tiredenglishteacher 's review for:

Toxic: The Story of Nine Famous Women in the Tabloid 2000s by Sarah Ditum

3.5

informative medium-paced

---

This book is an incredible analysis of the brutality of early 2000s tabloid journalism. Each chapter felt like it could have been a separate book. Though it may not contain many new ideas, it does tie together a range of stories from the era in a way that, while perhaps not novel, is convenient. I don’t know that this is so much a “feminist” text, but it brings perspective to these women’s lives and the general vibes of the era. NOTE: She does deadname a couple of trans people, which is an unsettling jolt both times. Other reviews note author is openly very terfy online :(

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Sexism

Moderate: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Deadnaming, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Genocide, Racism, Self harm, Sexual content, Violence, Medical trauma

Minor: Infertility, Transphobia, Police brutality, Murder, Outing, Cultural appropriation