A review by feliciaguestwrites
One in a Millennial: On Friendship, Feelings, Fangirls, and Fitting In by Kate Kennedy

funny lighthearted reflective medium-paced

4.0

Thank you to Netgalley, the author, and the publisher for providing me with an advanced reader’s copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!
 
Kate Kennedy’s One in a Millennial has two purposes. The first is to act as a pop culture dictionary of sorts — a deep dive into the influence of pop culture on kids, teens, and adults of the decade. The other is an exploration of one millennial woman’s experience growing up in the 2000s and coming to terms with girlhood, womanhood, and everything in between. 
 
One in a Millennial is a celebration of girlhood; of the things that made so many of us the women we are today. Kennedy describes pivotal 2000s milestones including but not “Limited Too”: using AOL Instant Messenger to communicate with crushes and friends and getting your hands on the holy grail — the American Girl doll (mine was Felicity, thanks for asking). 
 
One of the things that Kennedy does a great job of in this book is dismantling the idea of being “cringe”. Sure, things may go in and out of style. But as Kennedy proves, inherently female interests are constantly under attack. We are taught to hide or modify parts of ourselves in order to be marketable or interesting to those around us. 
 
Although this book claims not to be a memoir, it did have very personal elements. As readers, we learn a lot about Kate Kennedy; her upbringing, her experiences, her work, and her current life. I would argue that in a book like this, there is a natural desire to connect the content to human experiences. In that regard, I didn’t mind the blend between nonfiction and memoir here. 
 
Some of you may wonder: Do you have to be millennial to enjoy One in a Millennial? To that, I say: “Maybe? But probably not.” If you have a deep appreciation for pop culture and a passion for uplifting women and celebrating girlhood, One in a Millennial will likely be your exact cup of tea. Filled with references and (sometimes cheesy, but mostly endearing) pop culture puns, this book is a time capsule to an early digital world. 
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