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A review by helenecats
Consumed: The Need for Collective Change: Colonialism, Climate Change, and Consumerism by Aja Barber
challenging
informative
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
Very good indeed. I follow Aja on Instagram so thought I'd finally read her book. There was a lot in it that I already knew, but nonetheless, it is worth a read to unpack the clusterf*ck that is today's fast fashion industry.
Why 4 and not 5 stars? I believe the book went in quite a few different directions and the structure was a bit disjointed. I was more shocked and convinced to change my shopping habits when I read No Logo by Naomi Klein a few years ago. I think this book could have delved deeper into the actual facts/data. Aja has clearly done a lot of reading and researching, but it's not explored/cited consistently throughout.
I appreciated her personal perspective as a Black woman who does not fit today's ridiculous beauty standards when it comes to body size.
I think the target demographic is probably girls and young women in the Global North who have grown up with social media and are now addicted to shopping. In that sense, it is a great call to action, and she gives a few concrete tips of what can be done to change bad habits.
Ironically, I have just seen last week a big Instagram campaign by one of the worst fast fashion offenders (the brand name starts with S) who paid influencers to tour their "innovation centre" in China. Their posts were glowing and super enthusiastic about the working conditions there. They did not mention the other places where they make clothes (which are clearly sweatshops) or the environmental impact of churning out so much cheap clothing. There was a clear backlash, but also lots of support for these women. They should definitely read this book...!
Why 4 and not 5 stars? I believe the book went in quite a few different directions and the structure was a bit disjointed. I was more shocked and convinced to change my shopping habits when I read No Logo by Naomi Klein a few years ago. I think this book could have delved deeper into the actual facts/data. Aja has clearly done a lot of reading and researching, but it's not explored/cited consistently throughout.
I appreciated her personal perspective as a Black woman who does not fit today's ridiculous beauty standards when it comes to body size.
I think the target demographic is probably girls and young women in the Global North who have grown up with social media and are now addicted to shopping. In that sense, it is a great call to action, and she gives a few concrete tips of what can be done to change bad habits.
Ironically, I have just seen last week a big Instagram campaign by one of the worst fast fashion offenders (the brand name starts with S) who paid influencers to tour their "innovation centre" in China. Their posts were glowing and super enthusiastic about the working conditions there. They did not mention the other places where they make clothes (which are clearly sweatshops) or the environmental impact of churning out so much cheap clothing. There was a clear backlash, but also lots of support for these women. They should definitely read this book...!