How to Be a Woman is a hilarious feminist memoir that sees Caitlin Moran drawing upon each phase in her personal life to argue all the ways in which the patriarchy is suppressing women today. This memoir has a gloves-off, in-your-faceness about it that was also super approachable and shows how conversations on feminism affects almost all aspects of a woman's life, from the time she first gets her period to her fertile years and beyond!

Unfortunately, though appealing to the everyday (hem hem) white woman in terms of finding her bearings within the feminist movement, Moran's overall argument wasn't very intersectional. That is to say, she does little to acknowledge the ways in which marginalized, non-white, non-straight, non-cis women suffer under the patriarchy.

Some questionable comments were made about the burqa and colonization that struck me as very unconscientious. For example, Moran speaks about how she's against the burqa but she's also for women dressing how they please... seems like the two statements cancel each other out in my opinion.
And when referring to the fact that most historical achievements have been attained by men, she cites as examples periods of colonial history where women are nowhere to be found; during the discovery of the Americas or fighting the many wars waged against the 'Indians' they found there. Moran essentially makes light of colonization in these examples. The issues of invasion and forced oppression (all feminist issues btw) are overshadowed by the issue of women not achieving the same feats as men throughout history.

How to Be a Woman is therefore not always politically correct, but its also not completely oblivious either, plus it does make some sound arguments about the conditioning of Westernized women; the fact that we're expected to love shopping and wearing high heels etc. And I loved how Moran speaks so freely about things that women are typically groomed to 'shy away' from. How to Be a Woman is a riotously funny and unbridled book.