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pienella's review against another edition
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
4.25
Very interesting book with famous people sharing different perspectives on feminism and filled with fun facts.
glindaaa's review against another edition
5.0
There are many thoughts to be formed and things to be said when you want to open your mouth and just speak. However, sometimes those words don't come and in waves of anger or sadness only tears show up, which is something that can happen too when you laugh, laugh so hard you cry. Perhaps I did not laugh that hard this time around but it is not something to be forgotten. I am going to make the most honest and personal review I have ever done because I feel that is necessary and that it makes me proud to do so.
I have always thought about feminism, being raised by a single mom with a dad who well did not keep up his part of the bargain (sorry dad), but it was true. That did not mean that I did not love him less, that did not mean I did not tell my mom to stop fighting, because they were already divorced and I just wanted to see my dad. Who travelled every other weekend 2 hours to pick me up, couldn't my mom just offer him a coffee before we would have to go?
Yet now I consider how much she had to fight. How much she had to ask from her male colleagues to understand a woman alone with a child. Her proudest story from her boss is that he told her: "you need a course, we will pay for a babysitter." Which she later figured out wasn't true but he decided so because he understood how important it was for her to have one, else she couldn't go. There are guys out there, we should not forget, who understand and who need the equality, the feminism as well. Which is what I try to point out to the people I meet but sometimes I feel like just a voice that is not important.
Curtis tells you at the end of the book that it is not true. You be you and do whatever you want and that is what I will do. Because to me, that is necessary and if talking is the most I can do right now than that's it. Perhaps the future would give me a better insight into what I can do and will do and I am trying. I am trying to be a voice for my friends, male or female, for anyone I know to be a woman and to have my share of rights that I can get. I pick classes because of this and I absolutely don't mind to write about it because I want to inspire my professor and let him or her say: oh, she got it.
This book made me understand that I am not a defect human being, who doesn't like sex, who doesn't fantasize about it, I am just me and I want to be that way and stay that way. It is not bad to think about things later as long as I am happy about it and figure it out when or wherever I go. I am totally okay with that. The beauty of the fragments, the way it is made up (explaining the history at the end was a great move) makes it so easy to read the fragments, to continue more books for Oursharedshelf, which I try to keep up with.
The beauty of this book is it is reality to me, to others. It is a view that doesn't have to be yours per se but it can make yours perhaps better. Thanks for the comebacks Curtis, I will definitely use them. I feel I can do much more now to understand and to fight, for the rights that I think I deserve to have as well as every other woman or men considering feelings, equality and everything that should be a natural right for a person to have, no matter their gender or if they don't feel they belong in any category at all, because who am I to judge them.
There is not much more I dare to say, I cried, I laughed, I nodded along while reading this. I just want to say one more thing, my dad might not have kept up his part of his parental-bargain when he divorced my mom. But he helps me fight, he gave this book to me for my 25th birthday. He was there when someone touched me inappropriately, the only man at that point in my life I could stand. I love my father for who he is, perhaps he sometimes needs a nudge in the right direction, but he would fight for equal rights and be femine when he needs to be. He raises my brother that way, to not have to hide for a love of a colour named pink.
and I love my mom, for always fighting for herself, for finally loving herself since she was able to fit in a size less, which was not necessary for me and actually not necessary for herself but she was afraid of dying and leaving me alone. She is always the listening ear for when I feel vunerable or when I am angry about something that forms an equality, perhaps not even for me but for someone in my class or a newsarticle I read. My mother is a fighter, when I started this book I asked her: do you consider yourself a feminist? She was quiet, thinking and answered very honest: I never considered it, but I am always fighting to get an equal pay, to be heard, so even if I did not consider it, I sure am one. <3
I have always thought about feminism, being raised by a single mom with a dad who well did not keep up his part of the bargain (sorry dad), but it was true. That did not mean that I did not love him less, that did not mean I did not tell my mom to stop fighting, because they were already divorced and I just wanted to see my dad. Who travelled every other weekend 2 hours to pick me up, couldn't my mom just offer him a coffee before we would have to go?
Yet now I consider how much she had to fight. How much she had to ask from her male colleagues to understand a woman alone with a child. Her proudest story from her boss is that he told her: "you need a course, we will pay for a babysitter." Which she later figured out wasn't true but he decided so because he understood how important it was for her to have one, else she couldn't go. There are guys out there, we should not forget, who understand and who need the equality, the feminism as well. Which is what I try to point out to the people I meet but sometimes I feel like just a voice that is not important.
Curtis tells you at the end of the book that it is not true. You be you and do whatever you want and that is what I will do. Because to me, that is necessary and if talking is the most I can do right now than that's it. Perhaps the future would give me a better insight into what I can do and will do and I am trying. I am trying to be a voice for my friends, male or female, for anyone I know to be a woman and to have my share of rights that I can get. I pick classes because of this and I absolutely don't mind to write about it because I want to inspire my professor and let him or her say: oh, she got it.
This book made me understand that I am not a defect human being, who doesn't like sex, who doesn't fantasize about it, I am just me and I want to be that way and stay that way. It is not bad to think about things later as long as I am happy about it and figure it out when or wherever I go. I am totally okay with that. The beauty of the fragments, the way it is made up (explaining the history at the end was a great move) makes it so easy to read the fragments, to continue more books for Oursharedshelf, which I try to keep up with.
The beauty of this book is it is reality to me, to others. It is a view that doesn't have to be yours per se but it can make yours perhaps better. Thanks for the comebacks Curtis, I will definitely use them. I feel I can do much more now to understand and to fight, for the rights that I think I deserve to have as well as every other woman or men considering feelings, equality and everything that should be a natural right for a person to have, no matter their gender or if they don't feel they belong in any category at all, because who am I to judge them.
There is not much more I dare to say, I cried, I laughed, I nodded along while reading this. I just want to say one more thing, my dad might not have kept up his part of his parental-bargain when he divorced my mom. But he helps me fight, he gave this book to me for my 25th birthday. He was there when someone touched me inappropriately, the only man at that point in my life I could stand. I love my father for who he is, perhaps he sometimes needs a nudge in the right direction, but he would fight for equal rights and be femine when he needs to be. He raises my brother that way, to not have to hide for a love of a colour named pink.
and I love my mom, for always fighting for herself, for finally loving herself since she was able to fit in a size less, which was not necessary for me and actually not necessary for herself but she was afraid of dying and leaving me alone. She is always the listening ear for when I feel vunerable or when I am angry about something that forms an equality, perhaps not even for me but for someone in my class or a newsarticle I read. My mother is a fighter, when I started this book I asked her: do you consider yourself a feminist? She was quiet, thinking and answered very honest: I never considered it, but I am always fighting to get an equal pay, to be heard, so even if I did not consider it, I sure am one. <3
zoebasson's review against another edition
3.0
“she has a voice. if you can’t hear it, maybe it’s because you’re too busy talking.”
this book was… ok.
i liked a few of the sections, and i thought it was a good idea, it just wasn’t, what i’d hoped for. that title really caught my attention, because i thought it would be more of a commentary on feminism within/outside the male gaze. i don’t know. i just wasn’t really expecting so many of the contributors to pose such a shaky idea of feminism. whilst obviously it’s not simple, for a book that sort of claims to be an introduction to the topic, it never really defines anything and a lot of the chapters were quite weird.
i also wasn’t a fan of the poetry break in the middle - which is a first for me lmao.
sophieroseobooks's review against another edition
3.0
I got this book as a gift and left it on my shelf for a few years and unfortunately I think it is now a bit too basic for what I wanted. It was an enjoyable read with some interesting short essays. There were some essays that I thought were not up to the brief and were a bit irrelevant and I wish that they had put the section about the history of feminism at the start of the book instead of the end. However overall a great book a s good introduction to femurs. I also appreciated the further reading section at the back of the book.
asrino's review
3.0
When I unwrapped this book as my 17th birthday gift from my aunt, I felt an immediate sense of dread. The cover emanated "poppy white feminist" vibes. And while the text itself breeds that aura at times, I still think it's a great read for any young, beginner feminist.
Firstly, I am glad to admit I had this book incorrectly pegged by assuming it would be predominantly white. The book itself is a series of essays (ft. some poems) from a diverse ensemble of feminist women. There are Muslim women, young ladies, poor women, mothers, celebrities, and there is even a trans woman. It was a pleasure to hear such a range of voices talk about a range of feminist topics.
Naturally, in this series of essays, there will be a fair selection of wonderfully-crafted stories, and boring, confusing messes. Personally, the stand-out essays (and poem) to me were:
• Charlie Cragg's "A Brief History of My Womanhood" - An overview of Cragg's lifetime struggle of being a woman born in a man's body.
• Keira Knightley's "The Weaker Sex" - A raw but heartfelt depiction of labour and motherhood
• Jameela Jamil's "Tell Him" - An open letter to mothers to remind them to dismantle their son's sexist beliefs towards women AND men.
• Tapiwa H. Maoni's "African Feminist" - An account of Maoni's experiences with misogyny in Malawi, Africa
• Grace Campbell's "The -Female- Wank" - A poem that promotes the normalisation of female sexuality & masturbation
• Emtithal Mahmoud's "Sharia State (Of Mind)" - An account of Mahmoud's experiences with misogyny in Sudan.
• Nimco Ali's "Be a Fun Feminist" - Ali's experiences with female genital mutilation (FMG).
• Dolly Alderton's "Dismantling and Destroying Internalised Misogyny: To-Do List" - Exactly what the title says.
- And all the essays from the "EDUCATION" to brief readers on feminist history. Honestly, the book should have opened with this, instead.
While it appears that I've left a lengthy list of essays to reference, the whole book honestly felt more boring, and even redundant at times.
I think I just preferred listening to women's anecdotes, rather than reading motivational activist messaging.
3/5. It's alright.
Firstly, I am glad to admit I had this book incorrectly pegged by assuming it would be predominantly white. The book itself is a series of essays (ft. some poems) from a diverse ensemble of feminist women. There are Muslim women, young ladies, poor women, mothers, celebrities, and there is even a trans woman. It was a pleasure to hear such a range of voices talk about a range of feminist topics.
Naturally, in this series of essays, there will be a fair selection of wonderfully-crafted stories, and boring, confusing messes. Personally, the stand-out essays (and poem) to me were:
• Charlie Cragg's "A Brief History of My Womanhood" - An overview of Cragg's lifetime struggle of being a woman born in a man's body.
• Keira Knightley's "The Weaker Sex" - A raw but heartfelt depiction of labour and motherhood
• Jameela Jamil's "Tell Him" - An open letter to mothers to remind them to dismantle their son's sexist beliefs towards women AND men.
• Tapiwa H. Maoni's "African Feminist" - An account of Maoni's experiences with misogyny in Malawi, Africa
• Grace Campbell's "The -Female- Wank" - A poem that promotes the normalisation of female sexuality & masturbation
• Emtithal Mahmoud's "Sharia State (Of Mind)" - An account of Mahmoud's experiences with misogyny in Sudan.
• Nimco Ali's "Be a Fun Feminist" - Ali's experiences with female genital mutilation (FMG).
• Dolly Alderton's "Dismantling and Destroying Internalised Misogyny: To-Do List" - Exactly what the title says.
- And all the essays from the "EDUCATION" to brief readers on feminist history. Honestly, the book should have opened with this, instead.
While it appears that I've left a lengthy list of essays to reference, the whole book honestly felt more boring, and even redundant at times.
I think I just preferred listening to women's anecdotes, rather than reading motivational activist messaging.
3/5. It's alright.
jodiesbookishposts's review against another edition
5.0
Feminists Don’t Wear Pink
I sometimes struggle in rating and reviewing books with various contributions. Also this was different than a book of short stories, or a book of essays. It was more like reading a conversation between a large group of women.
Girls Up are the charity behind the collection – and in a nutshell it is a collection from different women on what Feminism is to them. It is set up in common theme sections. Some parts were larger than others, some were more interesting than others – I particularly liked the parts that weren’t ‘celebrities’ the women who worked in charities and institutions – I wish there had been more of that.
This isn’t a book of feminist theory or deep evaluation. This is a book like a hug, like a friend confirming with you that these things that bother you, you aren’t alone in this. It’s beautiful that a book like this is out there. I’d recommend it for all the girls and young women in your life that might be finding their feet in understanding that Feminism isn’t the scary word that we were raised to believe it was.
I sometimes struggle in rating and reviewing books with various contributions. Also this was different than a book of short stories, or a book of essays. It was more like reading a conversation between a large group of women.
Girls Up are the charity behind the collection – and in a nutshell it is a collection from different women on what Feminism is to them. It is set up in common theme sections. Some parts were larger than others, some were more interesting than others – I particularly liked the parts that weren’t ‘celebrities’ the women who worked in charities and institutions – I wish there had been more of that.
This isn’t a book of feminist theory or deep evaluation. This is a book like a hug, like a friend confirming with you that these things that bother you, you aren’t alone in this. It’s beautiful that a book like this is out there. I’d recommend it for all the girls and young women in your life that might be finding their feet in understanding that Feminism isn’t the scary word that we were raised to believe it was.
lenorecanneversleep's review against another edition
emotional
funny
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
3.5
itwig's review against another edition
2.0
I liked some ‘essays’ - wouldn’t quite call them essays - but most were self explanatory/over simplified thoughts or ramblings. Probs would recommend to people who don’t know much about feminism.
brightfarmns's review against another edition
4.0
Good collection with diverse perspectives on feminism and what it can mean to each of us.
alles_allerlei's review against another edition
Wahrscheinlich hätte ich mir noch genauer vorher mit dem Buch beschäftigen sollen.
ABER
Hab ich nicht :D
Nun denn, ich persönlich glaube das ich einfach zu Alt für dieses Buch bin.
Die schreibweise der Texte war dann doch eher für 14 Jährige Mädels gedacht.
Ich gebe zu, die Texte von den Frauen die mich bewogen mir das Buch zu holen (Helen Fielding und Keira Knightly) warena uch in der Tat gut, aber alle anderen die ich las bzw. in die ich rein las nervten mich nur mit ihren platten aussagen bzw. ihrer platten sprache für jüngere, so dass ich das Buch nach ca. 100 Seiten abbrach.
ABER
Hab ich nicht :D
Nun denn, ich persönlich glaube das ich einfach zu Alt für dieses Buch bin.
Die schreibweise der Texte war dann doch eher für 14 Jährige Mädels gedacht.
Ich gebe zu, die Texte von den Frauen die mich bewogen mir das Buch zu holen (Helen Fielding und Keira Knightly) warena uch in der Tat gut, aber alle anderen die ich las bzw. in die ich rein las nervten mich nur mit ihren platten aussagen bzw. ihrer platten sprache für jüngere, so dass ich das Buch nach ca. 100 Seiten abbrach.