Review: We're Going to Need More Wine by Gabrielle Union

We’re Going to Need More Wine by Gabrielle Union

Published: October 17, 2017

Publisher: Dey Street Books

Format: audiobook via Overdrive

Rating: 4/5

Synopsis

In this moving collection of thought-provoking essays infused with her unique wisdom and deep humor, Union uses that same fearlessness to tell astonishingly personal and true stories about power, color, gender, feminism, and fame. Union tackles a range of experiences, including bullying, beauty standards, and competition between women in Hollywood, growing up in white California suburbia and then spending summers with her black relatives in Nebraska, coping with crushes, puberty, and the divorce of her parents. Genuine and perceptive, Union bravely lays herself bare, uncovering a complex and courageous life of self-doubt and self-discovery with incredible poise and brutal honesty. Throughout, she compels us to be ethical and empathetic and reminds us of the importance of confidence, self-awareness, and the power of sharing truth, laughter, and support.

My Thoughts

I must admit I’m not the biggest fan of Gabrielle Union but when I saw this was available and heard good things about it I wanted to see how this was for myself and after I was done I had a new found respect for Gabrielle Union. I found this collection of essays enlightening and seeing her an in a whole new light. Seeing how she grew up and making a name for herself in the industry was inspiring. I also found some of the stories so funny that I was literally in tears, but it’s the ones where I found that she let us in those turned out to be the most touching ones. The stories that dealt with her family and especially when she tells us about being sexually assaulted those are the ones I felt I saw and understood the real Gabrielle. She always came across as guarded to me in a sense and reading about these stories I understood why. The fact that she let everything go in this book I felt she came across so strong. Regardless if you like her or not you will find out some interesting things about her and will definitely see her in an entirely new way. This is one read that is utterly so entertaining that you can't help but to fall in love with her.

Mini Review: Not That Kind of Girl by Lena Dunham

Not That Kind of Girl by Lena Dunham

Published: September 2014

Publisher: Random House

Format: paperback purchase

Rating: 3/5

Synopsis

"There is nothing gutsier to me than a person announcing that their story is one that deserves to be told," writes Lena Dunham, and it certainly takes guts to share the stories that make up her first book, Not That Kind of Girl. These are stories about getting your butt touched by your boss, about friendship and dieting (kind of) and having two existential crises before the age of 20. Stories about travel, both successful and less so, and about having the kind of sex where you feel like keeping your sneakers on in case you have to run away during the act. Stories about proving yourself to a room of 50-year-old men in Hollywood and showing up to "an outlandishly high-fashion event with the crustiest red nose you ever saw." Fearless, smart, and as heartbreakingly honest as ever, Not That Kind of Girl establishes Lena Dunham as more than a hugely talented director, actress, and producer it announces her as a fresh and vibrant new literary voice.

My Thoughts

When it comes to Lena Dunham you either love her or you don’t, me I’m on her side! I think she is a wonderful writer and director and definitely speaks for her generation so it came to reading this book I was all ready to love it. However, I’m sort of in the middle when it comes to this review. I didn’t hate it I loved her points on being in a man dominated field and on how one should feel about yourself but the rest felt like I’ve already seen in through episodes of Girls. So when I give it three stars it doesn’t mean it’s a bad read I just felt like I didn’t actually “learn” anything new when it came to her. It is a quick read and her stories are funny and some are informative, I think if you haven’t seen the series or if you don’t know much about her then you will find out some interesting things.

Review: We Should All Be Feminist by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

We Should All Be Feminists by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Published: July 29, 2014

Publisher: Vintage

Format: Kindle purchase

Rating: 5/5

Synopsis

 What does “feminism” mean today? That is the question at the heart of We Should All Be Feminists, a personal, eloquently-argued essay—adapted from her much-viewed TEDx talk of the same name—by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, the award-winning author of Americanah and Half of a Yellow Sun.

With humor and levity, here Adichie offers readers a unique definition of feminism for the twenty-first century—one rooted in inclusion and awareness. She shines a light not only on blatant discrimination but also the more insidious, institutional behaviors that marginalize women around the world, in order to help readers of all walks of life better understand the often masked realities of sexual politics. Throughout, she draws extensively on her own experiences—in the U.S., in her native Nigeria, and abroad—offering an artfully nuanced explanation of why the gender divide is harmful to women and men, alike.

Argued in the same observant, witty and clever prose that has made Adichie a bestselling novelist, here is one remarkable author’s exploration of what it means to be a woman today—and an of-the-moment rallying cry for why we should all be feminists.

My Thoughts

 If you haven’t read this by now please do so ASAP! I love the author's views on the subject and how she shows many people how the word “feminist” isn't a bad thing. I  never understood how the word got such a negative reaction. I see it as a strong and powerful word one that I would be proud to claim.

The author goes on to talk about gender and sexual views and how many tend to separate the roles and responsibilities we’ve come to see when we think of ourselves. I found this as an eye-opening read because while I've always thought of myself and open minded and a feminist of sorts I could totally relate to some to some of the things she was talking about. This book is totally relatable and one that will surely open ones thinking and make you see things in a different light. This is definitely a required read.