Shrill

Shrill: Notes from a Loud Woman by Lindy West
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Before the TV show Shrill appeared on Hulu, I had never heard of Lindy West. I had never considered a lot of things about being overweight until this show. But this isn't about the show Shrill, it's about the book.

Lindy West is a writer and comedy aficionado. She's also overweight. Shrill is a series of thoughts and essays about being all these things and being a woman on top of them. She covers everything from being the only fat girl in the room, to rape culture, to comedy, to growing up big.

You may or may not know that I am overweight. It's a thing…but I've been struggling with trying to connect with the feeling that's been tugging at me lately in which I don't feel less than…but everyone else seems super committed to making me healthy or weigh less. Or, the most fun, ignoring my existence altogether. So when I saw Shrill the TV show, I felt like I finally found someone who GOT IT. Obviously I needed more.

I started with Roxanne Gay's Hunger…that one was a big emotional mess for me and I'm still not prepared to write a review of it. So Lindy's book Shrill was a welcome respite. It's filled with incredibly humorous takes on life as a bigger woman.

I've always found it hard to put into words what it feels like to be a human with feelings in this skin. Lindy (and Roxanne as well) have found a way to do so that connects with you and nails exactly the feelings you're feeling.

This book made me feel a little less alone in all this…even if it's just a book by someone I'll never meet. But that's the point of books right? To connect us with others?

I may have gone off the rails here. Read Shrill, Watch Shrill, read Hunger by Roxanne Gay. It'll make you feel a little better.


View all my reviews