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A review by asrino
Feminists Don't Wear Pink and Other Lies: Amazing Women on What the F-Word Means to Them by Scarlett Curtis
3.0
When I unwrapped this book as my 17th birthday gift from my aunt, I felt an immediate sense of dread. The cover emanated "poppy white feminist" vibes. And while the text itself breeds that aura at times, I still think it's a great read for any young, beginner feminist.
Firstly, I am glad to admit I had this book incorrectly pegged by assuming it would be predominantly white. The book itself is a series of essays (ft. some poems) from a diverse ensemble of feminist women. There are Muslim women, young ladies, poor women, mothers, celebrities, and there is even a trans woman. It was a pleasure to hear such a range of voices talk about a range of feminist topics.
Naturally, in this series of essays, there will be a fair selection of wonderfully-crafted stories, and boring, confusing messes. Personally, the stand-out essays (and poem) to me were:
• Charlie Cragg's "A Brief History of My Womanhood" - An overview of Cragg's lifetime struggle of being a woman born in a man's body.
• Keira Knightley's "The Weaker Sex" - A raw but heartfelt depiction of labour and motherhood
• Jameela Jamil's "Tell Him" - An open letter to mothers to remind them to dismantle their son's sexist beliefs towards women AND men.
• Tapiwa H. Maoni's "African Feminist" - An account of Maoni's experiences with misogyny in Malawi, Africa
• Grace Campbell's "The -Female- Wank" - A poem that promotes the normalisation of female sexuality & masturbation
• Emtithal Mahmoud's "Sharia State (Of Mind)" - An account of Mahmoud's experiences with misogyny in Sudan.
• Nimco Ali's "Be a Fun Feminist" - Ali's experiences with female genital mutilation (FMG).
• Dolly Alderton's "Dismantling and Destroying Internalised Misogyny: To-Do List" - Exactly what the title says.
- And all the essays from the "EDUCATION" to brief readers on feminist history. Honestly, the book should have opened with this, instead.
While it appears that I've left a lengthy list of essays to reference, the whole book honestly felt more boring, and even redundant at times.
I think I just preferred listening to women's anecdotes, rather than reading motivational activist messaging.
3/5. It's alright.
Firstly, I am glad to admit I had this book incorrectly pegged by assuming it would be predominantly white. The book itself is a series of essays (ft. some poems) from a diverse ensemble of feminist women. There are Muslim women, young ladies, poor women, mothers, celebrities, and there is even a trans woman. It was a pleasure to hear such a range of voices talk about a range of feminist topics.
Naturally, in this series of essays, there will be a fair selection of wonderfully-crafted stories, and boring, confusing messes. Personally, the stand-out essays (and poem) to me were:
• Charlie Cragg's "A Brief History of My Womanhood" - An overview of Cragg's lifetime struggle of being a woman born in a man's body.
• Keira Knightley's "The Weaker Sex" - A raw but heartfelt depiction of labour and motherhood
• Jameela Jamil's "Tell Him" - An open letter to mothers to remind them to dismantle their son's sexist beliefs towards women AND men.
• Tapiwa H. Maoni's "African Feminist" - An account of Maoni's experiences with misogyny in Malawi, Africa
• Grace Campbell's "The -Female- Wank" - A poem that promotes the normalisation of female sexuality & masturbation
• Emtithal Mahmoud's "Sharia State (Of Mind)" - An account of Mahmoud's experiences with misogyny in Sudan.
• Nimco Ali's "Be a Fun Feminist" - Ali's experiences with female genital mutilation (FMG).
• Dolly Alderton's "Dismantling and Destroying Internalised Misogyny: To-Do List" - Exactly what the title says.
- And all the essays from the "EDUCATION" to brief readers on feminist history. Honestly, the book should have opened with this, instead.
While it appears that I've left a lengthy list of essays to reference, the whole book honestly felt more boring, and even redundant at times.
I think I just preferred listening to women's anecdotes, rather than reading motivational activist messaging.
3/5. It's alright.