scrow1022's review against another edition
4.0
The second half is especially valuable re. analyzing patterns across lines of oppression, learning how to recognize and address them.
ajschmeiser's review against another edition
I had to return it to the library of a place I was moving from.
ravenofoctober's review against another edition
4.0
As someone who came a little late to feminism and QUILTBAG+ activism and general awareness (some college classes, but mostly after-college reading the internet and learning about privilege, etc.), I'm always looking for books like this, meaning from a perspective that is not my own (i.e., not a white lesbian). And since I haven't been in these spaces long, I liked the first part of the book with all of Serano's personal essays and whatnot because it gave me a good context and some slices of history of the movement that I wasn't aware of/didn't experience. It all also provides a good foundation for the second half of the book.
I kind of wish the two parts of the book hadn't been so starkly separated, though. I think the second half would have benefited from having more personal examples/stories sprinkled throughout. Serano is great at making a solid case for her suggestions on how to make these movements more inclusive, and she's very thorough, but at times the second half started to feel repetitive, almost as if she expected people to read one chapter without having read the previous chapters. I think if there had been some more personal anecdotes/examples in the second half it would have helped mitigate the feeling of repetition.
In the last chapter, she talks about the practice of calling people out on their behavior, and how it can be useful but it is often mishandled and used to delegitimize people who are genuine allies but just made an honest mistake. I appreciated this (because no one is perfect), but I actually wish she had devoted an entire chapter to this idea. It seemed kind of crammed in there right at the end, and yet I think it's an important aspect of this whole conversation—there's really no more thorough way to ostracize someone than to publicly shame them, which is what calling out can do when it's not done right. I think she could have cut some of the repetitive parts of some of the chapters out and then would have had time to talk more about this aspect of exclusion.
But overall I like the proposals Serano makes in this book about holistic activism and trying to fight the true root causes that lead myriad groups of people to be deemed second-class in some way. Instead of focusing just on fighting on one front (which then pits the groups against each other as each group tries to claim they are MORE oppressed than the other), those seeking change should focus on the common denominator, the us vs. them mentality at large. Serano's much better at breaking this down and being more granular in her explanation in the book, but that's the gist of it. And that's an idea I can get behind.
I kind of wish the two parts of the book hadn't been so starkly separated, though. I think the second half would have benefited from having more personal examples/stories sprinkled throughout. Serano is great at making a solid case for her suggestions on how to make these movements more inclusive, and she's very thorough, but at times the second half started to feel repetitive, almost as if she expected people to read one chapter without having read the previous chapters. I think if there had been some more personal anecdotes/examples in the second half it would have helped mitigate the feeling of repetition.
In the last chapter, she talks about the practice of calling people out on their behavior, and how it can be useful but it is often mishandled and used to delegitimize people who are genuine allies but just made an honest mistake. I appreciated this (because no one is perfect), but I actually wish she had devoted an entire chapter to this idea. It seemed kind of crammed in there right at the end, and yet I think it's an important aspect of this whole conversation—there's really no more thorough way to ostracize someone than to publicly shame them, which is what calling out can do when it's not done right. I think she could have cut some of the repetitive parts of some of the chapters out and then would have had time to talk more about this aspect of exclusion.
But overall I like the proposals Serano makes in this book about holistic activism and trying to fight the true root causes that lead myriad groups of people to be deemed second-class in some way. Instead of focusing just on fighting on one front (which then pits the groups against each other as each group tries to claim they are MORE oppressed than the other), those seeking change should focus on the common denominator, the us vs. them mentality at large. Serano's much better at breaking this down and being more granular in her explanation in the book, but that's the gist of it. And that's an idea I can get behind.
kserra's review against another edition
4.0
Really interesting. Postulates a theory of oppression that I hadn't seen before.
elisekatherine's review against another edition
5.0
This wasn't a perfect book, sure, but it was a book I really needed to read right now (especially after certain other books on queer stuff I read recently). I've had a lot of trouble with radical communities and extreme Discourse that's made me feel alienated and frustrated, and the articulate, compassionate way in which Serano set forth her ideas and made a case for a more complex and nuanced approach was incredibly heartening to read.
Her writing on the complexity of human experience and the need to recognize heterogeneity and avoid assuming that we know everything there is to know was powerfully resonant to me. Highly recommend this book to anyone interested in queer activism, or activism in general.
Would have loved to see more discussion of bisexuality and asexuality, but that's not Serano's area of focus and her theories are easily applied to other situations.
Her writing on the complexity of human experience and the need to recognize heterogeneity and avoid assuming that we know everything there is to know was powerfully resonant to me. Highly recommend this book to anyone interested in queer activism, or activism in general.
Would have loved to see more discussion of bisexuality and asexuality, but that's not Serano's area of focus and her theories are easily applied to other situations.
steggellettea94's review against another edition
3.0
This was a good book. That is a terrible first sentence, but there it is; nothing particularly blew me away and nothing pissed me off. The best things about this book were the author’s humor that poked through, and how it made me question and think about my own opinions and biases. The things that brought the score down for me was it felt repetitive. The Chewbacca example was great, but it didn’t need to be repeated 20+ times. This isn’t a specific critique to Serrano - most academic/non-fiction books tend to repeat themselves. All in all, a good book.
reader4435's review against another edition
challenging
hopeful
informative
medium-paced
5.0
Cannot recommend enough