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nerdybookqueen 's review for:

Paper Doll: Notes from a Late Bloomer by Dylan Mulvaney
2.0
emotional medium-paced
I received a copy of the audiobook from Netgalley in exchange for review.

I don’t usually like leaving reviews on memoirs, especially if the review isn’t a positive one. However, having an arc, I am obligated to. I will be deleting or reporting any gross transphobic comments, we don’t do that here. Very happy for her in her journey.

Dylan is a trans woman who rose to fame over on Tiktok, I remember seeing many of her Days of Girlhood videos. I also remember seeing what she has dubbed in this memoir as “Beergate” unfold, and several instances after this book stops narrating.

The memoir is formatted in two parts. Journal entries during the first year of videos, and essays after “Beergate.” This format is interesting, and I enjoyed it. It is narrated by the author. I do prefer memoirs narrated by the person they’re about.

I wanted to enjoy this, and was looking forward to the behind the scenes look she was offering us, however, this was a bit of a let down. 

There a several parts of this tale that frustrated me. The “woowoo” things, in Dylan’s words, that include questionable health decisions she is encouraging people to make, and about three chapters about how great a drug trip was for her. Doing drugs and having a life coach isn’t the replacement for therapy she seems to present it as, and it frustrates me that she presents it in such a positive light.

She uses terms for groups of people that, while she might be comfortable using them for herself, other people might find uncomfortable. It is possible she reached out to every trans woman she called a doll in this book, which is the primary example I can think of, and if so, I take it back, but its a similar criticism to that her song got, in the use of “Boy Toy” and “twink.”

The audio book features several instances where Dylan repeats herself, I don’t know if it is written that way, but it is distracting and could use some edits.

There are also several weird instances where she acknowledges her privilege, but then talks about how great it is. For example she doesn’t make reservations cause she hopes her smile is currency. It is a weird juxtaposition that gives it a fake tone. She jokes about serious issues, and the jokes fall flat.  Describing something serious that’s bad as “dukey” feels wrong.
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