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3.7 AVERAGE
3.7 AVERAGE
I really really liked parts of this book, but some sections/focus seemed unnecessarily long.
Johanna Morrigan is a fourteen-year-old overweight “nothing” who recreates herself over the summer as Dolly Wilde, adventurous and fun-loving music critic. She is desperate to find a way to save her family after their government assistance is reduced and devises a plan to become a music critic to make money.
She is also obsessed with the idea of sex and losing her virginity, and begins to work hard at resolving this situation.
She builds herself, then rebuilds herself, and rebuilds again.
Johanna lives at home with her dysfunctional parents and siblings. Her father is an alcoholic dreamer who supports his family on government assistance while he drunkenly awaits his big break into music. Her mother appears to have given up on life, suffering from post-partum depression after the unexpected birth of twins. And she finds herself at an awkward stage with her brother Krissi, where he is pulling away into adulthood (and away from her oafish behavior), and Johanna finds she misses him.
The story starts when Johanna is fourteen, but fairly quickly it jumps a few years to Johanna at seventeen as her recreated self Dolly Wilde. I appreciated the idea of recreating yourself in this image of who you wish to be-- especially for a young person who hates themselves.
However this book felt annoyingly juvenile at times. It was a little too "YA" for my taste. I found myself being simultaneously amused and somewhat bored by both the characters and the story. When trying to put my finger on the the feeling, I thought, "It feels like laying around in a hammock on the weekend, bored with nothing better to do, and watching a bunch of pre-adolescent kids being obnoxious and entertaining themselves. If there were something better to do, I'd get up and leave."
The story was very crass and childish. I'm not saying that it was "offensive", as I'm not easily offended, and I in fact love a little crudity in my characters. However this story was just crass and juvenile, and I found myself mentally shaking my head as I would if this girl were talking to me in person, wishing she would mature, because despite her embellished accomplishments, she was very immature. Perhaps that is part of the problem for me. My mother always told me that I was "born to be 40" when I was a kid. I was always mature for my age. So while I "get" aspects of this novel and can see my juvenile-self in certain moments, overall I was never this immature and couldn't identify with much of it.
But I do issue a heavy warning to those who are easily offended. The book is full of vulgarity, distasteful references, coarse behavior, and sexual situations. So tread carefully.
This book actually consisted of some decent writing which had the ability to move the story along at a steady pace. And it was a peculiar story, which gave it a little interest, but I found it essentially lifeless. It was just "okay" for me-- a momentary distraction that I will quickly forget.
She is also obsessed with the idea of sex and losing her virginity, and begins to work hard at resolving this situation.
She builds herself, then rebuilds herself, and rebuilds again.
Johanna lives at home with her dysfunctional parents and siblings. Her father is an alcoholic dreamer who supports his family on government assistance while he drunkenly awaits his big break into music. Her mother appears to have given up on life, suffering from post-partum depression after the unexpected birth of twins. And she finds herself at an awkward stage with her brother Krissi, where he is pulling away into adulthood (and away from her oafish behavior), and Johanna finds she misses him.
The story starts when Johanna is fourteen, but fairly quickly it jumps a few years to Johanna at seventeen as her recreated self Dolly Wilde. I appreciated the idea of recreating yourself in this image of who you wish to be-- especially for a young person who hates themselves.
However this book felt annoyingly juvenile at times. It was a little too "YA" for my taste. I found myself being simultaneously amused and somewhat bored by both the characters and the story. When trying to put my finger on the the feeling, I thought, "It feels like laying around in a hammock on the weekend, bored with nothing better to do, and watching a bunch of pre-adolescent kids being obnoxious and entertaining themselves. If there were something better to do, I'd get up and leave."
The story was very crass and childish. I'm not saying that it was "offensive", as I'm not easily offended, and I in fact love a little crudity in my characters. However this story was just crass and juvenile, and I found myself mentally shaking my head as I would if this girl were talking to me in person, wishing she would mature, because despite her embellished accomplishments, she was very immature. Perhaps that is part of the problem for me. My mother always told me that I was "born to be 40" when I was a kid. I was always mature for my age. So while I "get" aspects of this novel and can see my juvenile-self in certain moments, overall I was never this immature and couldn't identify with much of it.
But I do issue a heavy warning to those who are easily offended. The book is full of vulgarity, distasteful references, coarse behavior, and sexual situations. So tread carefully.
This book actually consisted of some decent writing which had the ability to move the story along at a steady pace. And it was a peculiar story, which gave it a little interest, but I found it essentially lifeless. It was just "okay" for me-- a momentary distraction that I will quickly forget.
More rude, clever and accurate tellings from Moran on being a female growing up - this time a fictitious account of Johanna, which self confessed follows some of the same routes as Moran's own life, but with a load more made up bits! It was a funny enjoyable read. I have to admit I enjoyed [b:How to Be a Woman|10600242|How to Be a Woman|Caitlin Moran|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1405909800s/10600242.jpg|15507935] more!
Parts of this book were laugh out loud hilarious. Parts of this book were way over the top and should have been much more brief. But the last bits were absolutely fabulous. The timeline is a bit wonky, but I'm not that surprised being that her non-fiction essays are a bit all over the place.
Very fun, sort of a British version of Almost Famous. With a great ending!
I liked this book, but I really loved the concept of this book. Taking elements of culture that you love and admire and rebuilding yourself with them - all of the elements which your parents and environment have failed to instill in you. I have always wanted to rebuild myself like Johanna does. But this concept wasn't explored as much as I kind of wanted. I was surprised with a lot of other topics like music and poverty and British lifestyle. It wasn't bad, just not what I wanted. Still I admire Johanna's character and her bad-assery. She feels like a real person, which I like. And I like that we got to read about how her family affected her life, which can get glossed over in fiction.
Who would like it: Anyone who has experienced being a teenage girl. Especially anyone who was particularly awkward. Especially especially if you found comfort in music, subculture, and being a bit of a cynical douche. Extra points if you grew up in an estate in a post-industrial UK city. Alternatively, anyone who wants to understand teenage girls, with a healthy dose of humor.
Why should you read it: Caitlin Moran is just. So. Funny. I had to ban this book from public transportation and read it only in the safety of my own bed where I could laugh like an insane person in peace. Seriously. And beyond the humor, this book is so full of wisdom and love. All in all, it’s raunchy and doesn’t hold anything back, while taking on some huge themes – coming of age, gender and sexuality, identity, class, post-industrialization.
Don’t read if: You’re offended by the idea of teenage girls as sexual beings.
My favorite part: The break-up scene where the protagonist finally stands up for what she really wants – throwing together quotes from both Blade Runner and her father in a burning post-modern drunken diatribe.
A great quote: “Because what you are, as a teenager, is a small, silver, empty rocket. And you use loud music as fuel, and then the information in books as maps and coordinates, to tell you where you’re going.”
Where to get it: Anywhere, Google it. Buy it from your local bookstore. (Amazon has it, too).
Why should you read it: Caitlin Moran is just. So. Funny. I had to ban this book from public transportation and read it only in the safety of my own bed where I could laugh like an insane person in peace. Seriously. And beyond the humor, this book is so full of wisdom and love. All in all, it’s raunchy and doesn’t hold anything back, while taking on some huge themes – coming of age, gender and sexuality, identity, class, post-industrialization.
Don’t read if: You’re offended by the idea of teenage girls as sexual beings.
My favorite part: The break-up scene where the protagonist finally stands up for what she really wants – throwing together quotes from both Blade Runner and her father in a burning post-modern drunken diatribe.
A great quote: “Because what you are, as a teenager, is a small, silver, empty rocket. And you use loud music as fuel, and then the information in books as maps and coordinates, to tell you where you’re going.”
Where to get it: Anywhere, Google it. Buy it from your local bookstore. (Amazon has it, too).
Wow, CatMo has written another book. The first I saw or heard of this was a display in Waterstones, and I picked it up and flew to the till despite a) rarely buying hardbacks and b) rarely buying without reading at least a couple of reviews.
Like many here, I love this woman's writing. Love it with trademark capital letters and emphatic italics. HTBAW was like meeting a new friend who, in one fell swoop, makes all those shades of messed up you feel/felt seem completely normal, because she's just like you. Caitlin's power, as a critic and as a novelist, is in her infinite ability to make you relate to her on some level.
Despite laughing out loud, spitting out my drink and alarming the neighbours with random outbursts of guffawing, I'm quite disappointed in this offering. It was entertaining, heartfelt and wise, but I felt like I had read it before. Because I have. It's the plot to Caitlin's early life. Despite the disclaimer at the beginning, I don't know where Caitlin ends and Johanna begins. I don't believe in Johanna as her own character, I think she is a fictional conduit for Caitlin to tell her own story - again.
Even so, on the book's own merits she does a good job of finding Johanna's voice, but then the 17-year-old's narrative is interspersed with nuggets of adult wisdom, which on their own make for enlightening reading, but in this story are quite incongruous. The change in tone is as though you are watching a film in a classroom, completely immersed, then the teacher stops it and gives you a wider-context talk before starting it up again.
I really hope that when Caitlin next writes a novel she veers away from the story of her childhood. Though her childhood is something I can relate to, I would really like to see her do something else. She is clearly a big fan of Sue Townsend, and I believe that if she, like Townsend, gave her incredible comic voice to an unexpected character, the result would be amazing.
I have still given this four stars because of its entertainment value, and would recommend it, especially if you haven't read anything else by Caitlin.
Like many here, I love this woman's writing. Love it with trademark capital letters and emphatic italics. HTBAW was like meeting a new friend who, in one fell swoop, makes all those shades of messed up you feel/felt seem completely normal, because she's just like you. Caitlin's power, as a critic and as a novelist, is in her infinite ability to make you relate to her on some level.
Despite laughing out loud, spitting out my drink and alarming the neighbours with random outbursts of guffawing, I'm quite disappointed in this offering. It was entertaining, heartfelt and wise, but I felt like I had read it before. Because I have. It's the plot to Caitlin's early life. Despite the disclaimer at the beginning, I don't know where Caitlin ends and Johanna begins. I don't believe in Johanna as her own character, I think she is a fictional conduit for Caitlin to tell her own story - again.
Even so, on the book's own merits she does a good job of finding Johanna's voice, but then the 17-year-old's narrative is interspersed with nuggets of adult wisdom, which on their own make for enlightening reading, but in this story are quite incongruous. The change in tone is as though you are watching a film in a classroom, completely immersed, then the teacher stops it and gives you a wider-context talk before starting it up again.
I really hope that when Caitlin next writes a novel she veers away from the story of her childhood. Though her childhood is something I can relate to, I would really like to see her do something else. She is clearly a big fan of Sue Townsend, and I believe that if she, like Townsend, gave her incredible comic voice to an unexpected character, the result would be amazing.
I have still given this four stars because of its entertainment value, and would recommend it, especially if you haven't read anything else by Caitlin.