kevin_shepherd 's review for:

Shrill by Lindy West

5.0

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I am incredibly, incredibly lucky to have someone in my life who has opened my eyes to the concept of body positivity, to the existence of rape culture, and to the flippant misogyny that permeates contemporary society. That being said, I am also acutely aware of my empathetic limitations. No matter how much I care about social injustice and bias I am never going to fully understand what it's like to be female in America (no more so than I'll know what it's like to be black or gay or muslim). Even Shrill, as fantastic as it is, couldn't put me in those shoes, but it afforded me a perspective that only an intelligent, deeply personal, self-deprecating dissertation could provide.

Lindy West may not have been the first to open my eyes, but she certainly broadened my perspective and refueled my activism.