We Should All Be Feminists

"Also a TED talk. Short, well written"

"a lot of what is said in this essay is obvious to me, but i think that's because it's not necessarily for me. it's for people who aren't quite there yet, who don't understand feminism or why we need it. with that being said, i do think it's a very accessible explanation. and though this essay didn’t inform me much on feminism, i did learn from it what gender inequality looks like in nigeria, and i am happy to now know a bit more about life in another part of the world. (edit: apparently adichie is transphobic, so with this knowledge accompanying my aforementioned thoughts on the essay, i'd suggest reading alternative feminist texts, as feminism that does not include trans women is not true feminism.)"

"This book was pretty short, but that made it a perfect one to listen to while driving. The points Ngozi Adichie made were well argued, and she is a great storyteller. I found myself relating to several of the experiences she shared. My favorite part of this book though was seeing a perspective outside of the United States."

"A very short book based on a Ted talk. Lots of great information and a good starting point for the conversation about feminism. "

"Fast read. It felt like the author was reading my mind more than 80 % of this short book. I want to read more of her work because her voice is so refreshing yet so familiar. Highly recommend."

"How can we get every human to read this?"

"Since it’s Women’s History Month, I figured now was the time to finally read this essay! Surprisingly, reading it wasn’t life changing for me personally; I’ve had the fantastic good fortune to have been raised by a feminist, and plan on using my mother’s methods (and advice) to raise my own future children. But it is a life changing essay, and I mean that quite literally. The key to changing the way women are viewed in society is changing the societal pressures that exist for women. And while I was not brought up with any sort of pressure to do one thing or another just because I was born a girl doesn’t mean I don’t see the impact it has on other women. I had dinner last year with some friends who actually said to me that my household was backwards because I’m not the one who does most of the cooking and cleaning. It’s not backwards, it’s just normal. I shouldn’t be expected to do more cooking and cleaning simply because more women have performed that role in the past. So needless to say, I’m going to buy 50 editions of this book and start passing them out, because Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie really does a much better job of explaining it than I do, and thank goodness for her!"

"I initially rated this five stars because it was a compelling argument towards feminism. I ended up taking it down to four stars because (after rereading) I realized that it was trans and nonbinary exclusive. <br/><br/>I have also heard that the author may be a TERF who openly supports J. K. Rowling's anti-trans agenda. I will not be reading anything else from this author until I have looked into this."

"January read…a feminist is not an evil anti man person. And a feminist can look like, dress like, be like however they wish"

"I want to buy a crate and a bunch of copies of this book and start passing out copies on the street. Everyone should read this! Not interested in reading it? Well, you should because gender stereotypes is still an issue, so humour me and read these 52 pages (or watch/listen to the 30 minute TEDx Talk video).<br/><br/>After reading this in one quick sitting, I immediately wanted to watch the TEDx Talk video that it is referenced in the beginning pages. I will say that the TEDx Talk is probably 96% of the book; there are some quotable lines in the book that were not stated in the TEDx Talk, but other than that, the two are a close match.<br/><br/>This book isn't really a book, it's actually a short essay/presentation put in print -- but for ease of this review I will still call it a 'book'. This book takes on the heavy subjects of gender stereotypes, societal norms, and the negative stigmas around the word 'feminist', but it is done in such a way that is condensed and short -- a hard task to do with such a big issue and so many related topics (e.g. workforce, education, ect.). This book identifies the problem and offers a solution. The way it is written (flow, examples, & physical length of the book) is intentional to provoke and to make you reflect on the behaviours of those around you (and your own) and how they may be connected to learned gender stereotypes in your present society. <br/><br/>My favourite -- and this isn't a spoiler because it's told in the first few pages -- is the anecdote about her friend, Louis who says, "I don't see what you mean by things being different and harder for women. Maybe it was so in the past but not now. Everything is fine now for women". What I loved about this is that this phrase has been said in my discussions with my male friends (and many of you reading this have experienced the same, I'm sure). I feel that by having this introduced at the start readers are forced to recall that statement and how they have said it/heard someone say it and reflect on what is being addressed through the whole 52 pages. <br/><br/>As I said at the start, everyone should read this. It will take up only 30 - 40 minutes of your time (that is one episode of your Netflix show you've been binge watching). Don't want to read it? <a href="We-should-all-be-feminists-Chim">Click here for the TEDx Talk and watch it instead.</a><br/> <br/><br/><a href="https://myareads.wordpress.com/">Read More of My Review on My Blog</a><br/>"