“In truth, feminism is flawed because it is a movement powered by people and people are inherently flawed.”
When I go looking for my next read, I have never, EVER picked up a collection of essays. I generally stick to the YA/A Fantasy.
But.
Roxane Gay is the exception. She writes with an amazing, heartfelt, truthful sobriety that I find refreshing and endearing. I want to write like her.
First – these essays center around feminism, if you didn’t know. Am I a feminist? I don’t know. I don’t think so. Do I think women and men should be equal? Yes. Am I going to go protest in a vagina hat? No. Do I think all the men in political offices should be replaced with women? No – because a stupid woman is just as bad as a stupid man.
This is one book where I wish I would have gotten a digital copy so I could have highlighted – there are so many amazing quotes in this book.
Roxane Gay is first and foremost, an amazing writer – girl’s got a gift with words.
Second, is she relateable. She can write the struggles of girls and women with such a chest-punching truth and I am in awe. She writes without purple prose of needless explanation; she says a lot with few words. She gets to the point and lets that point speak for itself.
Gay is a light to girls and women, a voice letting us know that the things we feel and think are okay. Normal. That even when the world expects X from us, it’s okay to give them the finger and move on.
While a number of her essays focus on feminism in some aspect, I never felt that I was being force to accept her point of view or her ideas – she writes with a “this is what I think, but you can think what you want,” kind of vibe. A “chill” vibe. There are also themes of self-discovery, in the professional and personal world.
Now, some of the essays read faster than others. The essay about Scrabble? LOVED it. It was about finding your inner strength and humbling yourself. The essays about feminism in books I’ve never read? Meh. I skimmed those.
If you’re into creative nonfiction, feminism, and honesty, this book is for you. Hands down. She’s a bestseller for a reason. I give Bad Feminist by Roxane Gay a 4 out of 5. While it didn’t read the smoothest, I blame that on my general dislike of essay collections. The writing is topnotch, the narrative is intelligent and calm, and the purpose is beautiful in its honesty.
Beatrice B. Morgan 