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Summer Reading 2019: Shrill

Here's why Bethany suggests Shrill...

About the book

Shrill: Notes from a Loud Woman

By Lindy West

West, a  GQ culture writer and former staff writer for Jezebel, balances humor with rare honesty and introspection in her debut. Over the course of the book, West details finding her voice as a  writer and a  feminist through stories about her family, her weight, having an abortion, and the emotional toll of being harassed online. West's chronicle of the series of highly personal online attacks—and of how much Internet conversations have changed in the past decade—marks this book as required reading. Always entertaining and relatable, West writes openly and with clear eyes about embarrassing moments and self-esteem issues, and has a  remarkable ability to move among lightheartedness, heavy hitting topics, and what it means to be a  good person. By reading about West's thought-provoking responses to online rape jokes, gender-specific attacks, and being trolled about a  family tragedy, readers learn by example how to navigate the Internet's sometimes soul-sucking terrain with dignity and retain a  sense of adventure. - Publishers Weekly

About the reader

  Bethany Hellerich, Science & Visual Arts

Bethany previously recommended:

  • Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore by Robin Sloan
  • What if?: Serious Scientific Answers to Absurd Hypothetical Questions by Randall Munroe