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jankavdm's review against another edition
hopeful
informative
reflective
relaxing
fast-paced
4.0
I think, the information in this book is not surprising or new to me. I didn't think I was well versed in feminism, but I think it just speaks to how much these ideas have permeated society already, that it surprised me actually that when the world changes, and we learn new things and do things in different ways, we are never going to "reach capacity" of people, if that makes any sense. I gave it a high rating because I think it's a great summary of feminism at the time, and I think it was done in an excellent way. It was never going on for too long, because each person wrote briefly and succinctly their ideas. I really love how many people contributed to it.
shannenlc's review against another edition
3.0
My initial reaction upon finishing Feminists Don't Wear Pink was immensely positive. This was exactly the book I needed at the time I read it - it was motivational, inspirational and made me feel empowered. I can't dismiss the emotion that it evoked in me, however, I do have a couple of points of critcism which I have to account for in both the rating (3.5) and the review.
Before I get into that, let's briefly summarise what the book is about. Feminists Don't Wear Pink is a curated selection of essays from a variety of public figures about their experiences, thoughts and feelings about being a woman and a feminist. It's divided into three main categories (with a poetry section in the middle) - epiphany, anger and joy - which is supposed to represent the three main parts of a woman's journey into becoming a feminist.
It's a relatable and accessible read, which is the ideal book for young girls and women that are just discovering feminism. I'd consider myself a mid/top-tier feminist in regards to my knowledge and understanding of feminism both academically and experientially, so I did find this to be targeted at a different audience that are just getting started with feminism. However, I still enjoyed it and took a lot away from it, and I'd imagine that it would be thought-provoking for most women regardless of where they stand on the feminist spectrum. Despite how thought-provoking the book was, I do have two main issues with this book.
Firstly, this is not a collection of essays as it's marketed to be; it's a collection of diary entries. They're very informal and non-academic, so much so that some of them feel like they weren't written to be read. None of the women seem particularly qualified to speak on feminism and some entries were confused and/or unrelated to the topic of feminism. It felt like the contributors had completely free reign, because there was no coherence to any of their entires - some were lists, some were timelines, some were anecdotes, some were musings, some were articles - and at the end I found myself confused about the purpose of some of the entries and what their core message was supposed to be. What was the purpose of a timeline of key moments in someones life? What does a generic list titled "10 things I learned about [insert word]" tell us about feminism? Although I found this a tad frustrating, I was willing to overlook it, because I understood that it served the greater purpose of making it more accessible for readers that are less familiar with feminism and/or are intimidated by academic books about feminist theory and history. This wasn't intended to be an academic text deconstructing and analysing feminist theory and history; it's simply supposed to be the voices of ordinary women discussing what feminism means to them. However, the second issue I had was more difficult to overlook.
The structure of this book is ALL. OVER. THE. PLACE. From the beginning, I was unsure about the division of the book into the three sections - epiphany, anger and joy - because, frankly, it didn't seem that logical to bunch essays together that were all on the same topic. It could've worked if the contributors were given specific topics to discuss, but because they appear to have had complete creative freedom, it resulted in each section being a little repetitive and some of the ideas became redundant. In any collection of essays, it's to be expected that the subject matter would change from one essay to the next, but the random poetry break in the middle? What was that all about?! Personally, I'm not a big fan of poetry so that ripped me away from the flow, but regardless of my personal preference, the poetry section should've been included at the end as additional reading, not haphazardly slapped right into the middle.
Ultimately, these issues could've been resolved if the curator, Scarlett Curtis, had a more coherent vision of the book she wanted to create and had taken more creative control. I appreciate that Curtis wanted to allow the women to tell their stories and share their authentic voices, but they needed much more guidance and direction about what to write. The entries needed to be longer, more streamlined and have more substance (they also needed to be edited properly - the amount of grammatical errors was crazy!).
The quality of the essays and structure aside, this is a great book in terms of accessibility. I liked that Curtis specifically chose women that weren't the most familiar or confident with feminism, because that makes them relatable for the readers (albiet, it poses problems for the accuracy of what is being portrayed about feminism). I particularly loved the summaries of feminist history at the end. It makes feminist history less daunting to those that are just starting out and enables them to pick out the parts that are of interest to start conducting their own research. I also appreciated the diversity of the contributors - there were women of colour, trans women, mothers, business owners, activists and LGBTQ+ women. This is undoubtedly a book written by inspirational women that many of us can and should look up to for various reasons.
My favourite entries were:
- To-Do List by Dolly Alderton - I really liked the practical advice given in this entry and how it speaks to the insecurities, habits and ways of thinking of most women. Alderton's voice is friendly, warm, humorous and wise.
- Be a Fun Feminist by Nimco Ali- Funny, uplifting and inspirational. Her discussion of FGM was also harrowing and eye-opening, and I liked the consideration of feminism across various cultural contexts.
- Stuff Your Pockets by Beanie Feldstein - I loved the concept of "stuffing your pockets" with the ideas, experiences, wisdom and passion of other women. Women should always be supporting and championing each other.
- 10 Ways to Support the Women in Your Life by Olivia Perez - I feel so strongly about supporting other women and not tearing them down, so loved the sentiment expressed here and the practical steps Perez outlined to taking action and forming more loving and suppportive relationships with women.
- The Weaker Sex by Kiera Knightley - The power and emotion in this entry was palpable. Anger was used perfectly here to convey the emotion that can be tied up in feminism and how justified it can be, particularly for mothers who have so much physical, emotional and mental strength.
- Feminism, My Vulva and Me by Liv Little - Because body shame is real, insecurities about vulvas plague women everywhere and it is something that women should never be ashamed of.
- Imposter Syndrome by Alaa Murabit - This entry spoke to my heart. Murabit conveyed exactly the insecurity that I myself have felt and still feel all the time as a woman. Internally, I feel that I can do anything, but as soon as I'm put into certain situations I falter and doubt myself. I loved how Murabit showed the ways in which women are more valuable and can genuinely make a greater impact to climate change, world peace and economic growth than men can. It really inspired me to get more involved in the things that matter to me, because we DO need more women in all areas of life to make improvements and implement change.
The entries from the contributors varied vastly in quality and how much I enjoyed them, but the ones above stood out. Unfortunately, there were more mediocre than stand out entries, but that's just the way it sometimes goes in curated collections. However, in terms of the inspiration that I felt from reading about this women, I can't fault it. In some ways, this might be one of the most life-changing books I've ever read. It made me think about my attitude and perception of myself as a woman, and how I unconciously placed limitations on myself because I'm a woman. It's forced me to reflect and to start taking action on certain things I've been wanting to do for a while but have delayed because I haven't had enough self-belief or confidence. For that reason, despite the flaws in regards to quality of the essays and structure of the book, I would say without hesitation that this is a must-read for all women. Academically speaking it doesn't have much value, but it is valuable for showing people how subjective feminism is (see quote from Beanie Feldstein below) and how we each interpret feminism differently and place different meanings on it depending on our unique indentities and experiences. At its core this book is a powerful tool of inspiration and empowerment, and I think most women could do with a little extra of that in our lives.
Here are some of my favourite quotes and/or quotes that inspired me:
"Feminism is layered and its power comes from its diversity. I am only one woman with one experience of the world. Therefore, alone I can only access a sliver of what feminism represents and holds up. However, when I actively stuff up my pockets, I am filled with the brilliance of other women and their experiences." (Beanie Feldstein)
Before I get into that, let's briefly summarise what the book is about. Feminists Don't Wear Pink is a curated selection of essays from a variety of public figures about their experiences, thoughts and feelings about being a woman and a feminist. It's divided into three main categories (with a poetry section in the middle) - epiphany, anger and joy - which is supposed to represent the three main parts of a woman's journey into becoming a feminist.
It's a relatable and accessible read, which is the ideal book for young girls and women that are just discovering feminism. I'd consider myself a mid/top-tier feminist in regards to my knowledge and understanding of feminism both academically and experientially, so I did find this to be targeted at a different audience that are just getting started with feminism. However, I still enjoyed it and took a lot away from it, and I'd imagine that it would be thought-provoking for most women regardless of where they stand on the feminist spectrum. Despite how thought-provoking the book was, I do have two main issues with this book.
Firstly, this is not a collection of essays as it's marketed to be; it's a collection of diary entries. They're very informal and non-academic, so much so that some of them feel like they weren't written to be read. None of the women seem particularly qualified to speak on feminism and some entries were confused and/or unrelated to the topic of feminism. It felt like the contributors had completely free reign, because there was no coherence to any of their entires - some were lists, some were timelines, some were anecdotes, some were musings, some were articles - and at the end I found myself confused about the purpose of some of the entries and what their core message was supposed to be. What was the purpose of a timeline of key moments in someones life? What does a generic list titled "10 things I learned about [insert word]" tell us about feminism? Although I found this a tad frustrating, I was willing to overlook it, because I understood that it served the greater purpose of making it more accessible for readers that are less familiar with feminism and/or are intimidated by academic books about feminist theory and history. This wasn't intended to be an academic text deconstructing and analysing feminist theory and history; it's simply supposed to be the voices of ordinary women discussing what feminism means to them. However, the second issue I had was more difficult to overlook.
The structure of this book is ALL. OVER. THE. PLACE. From the beginning, I was unsure about the division of the book into the three sections - epiphany, anger and joy - because, frankly, it didn't seem that logical to bunch essays together that were all on the same topic. It could've worked if the contributors were given specific topics to discuss, but because they appear to have had complete creative freedom, it resulted in each section being a little repetitive and some of the ideas became redundant. In any collection of essays, it's to be expected that the subject matter would change from one essay to the next, but the random poetry break in the middle? What was that all about?! Personally, I'm not a big fan of poetry so that ripped me away from the flow, but regardless of my personal preference, the poetry section should've been included at the end as additional reading, not haphazardly slapped right into the middle.
Ultimately, these issues could've been resolved if the curator, Scarlett Curtis, had a more coherent vision of the book she wanted to create and had taken more creative control. I appreciate that Curtis wanted to allow the women to tell their stories and share their authentic voices, but they needed much more guidance and direction about what to write. The entries needed to be longer, more streamlined and have more substance (they also needed to be edited properly - the amount of grammatical errors was crazy!).
The quality of the essays and structure aside, this is a great book in terms of accessibility. I liked that Curtis specifically chose women that weren't the most familiar or confident with feminism, because that makes them relatable for the readers (albiet, it poses problems for the accuracy of what is being portrayed about feminism). I particularly loved the summaries of feminist history at the end. It makes feminist history less daunting to those that are just starting out and enables them to pick out the parts that are of interest to start conducting their own research. I also appreciated the diversity of the contributors - there were women of colour, trans women, mothers, business owners, activists and LGBTQ+ women. This is undoubtedly a book written by inspirational women that many of us can and should look up to for various reasons.
My favourite entries were:
- To-Do List by Dolly Alderton - I really liked the practical advice given in this entry and how it speaks to the insecurities, habits and ways of thinking of most women. Alderton's voice is friendly, warm, humorous and wise.
- Be a Fun Feminist by Nimco Ali- Funny, uplifting and inspirational. Her discussion of FGM was also harrowing and eye-opening, and I liked the consideration of feminism across various cultural contexts.
- Stuff Your Pockets by Beanie Feldstein - I loved the concept of "stuffing your pockets" with the ideas, experiences, wisdom and passion of other women. Women should always be supporting and championing each other.
- 10 Ways to Support the Women in Your Life by Olivia Perez - I feel so strongly about supporting other women and not tearing them down, so loved the sentiment expressed here and the practical steps Perez outlined to taking action and forming more loving and suppportive relationships with women.
- The Weaker Sex by Kiera Knightley - The power and emotion in this entry was palpable. Anger was used perfectly here to convey the emotion that can be tied up in feminism and how justified it can be, particularly for mothers who have so much physical, emotional and mental strength.
- Feminism, My Vulva and Me by Liv Little - Because body shame is real, insecurities about vulvas plague women everywhere and it is something that women should never be ashamed of.
- Imposter Syndrome by Alaa Murabit - This entry spoke to my heart. Murabit conveyed exactly the insecurity that I myself have felt and still feel all the time as a woman. Internally, I feel that I can do anything, but as soon as I'm put into certain situations I falter and doubt myself. I loved how Murabit showed the ways in which women are more valuable and can genuinely make a greater impact to climate change, world peace and economic growth than men can. It really inspired me to get more involved in the things that matter to me, because we DO need more women in all areas of life to make improvements and implement change.
The entries from the contributors varied vastly in quality and how much I enjoyed them, but the ones above stood out. Unfortunately, there were more mediocre than stand out entries, but that's just the way it sometimes goes in curated collections. However, in terms of the inspiration that I felt from reading about this women, I can't fault it. In some ways, this might be one of the most life-changing books I've ever read. It made me think about my attitude and perception of myself as a woman, and how I unconciously placed limitations on myself because I'm a woman. It's forced me to reflect and to start taking action on certain things I've been wanting to do for a while but have delayed because I haven't had enough self-belief or confidence. For that reason, despite the flaws in regards to quality of the essays and structure of the book, I would say without hesitation that this is a must-read for all women. Academically speaking it doesn't have much value, but it is valuable for showing people how subjective feminism is (see quote from Beanie Feldstein below) and how we each interpret feminism differently and place different meanings on it depending on our unique indentities and experiences. At its core this book is a powerful tool of inspiration and empowerment, and I think most women could do with a little extra of that in our lives.
Here are some of my favourite quotes and/or quotes that inspired me:
"Feminism is layered and its power comes from its diversity. I am only one woman with one experience of the world. Therefore, alone I can only access a sliver of what feminism represents and holds up. However, when I actively stuff up my pockets, I am filled with the brilliance of other women and their experiences." (Beanie Feldstein)
"Because periods don't affect men and we live in a deeply patriarchal world, they are shrouded in shame and apology. If men had periods, bleeding would be an Olympic sport and there would be free menstrual cups given out on the tube." (Amika George)
"Little girls with dreams become women with vision. Vision to shape the world as leaders and hopefully as fun feminists." // "The tools the oppressor uses are different depending on when and where you were born, but at the heart of all of them is the ability to create fear. Fear of what might happen if you, a girl or woman, step outside of the narrative created for you." (Nimco Ali)
"Our message for girls and women around the globe is to shine. To stand up, take risks and chance. To find a tribe of unique, supportive women and girls who will lift you up, not put you down, and support them in return. Never be afraid of failure, but pursue your goals with the firm belief that you are capable of doing anything you set your mind to doing. After all, if we are to live in a truly equitable world, we women and girls need to work together, pursue our dreams and shine until our light cannot be ignored." (Maryam and Nivaal Rehman)
"Women are not just mothers, we are multitudinous marvels, undefined by anything other than ourselves. Gender is a construct; but it is how we choose to move through our lives that makes us who we are." // "When women write about feminism, it can be destructive. We so often write about how our gender limits us, whereas perhaps a better approach is to think about what we can achieve in spit of the way society limits us through its construction of gender norms." (Tasha Bishop)
"Political correctness gets a bad rap, but all it really boils down to is minority groups asking that they not feel marginalized and hurt by everyday conversation or media." (Scarlett Curtis)
"No matter where you're from or the life you've lived, you'll always find something in common and a shared dream with a fellow female." (Tanya Burr)
"Competition thrives on insecurities. Identify those women you feel you're sitting across the table from and sit next to them. Find a common ground. Wanting women to succeed without jealousy is the definition of grace." (Olivia Perez)
"My feminism is not passing judgement on others, but instead listening to understand our differences." // "We are on the same team. Something as small as a compliment to let another woman know she is on the right path or she is doing a great job can make all the difference. We can defend each other when we are being attacked or judged. We can hire other women and refer each other for jobs when the opportunity fits." (Angela Yee)
"The only way we can become more inclusive and ultimately more legitimate and successful at ensuring peace, prosperity and women's rights is by ensuring that all people can see themselves at the table, and that young women in particular, have role models, mentors and the necessary support and amplification to ensure that we occupy those spaces." (Alaa Murabit)
"Now I'm thirty-three years old and bored of recounting everything I've ever eaten over the course of every day before I go to sleep and berating myself for every single carb I've sunk my teeth into, I'm starting to think that maybe the ridiculously tall narrow standard is just another construct to make us feel bad ourselves so we put energy into going to the gym and juice cleanses instead of raising hell and changing the world." (Alison Sudol)
"I believe in the ability to achieve great things that resides deep in the hearts of women. I believe in the great change that a girl with a big dream can bring to this world. I believe in giving girls a chance to activiate their potential without fear. So if that is what a feminist is, then, yes, call me a feminist." (Chemwemwe Chiweza)
"Perhaps feminism isn't about being morally pure or well-liked, and is more about doing the damn thing. Maybe it's about being a woman in her truth, fightng for her cause, her dreams, her vision and doing it exactly as she sees fit." (Evanna Lynch)
"Patriarchy has attempted to write female pleasure out of our culture.
Patriarchy wants us to think our sexual gratification can only be
granted to us by a man.
But life is too short to be having bad sex.
Tell your mates -
Girls Wank Too" (poem, The Female Wank by Grace Campbell)
alexirose's review against another edition
challenging
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
sophiereads07's review against another edition
5.0
Sad, uplifting, funny and everything in-between, I loved every second of this.
hanna_g's review against another edition
This book is kind of a beginner’s guide to feminism and I’m not a beginner.
lottie1803's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
zyzy's review against another edition
4.0
Starting my reading of Curtis' book, I was quite bored and expected it to be useless for my feminist education. How wrong I was!
This book might be the embodiement of fourth wave feminism! Indeed, it shows that the movement has different forms and multiple voices; it helped me to understand that one element that feminists have in common is HOPE. We all HOPE that at some point in time things will change (and they will!).
I take one star off because some parts were repetitive and I wished more writing on intersectionality and trans issues.
This book might be the embodiement of fourth wave feminism! Indeed, it shows that the movement has different forms and multiple voices; it helped me to understand that one element that feminists have in common is HOPE. We all HOPE that at some point in time things will change (and they will!).
I take one star off because some parts were repetitive and I wished more writing on intersectionality and trans issues.