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sldewael's review against another edition
reflective
medium-paced
2.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape
Moderate: Homophobia
maia_ep's review against another edition
funny
reflective
medium-paced
3.75
i really liked gay's candor, pacing, and sense of humor. this book put topics and ideas ive been learning about for years and shed new light on them. i felt like this book was maybe written for older, third wave feminists, because i didn't feel like I was introduced to any new ideas through her essays, but it was wonderful to hear her takes on pop culture and the idea behind being a bad feminist was such a realistic one.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Rape
adrigodebison's review against another edition
funny
informative
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Racism, and Racial slurs
readingthroughinfinity's review against another edition
dark
informative
reflective
slow-paced
3.0
I've been on a big nonfiction kick recently, so I decided to read the audiobook of Bad Feminist, which I've owned for a while. In this collection of essays, Roxane Gay discusses feminism through the critical lenses of race, gender, and wealth, analysing TV shows and media for their portrayal of women and feminist ideas.
The essays about various TV shows were interesting, as Gay goes into a lot of detail about the depiction of women and frames the shows in new contexts. My issue is that even though this book was only published in 2014, the pop culture references feel dated? It just goes to show how quickly life moves on, as some the shows Gay mentions finished years ago and feel far less relevant now.
Some of the references to high profile figures (Bill Crosby, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie) also haven't aged well (though Gay couldn't really have predicted that) and I found that, while she does critique others for their focus on gender binaries, Gay's writing isn't particularly trans or non-binary inclusive.
I found the essays where Gay discusses racism and draws on some of her own life experiences particularly engaging. The blend of memoir and essay collection words well, but it left me wanting more on the memoir side (just personal preference). On the whole, Gay's reframing of the word 'feminist' and the way she embraces being a 'bad feminist' is refreshing.
Content warnings for discussions of racism, fatphobia, EDs, rape and gang rape. (less)
The essays about various TV shows were interesting, as Gay goes into a lot of detail about the depiction of women and frames the shows in new contexts. My issue is that even though this book was only published in 2014, the pop culture references feel dated? It just goes to show how quickly life moves on, as some the shows Gay mentions finished years ago and feel far less relevant now.
Some of the references to high profile figures (Bill Crosby, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie) also haven't aged well (though Gay couldn't really have predicted that) and I found that, while she does critique others for their focus on gender binaries, Gay's writing isn't particularly trans or non-binary inclusive.
I found the essays where Gay discusses racism and draws on some of her own life experiences particularly engaging. The blend of memoir and essay collection words well, but it left me wanting more on the memoir side (just personal preference). On the whole, Gay's reframing of the word 'feminist' and the way she embraces being a 'bad feminist' is refreshing.
Content warnings for discussions of racism, fatphobia, EDs, rape and gang rape. (less)
Content Warnings
Moderate: Fatphobia, Eating disorder, Sexual violence, Rape, and Racism
mollywill's review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
medium-paced
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Sexual assault, Racism, and Misogyny
charmainekim's review against another edition
challenging
funny
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Abortion, Sexism, Racism, Hate crime, Rape, and Misogyny
qi_'s review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
informative
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
roxane gay be my housemate challenge so we can have deep late-night conversations and then go our own ways during the day.
the writing is super accessible and is written in a very chill engaging way which is great when you have a small brain like mine and want to learn while also relaxing.
the topics she decided to cover had a nice range (eg. race, pop culture, gender, sexuality, etc.) but always kept to an overarching feminist theme. however, sometimes i felt like some essays took unnecessarily tangents and began to dilute some of the super impactful things said in other essays.
she often used pop culture and various forms of media as examples which i enjoyed for the most part especially when it came to things i had watched/read or had a general interest in (like creepy Tarantino). although, at first this did make me hesitant that i wouldn't connect with the essays so would use this as your HEADS UP for nerdy pop culture references as i can see it wouldn't be everyone's thing. the only times i did feel a little bored in essays was when i had no interest or knowledge of what she was referencing (which is not her fault but thought i would mention it)
it was great to see how intersectional and personal roxane made this as well as leaving me with a bunch of good book/movie recommendations.
the writing is super accessible and is written in a very chill engaging way which is great when you have a small brain like mine and want to learn while also relaxing.
the topics she decided to cover had a nice range (eg. race, pop culture, gender, sexuality, etc.) but always kept to an overarching feminist theme. however, sometimes i felt like some essays took unnecessarily tangents and began to dilute some of the super impactful things said in other essays.
she often used pop culture and various forms of media as examples which i enjoyed for the most part especially when it came to things i had watched/read or had a general interest in (like creepy Tarantino). although, at first this did make me hesitant that i wouldn't connect with the essays so would use this as your HEADS UP for nerdy pop culture references as i can see it wouldn't be everyone's thing. the only times i did feel a little bored in essays was when i had no interest or knowledge of what she was referencing (which is not her fault but thought i would mention it)
it was great to see how intersectional and personal roxane made this as well as leaving me with a bunch of good book/movie recommendations.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape
juliaelkouby's review against another edition
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
3.75
I really liked this book and it made me think about how pop culture affects feminism.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Rape
badgalrere's review against another edition
challenging
informative
reflective
medium-paced
2.75
Strong voice and irony which brings humor into dark places. Quite a lot of discussions about pieces of media. Some chapters were very slow-paced and did not seem to fit the structure of the book. Some aspects were talked about in too much detail while others in too few.
I was expecting something else, because of the title. I was hoping for more feminism and for defying stereotypes more. One of the things I liked most was the character of the writing and owning that we are all flawed.
I was expecting something else, because of the title. I was hoping for more feminism and for defying stereotypes more. One of the things I liked most was the character of the writing and owning that we are all flawed.
Content Warnings
Minor: Rape
lifewithjoce's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape and Racism
Moderate: Abortion