Reviews with content warning for Sexual violence - My Body

Reviews tagging 'Sexual violence'

My Body by Emily Ratajkowski

71 reviews

caroisreading's review against another edition

challenging reflective sad fast-paced

4.0

I wasn't sure what to expect when I decided to read Emily Ratajkowski's memoir. I know her as Emrata, a very surface-level idea of her persona. She wrote from this perspective, and deeply reflects from this perspective -- I'm known as the sexy model who has collected a following, but is my influence truly power if defined by capitalism, defined by men?

My heart broke over and over with every sexual assault, every moment stolen by older men. She writes beautifully and simply about her body as something she's detached from. She's commoditized the male gaze, its own form of power, but even that is taken away from her. The traumatic detail she has to share is needed, in a world that doesn't want to listen to her more than look.

This was hard material to read through, though I'm glad I did, to see more reality, and less posturing that's fed to us through celebrity. Emily is a survivor, and I appreciate her words and reflection. Looking forward to reading more from her!

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anavae's review against another edition

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fast-paced

3.5

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rampaige19's review against another edition

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dark informative reflective medium-paced

4.25

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kkpines's review against another edition

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emotional reflective fast-paced

4.5

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chevellemacias's review against another edition

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dark reflective medium-paced

4.75

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jraspatella's review against another edition

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emotional reflective sad medium-paced

5.0

This book of essays really resonated with me. I felt myself thinking about past experiences with a more observant lens. To be honest it took me a long time to read this book. I was always interested in its premise, but that niggling of internalized misogyny kept me from pursuing buying my own copy. How could someone as beautiful, who seems to relish in commodifying their own body have anything to say about the female experience when they’ve benefited so strongly from the patriarchy. A women’s worth is so often based on commodifying the parts of herself most palatable to the outside world. We are taught at such a young age that people expect women to be polite, interesting, “lady-like”, but just sexy enough to keep a man interested enough to either give them the opportunity to succeed, or marry them. This felt like a mirror. It doesn’t matter what walk of life we come from, how famous, or how pretty we are; we as women are all united in a world built to take from us.

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thealbapoems's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective fast-paced

4.0

I read one of the essays from this book online back in 2020?2021? and I remember thinking how much I liked her writing. How happy I was that more and more women were speaking up and calling out their aggressors, name, last name and occupation. Ratajkowski’s style is pithy, and beautiful in its vulnerable power. It is the first time in a while that I read a book this long in one sitting, but I just wanted to keep going. From the moment I saw Berger’s quote in the prelims I knew this was going to be a good read. I was right. She explores childhood, her relationship with her family, her fame, and of course her body (and those who have attacked it) as well as how she has managed to claim it back. I remember reading at some point that she was postponing becoming a mother because the way the world views women once they become mothers. So I am glad she has found a haven in it (as far as I understand). I will be giving this book to a lot of my friends. Thanks for writing it Emily.

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