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Reviews tagging 'Sexism'
Quit Like a Woman: The Radical Choice to Not Drink in a Culture Obsessed with Alcohol by Holly Whitaker
3 reviews
arayo's review against another edition
informative
inspiring
1.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Cursing, Drug abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, and Alcohol
Moderate: Misogyny, Racism, Sexism, Sexual content, Toxic friendship, and Classism
Minor: Rape and Sexual assault
emfass's review
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
3.25
I read this book for Bad Bitch Book Club, and will preface my review by saying I do not have any experience with substance abuse/addiction, either personally or in my immediate family.
As many others have written in their reviews, Whitaker's privileges in the way she was able to get sober (and in general, live her life) come through loud and clear, and it's not a great look. She throws in some intersectionality with racism in the final chapters, which makes it seem like an afterthought. She also seems to compare her fight against addiction/alcoholism with the Stonewall riots in her conclusion, which...just...no.
I found some of her language and instructions to be berating instead of an invitation. In discussions with the BBBC group, I also learned that some of the science she backs her claims with doesn't necessarily hold up. (e.g. Anything can be poisonous, including water, if you take a big enough dose.)
I do think Whitaker made a very interesting and compelling case for the whys and hows of addiction and recovery. I was especially intrigued by the concept of why a recovery program (Alcoholics Anonymous) that asks an addict to submit and break themselves down might not be helpful or effective for oppressed identities where society already does that to them regularly. I also know that AA has been helpful for many people, and Whitaker doesn't leave much room for the option. Lastly, I firmly believe that a necessary component of surviving anything--including, y'know, life in general--is finding authentic connection to yourself and to others, and I appreciated how much time she took to discuss this and how one might go about it.
As many others have written in their reviews, Whitaker's privileges in the way she was able to get sober (and in general, live her life) come through loud and clear, and it's not a great look. She throws in some intersectionality with racism in the final chapters, which makes it seem like an afterthought. She also seems to compare her fight against addiction/alcoholism with the Stonewall riots in her conclusion, which...just...no.
I found some of her language and instructions to be berating instead of an invitation. In discussions with the BBBC group, I also learned that some of the science she backs her claims with doesn't necessarily hold up. (e.g. Anything can be poisonous, including water, if you take a big enough dose.)
I do think Whitaker made a very interesting and compelling case for the whys and hows of addiction and recovery. I was especially intrigued by the concept of why a recovery program (Alcoholics Anonymous) that asks an addict to submit and break themselves down might not be helpful or effective for oppressed identities where society already does that to them regularly. I also know that AA has been helpful for many people, and Whitaker doesn't leave much room for the option. Lastly, I firmly believe that a necessary component of surviving anything--including, y'know, life in general--is finding authentic connection to yourself and to others, and I appreciated how much time she took to discuss this and how one might go about it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, and Eating disorder
Moderate: Cursing, Drug abuse, Drug use, Mental illness, Toxic relationship, and Vomit
Minor: Domestic abuse, Sexism, and Sexual assault
bgoodbookclub's review
challenging
emotional
informative
reflective
slow-paced
2.0
I will preface this review with the fact that I am not sober and am not trying to become sober. I did not pick up this book because it is something that I myself am going through, and instead read it because it was suggested to me via a book club.
The first half of this book is extremely hard to get through because it reads like a textbook. While the facts do set the stage for the second half of the book, I kept wanting to put it down and not come back to it. I did enjoy reading about the background of AA and how it does not suit everyone because it is the only program for sobriety that I am aware of.
I am sure becoming sober is an extremely hard process and one that I do not pretend to know what it feels like to go through. However, I had a hard time with some of Whitaker's digs on people around her. One in particular is when she mentions that someone she knows wrote her a note saying, "You seem to be in pain, your family seems to be in pain, maybe you should work the Twelve Steps, my father did that, it helped my family." Whitaker then dives into how this person had no right to tell her what was best for her because she didn't know Whitaker's situation. I keep coming back to this section because the note sounds like someone who is trying to help and wants to offer a suggestion of something that helped someone she loves. I was shocked at how stern Whitaker was in response to the note. I do agree with how terrible many other comments to her were during her road to sobriety but there were a few that I thought seemed drastic and closed minded.
Whitaker also comes from a very privileged standpoint where she suggest yoga, meditation, etc. which not everyone has access to. She also quit her job at one point which is not possible for many others trying to get sober.
I think I might appreciate this book more in a different stage of life later down the road. My viewpoint could very well change if I myself or one of my loved ones decide to take the journey to sobriety. This book is not one that I would recommend that everyone will enjoy and get something out of.
The first half of this book is extremely hard to get through because it reads like a textbook. While the facts do set the stage for the second half of the book, I kept wanting to put it down and not come back to it. I did enjoy reading about the background of AA and how it does not suit everyone because it is the only program for sobriety that I am aware of.
I am sure becoming sober is an extremely hard process and one that I do not pretend to know what it feels like to go through. However, I had a hard time with some of Whitaker's digs on people around her. One in particular is when she mentions that someone she knows wrote her a note saying, "You seem to be in pain, your family seems to be in pain, maybe you should work the Twelve Steps, my father did that, it helped my family." Whitaker then dives into how this person had no right to tell her what was best for her because she didn't know Whitaker's situation. I keep coming back to this section because the note sounds like someone who is trying to help and wants to offer a suggestion of something that helped someone she loves. I was shocked at how stern Whitaker was in response to the note. I do agree with how terrible many other comments to her were during her road to sobriety but there were a few that I thought seemed drastic and closed minded.
Whitaker also comes from a very privileged standpoint where she suggest yoga, meditation, etc. which not everyone has access to. She also quit her job at one point which is not possible for many others trying to get sober.
I think I might appreciate this book more in a different stage of life later down the road. My viewpoint could very well change if I myself or one of my loved ones decide to take the journey to sobriety. This book is not one that I would recommend that everyone will enjoy and get something out of.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction and Alcoholism
Moderate: Sexism
Minor: Racism, Rape, and Sexual assault
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