204 pages
English language
Published Aug. 8, 2016
"Who would I be if I lived in a world that didn't hate women?" Hailed by the Washington Post as "one of the most visible and successful feminists of her generation," Jessica Valenti has been leading the national conversation on gender and politics for over a decade. Now, in a memoir that Publishers Weekly calls "bold and unflinching," Valenti explores the toll that sexism takes on women's lives, from the everyday to the existential. From subway gropings and imposter syndrome to sexual awakenings and motherhood, Sex Object reveals the painful, embarrassing, and sometimes illegal moments that shaped Valenti's adolescence and young adulthood in New York City. In the tradition of writers like Joan Didion and Mary Karr, Sex Object is a profoundly moving tour de force that is bound to shock those already familiar with Valenti's work, and enthrall those who are just finding it.--
"Guardian US columnist Jessica …
"Who would I be if I lived in a world that didn't hate women?" Hailed by the Washington Post as "one of the most visible and successful feminists of her generation," Jessica Valenti has been leading the national conversation on gender and politics for over a decade. Now, in a memoir that Publishers Weekly calls "bold and unflinching," Valenti explores the toll that sexism takes on women's lives, from the everyday to the existential. From subway gropings and imposter syndrome to sexual awakenings and motherhood, Sex Object reveals the painful, embarrassing, and sometimes illegal moments that shaped Valenti's adolescence and young adulthood in New York City. In the tradition of writers like Joan Didion and Mary Karr, Sex Object is a profoundly moving tour de force that is bound to shock those already familiar with Valenti's work, and enthrall those who are just finding it.--
"Guardian US columnist Jessica Valenti has been leading that national conversation for over a decade and is widely credited with sparking the new wave of the women's movement. When Jessica launched Feministing.com in 2004, it quickly became the most popular feminist site online not just because of Valenti's news acumen and analysis, but because of her humor, frankness, and willingness to open up about her own life and struggles. At the Guardian US, Valenti's wildly popular column currently garners over 1M monthly views and she is frequently their most "shared" author. She is frequent commentator on national television and a heavily requested speaker. With Sex Object, Valenti moves away from politics and policy focusing instead on funny, painful, embarrassing, and sometimes illegal moments from her life that tell a broader story about modern womanhood. Structured in three acts to follow the arc of a woman's life, BODIES, BOYS, BABIES, the stories that highlight the book are about drugs, sex, harassment, assault, bad boyfriends, too-nice boyfriends, abortions, birth, class anxiety, impostor syndrome, death threats, resistance, and family. Valenti has authored a few books with smaller presses including Full Frontal Feminist (46k LTD) but this is the first time she is being published by a major publisher. With its controversial subject matter (there is a highly detailed chapter about getting an abortion), Sex Object is bound to make waves the same way Fear of Flying did in the '70s; We keep hearing the feminism is "having a moment"- luckily, we are publishing the leader of the pack"--
This was the first book I've read by Valenti. She's a strong writer and her essays are often equal parts interesting, frustrating and provocative.
This was the first book I've read by Valenti. She's a strong writer and her essays are often equal parts interesting, frustrating and provocative.
I think I had pretty high hopes for a book like this, but Valenti's memoir fell a bit short.
I made it about halfway through before I realized that I wasn't reading anything I hadn't experienced myself, seen happen to another woman, or talk about with a close friend. While I want random acts of harassment to become more visible and for a greater discussion of everyday sexism to happen, I also want to connect stories to a larger narrative and analyze why they happen and how we can stop them, or at least have more power in a situation.
Valenti spoke very candidly and bravely about the abuse and harassment she endured throughout her childhood, adolescence, and adulthood, but I was a little confused throughout her book about how it connected to her somewhat malleable and very confusing feminism.
Overall I can't say that I recommend this book.
I think I had pretty high hopes for a book like this, but Valenti's memoir fell a bit short.
I made it about halfway through before I realized that I wasn't reading anything I hadn't experienced myself, seen happen to another woman, or talk about with a close friend. While I want random acts of harassment to become more visible and for a greater discussion of everyday sexism to happen, I also want to connect stories to a larger narrative and analyze why they happen and how we can stop them, or at least have more power in a situation.
Valenti spoke very candidly and bravely about the abuse and harassment she endured throughout her childhood, adolescence, and adulthood, but I was a little confused throughout her book about how it connected to her somewhat malleable and very confusing feminism.
Overall I can't say that I recommend this book.
Raw, readable, relatable. An important read in the canon of modern feminism.
