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veelaughtland's review against another edition
2.0
I don't disagree with a lot of what Laurie Penny says in this book, I really don't. But this made it so much more frustrating of a read for me, because I just couldn't deal with the wide sweeping generalizations she makes. Granted, this book was published in 2014, so it's definitely not anything fantastically fresh and new to me on the subject of feminism, but I expected her to go into a little more detail and not just focus on the one box for men and one box for women approach. Which, if you think about it, is frustrating because that specification of gender roles is exactly what Penny rails against (and rightly so).
I also found this really lacking in the diversity department - not as a check box incident, but if you're going to talk about intersectional feminism, you really need to do more than just drop a comment here and there about minorities, whether it's race or sexual orientation. Maybe it's just Penny's writing style not working for me though - her many good points just felt overshadowed with hyperbole and an annoying overuse of the word 'fucking' to describe any and all sexual activity. It read more like a casual blog post at times than a piece of feminist discourse.
Having said all that, one chapter that did still work for me even in 2020 was the Cybersexism chapter (one I think quite a few other people reviewing this book have highlighted). Despite knowing a lot about internet sexism and how it is to be a woman on the internet, she definitely brought some still fresh takes on the idea of the internet as a predominantly male arena, and I hadn't really thought about that in much depth before. Her discussion of the subject was well reasoned and made me feel even more frustrated than I already am about how women are treated when expressing opinions online. So kudos to her for that one.
But other than that chapter, I think you can probably skip this book (unless of course you love Penny's writing and haven't got around to it yet). I think it's definitely a bit dated, and doesn't really bring much new to the table reading it these days.
I also found this really lacking in the diversity department - not as a check box incident, but if you're going to talk about intersectional feminism, you really need to do more than just drop a comment here and there about minorities, whether it's race or sexual orientation. Maybe it's just Penny's writing style not working for me though - her many good points just felt overshadowed with hyperbole and an annoying overuse of the word 'fucking' to describe any and all sexual activity. It read more like a casual blog post at times than a piece of feminist discourse.
Having said all that, one chapter that did still work for me even in 2020 was the Cybersexism chapter (one I think quite a few other people reviewing this book have highlighted). Despite knowing a lot about internet sexism and how it is to be a woman on the internet, she definitely brought some still fresh takes on the idea of the internet as a predominantly male arena, and I hadn't really thought about that in much depth before. Her discussion of the subject was well reasoned and made me feel even more frustrated than I already am about how women are treated when expressing opinions online. So kudos to her for that one.
But other than that chapter, I think you can probably skip this book (unless of course you love Penny's writing and haven't got around to it yet). I think it's definitely a bit dated, and doesn't really bring much new to the table reading it these days.
hnagle15's review against another edition
4.0
"Feminism isn't an identity. Feminism is a process."
I really enjoyed this! I found a lot of what Penny wrote about to be incredibly relateable. She writes with humor and can be a bit crass, but overall she dissects big issues and breaks them down into manageable pieces.
I particularly enjoyed the section on toxic masculinity. I felt this accurately portrayed how feminism really is for everyone.
frankie_s's review against another edition
2.0
Some of this is pretty good, but the essays are each much too long for me.
phire's review against another edition
5.0
I've been following Laurie Penny's writing for a few years. She has a knack of taking ideas that swirl around vaguely in the back of your head and crystallizing them in such a way that makes you wonder how you did not have access to those words before she set them to paper. It has taken me an uncharacteristically long time to read this book, because every time I picked it up I would re-read passages, pouring over tiny gems of sentences that perfectly delivered not just political insight but also an aching affection for our collective human yearning.
This book is a little frustrating in its eurocentrism, and despite token nods to intersectional analysis is still largely centred in the white heteronormative narrative. That doesn't make its observations wrong - just incomplete. There weren't necessarily any ideas that felt groundbreaking to me, but Penny's words are a pleasure to read, and she ties together specific themes about technology and revolution in a feminist context that are close to my heart with an apparent facility that I'm sure is anything but. Very thought-provoking, and certainly makes me more eager than ever to storm the ramparts with my pitchfork.
This book is a little frustrating in its eurocentrism, and despite token nods to intersectional analysis is still largely centred in the white heteronormative narrative. That doesn't make its observations wrong - just incomplete. There weren't necessarily any ideas that felt groundbreaking to me, but Penny's words are a pleasure to read, and she ties together specific themes about technology and revolution in a feminist context that are close to my heart with an apparent facility that I'm sure is anything but. Very thought-provoking, and certainly makes me more eager than ever to storm the ramparts with my pitchfork.
steveinadelaide's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
4.0
UNSPEAKABLE THINGS is a book about feminism, sexuality, and power. The author writes from a feminist perspective, and the book includes their* own experiences with gender and sexuality. They discuss how feminism has changed over the years, and how it has affected their own life. They also address the issue of consent, and how it is often misunderstood. They also discuss cyberbullying which has become a problem that needs to be urgently addressed.
Penny writes with a passion that is often angry and which, at times, tips over into a ranting style and is somewhat repetitive. However, their writing is poetic, sometimes hyperbolic, and highly articulate. They have a gift for metaphors and similes, which makes the book more readable than many books on similar topics.
The book is aimed at a young adult audience, but it will be of interest to anyone who wants to learn more about feminism, sexuality, or power dynamics. It is an important contribution to the feminist conversation, and it is likely to inspire readers to think about these issues in new ways.
I would recommend this book to anyone interested in feminism, sexuality, or power dynamics. It is a powerful and necessary contribution to the feminist conversation. It would be important to follow this one up by reading material that is written in a calmer style and presents the issues in a more evidence-based, scholarly way. But UNSPEAKABLE THINGS is a great read.
*NOTE: I have used plural third-person pronouns because that is what this author prefers.
deadlykitsch's review against another edition
4.0
Be prepared to find yourself cursing out loud and in front of your grandma (specially in front of elders, they would understand, believe me).
This is not an easy read and I found myself on a loop of feelings-anger-soul hunger for three days while reading. Whole pages are highlighted on my copy but the take away in the grand scheme of things is: being a woman is difficult and it's not getting any easier with time... and that's just wrong. And sad. And what can we do about it?!
Unspeakable Things will surely awaken the riot grrrl laying dormant inside you.
This is not an easy read and I found myself on a loop of feelings-anger-soul hunger for three days while reading. Whole pages are highlighted on my copy but the take away in the grand scheme of things is: being a woman is difficult and it's not getting any easier with time... and that's just wrong. And sad. And what can we do about it?!
Unspeakable Things will surely awaken the riot grrrl laying dormant inside you.
paralizine's review against another edition
4.0
So I've finally finished this book and I loved it. I highlighted so many pages of the book. I didn't agree with all of her ideas, and it's a harsh book, she doesn't hide behind a nice vocabular and an academic style. It's possible that it made me uncomfortable sometimes, but that was the point. It definitely makes you think, and because it's accessible, it also helped me find simple ways to make a point during an argument.