions, and, even if the essays are tied nicely with a bow, they still betray the unresolved. Wu is messy and passionate and vibrant, simultaneously breaking out of and boxing herself into expected femininity.
There’s an overlying narrative of what “making a scene” meant — times where she was loved for it, times she held back, and times she couldn’t help herself — that could have been tighter had essays been ordered differently and/or cut.
Highlights were essays about her relationships with her family; the one about her parents particularly moved me. I also enjoyed the story about her actor FWB for the celeb tea
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide attempt, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, and Toxic relationship
skillwithaquill's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
In a lot of ways, this book shouldn’t be my cup of tea.
There’s so many stories in this book about men and boyfriends and breakups that I rarely if ever seek out in media. I can’t relate to the pressure of “always having a boyfriend since [she] was a teenager” and constantly struggling to make relationships work. That’s never been my experience and sometimes I disconnect with memoirs that are so driven by overwrought romantic entanglements.
But this book deftly weaves poetic themes, imagery, and insight into those relationship stories. They don’t feel trite or boring or too self-indulgent. I did have trouble keeping all the different boyfriends’ names straight by the end of the book, but that’s my fault and not the author’s.
The very uniquely female fear of being labeled and dismissed as “difficult” is interwoven expertly throughout her stories. Even in childhood, girls & AFAB folks are punished for standing up for themselves with ostracism and harsh criticism. It’s a never-ending battle.
I’d rather be a difficult bitch than a push-over or a pick-me any day. But I still have sympathy for those who think they must be push-overs or pick-mes to be accepted and loved. I think this memoir has sympathy for that phenomenon too.
The book gave me more to think about than I expected, which is always a nice surprise.
There’s so many stories in this book about men and boyfriends and breakups that I rarely if ever seek out in media. I can’t relate to the pressure of “always having a boyfriend since [she] was a teenager” and constantly struggling to make relationships work. That’s never been my experience and sometimes I disconnect with memoirs that are so driven by overwrought romantic entanglements.
But this book deftly weaves poetic themes, imagery, and insight into those relationship stories. They don’t feel trite or boring or too self-indulgent. I did have trouble keeping all the different boyfriends’ names straight by the end of the book, but that’s my fault and not the author’s.
The very uniquely female fear of being labeled and dismissed as “difficult” is interwoven expertly throughout her stories. Even in childhood, girls & AFAB folks are punished for standing up for themselves with ostracism and harsh criticism. It’s a never-ending battle.
I’d rather be a difficult bitch than a push-over or a pick-me any day. But I still have sympathy for those who think they must be push-overs or pick-mes to be accepted and loved. I think this memoir has sympathy for that phenomenon too.
The book gave me more to think about than I expected, which is always a nice surprise.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual violence, Sexism, Rape, Suicide attempt, Misogyny, Sexual harassment, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Racism, and Sexual assault
Other possible triggers: descriptions of cyber bullying and internet-specific harassmentamandas_bookshelf's review against another edition
emotional
funny
informative
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide attempt, Cursing, Gaslighting, Bullying, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, and Grief
Moderate: Alcohol
Minor: Pregnancy
mpurdy's review
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
4.0
I was extremely moved by how raw Constance was. I feel like in alot of Memoirs there is honesty and storytelling but not in a way that can make a person look bad. Everyone has done things that they are not proud of but they try to spin a certain narrative. I feel like Constance took a no bullshit approach with her honesty. She was down to earth, gritty and it made me lover her more. I just wanted a little bit more organization maybe chronological order because the different essays kinda got jumbled jumping back and fourth. Other than that I really enjoyed it and the pictures adding a even more personal touch. Highly recommend.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Suicide attempt and Toxic relationship
Minor: Sexual harassment, Sexism, and Body shaming
btwnprintedpgs's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual harassment, Toxic friendship, Suicide attempt, Suicidal thoughts, Rape, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, and Racism
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