Books, NonFiction

Good & Mad by Rebecca Traister

Read Yes
Length 320
Quick Review Anger has been subdued, ignored, and vilified in women for-literally-ever. It’s not even something that can be discussed as if it’s in the past. Good & Mad is a look into women’s pent-up anger.

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Good & Mad by Rebecca Traister || Red Dress || Heels

Earlier this year, I read Rebecca Traister’s All the Single Ladies (read the review here) and enjoyed it very much. When I found out about her newest book Good & Mad, I was ecstatic to read it.

Anger is a natural emotion. Everyone is angry at some point, in some way, on some level. For men, anger can be an asset. For women, it never is. Anger is something I have struggled with my entire life. I was never encouraged to be angry; instead, calm down became a mantra. Anytime I was angry, it was always played off as irrational and, when I got older, or just PMS. Just so you know, it was never PMS. The even more infuriating thing: it was women telling me these things. It wasn’t until I was older that I realized other women experienced the same thing.

Good & Mad isn’t necessarily ground breaking, but it is important. Now is a time of upheaval. Women are fighting for their rights. Equal rights. A lesser known right: the right to be angry. We deserve to feel angry and express it. Rebecca Traister explores the history of women’s anger with a great of emphasis on American women.

I enjoy reading Traister’s work because she has a sense of humor even when writing about dark topics like feminism, violence, and anger. Good & Mad is no exception. She finds flaws in the American system, but through the criticism, it is obvious she loves this country and wants the best for it. Focusing on competent yet vilified women in politics is one way of showing examples of women’s anger being unacceptable. Women can’t win on either end. If they’re angry, they’re vilified; if they’re too kind, they’re adorable and a push over. Neither way is a woman taken seriously.

One of my favorite points, which I had not thought of much, is the idea that when a woman criticizes a man it is reminiscent of maternal criticism and marks an emotional return to childhood for men. This is a really interesting concept that could be expanded upon.

I highly suggest this read. It’s very interesting!

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Memorable Quotes
“Over the threat of a potential female leader, brutal masculinity won.”
“The aspersions that a woman who is angry is also unstable is cast every day in popular political discourse.”
“Maybe we cry when we’re furious in part because we feel a kind of grief at all the things we want to say or tell that we know we can’t.”
“The close cousin of sadness is laughter”

Title: Good and Mad
Author: Rebecca Traister
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Copyright: 2018
ISBN: 9781501181795

Books

No One Tells You This by Glynnis MacNicol

Read Yes
Length 304
Overview A fabulous memoir about a newly 40, childless, single woman in New York learning to struggle, be proud of, regret, love, question, and live the life she has.

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No One Tells You This by Glynnis MacNicol is a new release having hit bookstore shelves barely a month ago. I jumped at the opportunity to read this, and I absolutely love it.

I’m single, childless, and getting older every day. As a woman of a certain age, I hear “when are you getting married?” “when are you going to have babies?” and “you’ve still got time.” more than often. I’m not searching these things out. We live in a time where I am not forced into a one-way path of female adulthood; I can choose, support, and live almost anyway I desire. This is revolutionary even though it’s not completely unusual. There is a serious lack of variation in female role models. Every path is beautiful and fulfilling and difficult as long as we are able to choose the path we live.

Glynnis MacNicol shares her fortieth year story as she figures out if she’s happy with the life she’s accidentally, purposely chosen. No kids. Single. Her mother’s health is failing from Parkinson’s. Her friends are getting married and having babies. She hasn’t found anyone. Does she even want babies? She spends the year she turned 40 figuring out if she wants to keep going down that path.

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I don’t want to tell you too much, but the book is amazing. MacNicol is incredibly honest with the good and the bad. She taps in to her inner voice in an incredibly sincere way. She can be sad and funny in the same moment. There are incredibly touching moments, which will resonate deeply for women of all backgrounds and lives about finding happiness and being true to oneself.

The group of friends MacNicol describes is amazing. I hope to have a support group as deep, loyal, and wonderful as the one she describes. I also love how she often goes off on tangents describing her life in terms of “if my life were a rom-com.” She has no fear in tapping into the hilariously ludicrous inner voice we all have but would probably not want thousands of people knowing.        

I highly suggest you add this book to the top of your reading list. It’s perfect for any woman and should be read by men too.

Memorable Quotes
“Women alone always seemed to be seen as an advertisement: open space, please fill.”
“What cultural markers were there for women other than weddings and babies?”
“Women my age were always being accused of getting tell serious too quickly, but in my experience, men were just as guilty of it, maybe even more so.”
“People leave, but they also come back.”

Title: No One Tells You This
Author: Glynnis Macnicol
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Copyright: 2018
ISBN: 9781501163135