Who Would Like This Book:
Lindy West's "Shrill" is a bold, hilarious, and razor-sharp collection of essays with equal doses of gut-busting humor and righteous fury. If you're drawn to feminist memoirs that challenge society’s expectations around women, bodies, and voice - and you appreciate writers like Roxane Gay, Caitlin Moran, or Jenny Lawson - this book will resonate with you. West blends confessional storytelling, social critique, and personal triumph, making this essential reading for anyone who’s ever felt othered or wants to understand what it’s like to fight for space as a woman (and especially as a fat woman) in a world that polices bodies and voices.
Who May Not Like This Book:
Some readers weren’t charmed by West’s humor or narrative approach - if irreverent, brash, and very frank writing isn’t your thing, you might find the style grating. A handful felt the memoir was too focused on personal anecdotes and online culture, and a few thought West’s essayistic, sometimes “ranty” structure worked better in short-form than in book length. Those looking for traditional or linear memoirs, or who are uncomfortable with open discussions of feminism, fat acceptance, or reproductive rights, may not find this their cup of tea.
About:
'Shrill: Notes from a Loud Woman' by Lindy West is a collection of autobiographical essays that touch on topics such as feminism, fat acceptance, online trolling, rape culture, and societal issues. Lindy West's writing style blends humor and seriousness, offering a fresh and honest perspective on personal experiences and social activism. Through her essays, West shares her journey of self-acceptance, advocacy, and challenging societal norms, making the reader reflect on important issues in a relatable and engaging manner.
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Notes:
Sensitive Topics/Content Warnings
Content warnings include discussions of fat shaming, online harassment, mention of abortion, grief, and misogyny which could be triggering for some readers.
From The Publisher:
Shrill is an uproarious memoir, a feminist rallying cry in a world that thinks gender politics are tedious and that women, especially feminists, can't be funny.
Coming of age in a culture that demands women be as small, quiet, and compliant as possible - like a porcelain dove that will also have sex with you - writer and humoristLindy West quickly discovered that she was anything but.
From a painfully shy childhood in which she tried, unsuccessfully, to hide her big body and even bigger opinions; to her public war with stand-up comedians over rape jokes; to her struggle to convince herself, and then the world, that fat people have value; to her accidental activism and never-ending battle royale with Internet trolls, Lindy narrates her life with a blend of humor and pathos that manages to make a trip to the abortion clinic funny and wring tears out of a story about diarrhea.
With inimitable good humor, vulnerability, and boundless charm, Lindy boldly shares how to survive in a world where not all stories are created equal and not all bodies are treated with equal respect, and how to weather hatred, loneliness, harassment, and loss, and walk away laughing. Shrill provocatively dissects what it means to become self-aware the hard way, to go from wanting to be silent and invisible to earning a living defending the silenced in all caps.
Ratings (18)
Incredible (6) | |
Loved It (6) | |
Liked It (3) | |
It Was OK (3) |
Reader Stats (43):
Read It (18) | |
Want To Read (15) | |
Did Not Finish (1) | |
Not Interested (9) |
3 comment(s)
Required reading. Life-changing.
i tore through this and absorbed every word
the collection is arranged very thoughtfully; west draws you in with a hilarious essay about her options for a fat female role model growing up, which will have you gasping with laughter
(i'm glad i'm not the only one disturbed by the sexual tree in the last unicorn)
and slowly segues into the darker and more intense parts of her life
mostly involving trolls harassing her online for being a woman with an opinion
her writing is effortless, effervescent, and accessible
i want to stand up for her and beat all those trolls back with a stick, but she doesn't need me to, because she has found compassion for people in their darkest places
more than once she expresses her hope that her actions have had a positive impact on other women
and they have
thank you, lindy west, for being there and taking the heat for those of us who can't
Really funny
What can you read after
Shrill: Notes from a Loud Woman?
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