I followed Lindy West when she was at Jezebel--she was the cream of the crop there, I thought. I adored Shrill, but probably wouldn't have read this new one, even before reading all the press about it, 'cos the subject's so hinky. But, like slowing way down when passing a fatal traffic accident, I've felt compelled to read *all* of said press. Mostly it just makes me so, so sad.
Ms. West wrote a best-seller about being fat (her word) and loving and accepting herself - that was made into the TV series Shrill - and then she hooked up with and fell in love with and eventually married a conventionally "good-looking, thin man". Success! We all deserve true love with a handsome man! QED: No one has to "settle" because they are fat. Except the thin man immediately cheated with multiple partners and demanded Ms. West's acceptance of his non-monogamy with other more conventionally "good-looking, thin women", so fat Ms. West left on journey of "self discovery" and discovered she was emotionally dependent on the thin man anyway and returned to thin man husband and his thin now live-in "girlfriend", so now because of one woman's crap husband, the big boys of legacy media "weighed" in with their many thoughts that obviously feminism is dead and a lie and men hate fat women. But for some "reason" her "fat and fabulous" feminist fans failed to embrace Ms. West's new coerced polygamous life-style with thin man and thin lady... The end.
“If I somewhat rashly assumed that more people were reading the book so many people were discussing, it’s because I came of age at a time when people not only bought books but the media only really covered authors who wrote books people read” is a brilliant sentence. And as I have never heard of, or read Lindy West, I have no opinion of her, or her work. I would, however, love to read your son’s upcoming fantasy novel ☺️
"Surely, the assignment editors at these publications do some research into how a book is selling before approving lengthy think pieces."
Sadly I think it's part of the ongoing media beatdown of feminism, and the concept that women are ACTUALLY fully-formed human beings instead of ornaments for the male gaze.
My wife sent me this today; this is what I was groping for in my comment...it isn't about Lindy West, per se, but more the all-out assault on feminism, and the Mass media is entirely complicit. Lindy makes for a convenient target to tear feminists down. Look for this to be the reaction on almost anyone publishing stuff like this especially if they aren't well-known as Lindy (who I had actually heard off in passing before.).
I guess I travel in the wrong circles because I had no idea what Lindy West is famous for. But Lindy got the eyeballs on the work at least. Maybe there's a MadLibs wheel or they draw these projects by lottery or something in these media conglomerate offices.
I've never heard (or read) of Lindy West or her husband before reading this post, so count me out of hating either one of them. Still, this was an interesting read, as it is baffling that such media giants would write about a book that has sold only 3000 copies. And if the reviews aren't complementary, it proves that "there is no such thing as bad publicity" isn't true.
Not the point, I know, but I can't even understand why 3,000 people bothered to purchase it, really. Lindy West is the definition of talentless hack IMO.
I followed Lindy West when she was at Jezebel--she was the cream of the crop there, I thought. I adored Shrill, but probably wouldn't have read this new one, even before reading all the press about it, 'cos the subject's so hinky. But, like slowing way down when passing a fatal traffic accident, I've felt compelled to read *all* of said press. Mostly it just makes me so, so sad.
Ms. West wrote a best-seller about being fat (her word) and loving and accepting herself - that was made into the TV series Shrill - and then she hooked up with and fell in love with and eventually married a conventionally "good-looking, thin man". Success! We all deserve true love with a handsome man! QED: No one has to "settle" because they are fat. Except the thin man immediately cheated with multiple partners and demanded Ms. West's acceptance of his non-monogamy with other more conventionally "good-looking, thin women", so fat Ms. West left on journey of "self discovery" and discovered she was emotionally dependent on the thin man anyway and returned to thin man husband and his thin now live-in "girlfriend", so now because of one woman's crap husband, the big boys of legacy media "weighed" in with their many thoughts that obviously feminism is dead and a lie and men hate fat women. But for some "reason" her "fat and fabulous" feminist fans failed to embrace Ms. West's new coerced polygamous life-style with thin man and thin lady... The end.
Now you know all.
“If I somewhat rashly assumed that more people were reading the book so many people were discussing, it’s because I came of age at a time when people not only bought books but the media only really covered authors who wrote books people read” is a brilliant sentence. And as I have never heard of, or read Lindy West, I have no opinion of her, or her work. I would, however, love to read your son’s upcoming fantasy novel ☺️
>> filed under the category “Fame.” That seems like a stretch.
Second lol.
But, in fairness, it *is* Slate. They do love their contrarianism.
"Surely, the assignment editors at these publications do some research into how a book is selling before approving lengthy think pieces."
Sadly I think it's part of the ongoing media beatdown of feminism, and the concept that women are ACTUALLY fully-formed human beings instead of ornaments for the male gaze.
Lindy was just a handy target.
We are hurtling toward Gilead.
My wife sent me this today; this is what I was groping for in my comment...it isn't about Lindy West, per se, but more the all-out assault on feminism, and the Mass media is entirely complicit. Lindy makes for a convenient target to tear feminists down. Look for this to be the reaction on almost anyone publishing stuff like this especially if they aren't well-known as Lindy (who I had actually heard off in passing before.).
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2026/apr/13/gamergate-andrew-tate-manosphere-feminists
I'd never heard of it until just now. But I don't do social media so I miss a lot of the extremely online world.
The New York Times should definitely not have multiple pieces about someone and their work most people are clueless about.
Never heard of Adult Braces. Lewis Grizzard I HAVE heard of as we got his column in the CLT Observer. Sydney Harris’s column was also a joy.
Writing is a tough business.
I guess I travel in the wrong circles because I had no idea what Lindy West is famous for. But Lindy got the eyeballs on the work at least. Maybe there's a MadLibs wheel or they draw these projects by lottery or something in these media conglomerate offices.
I saw the book still on the table at LAX last night. Unlike the rest of us there, it was not flying off.
I've never heard (or read) of Lindy West or her husband before reading this post, so count me out of hating either one of them. Still, this was an interesting read, as it is baffling that such media giants would write about a book that has sold only 3000 copies. And if the reviews aren't complementary, it proves that "there is no such thing as bad publicity" isn't true.
Not the point, I know, but I can't even understand why 3,000 people bothered to purchase it, really. Lindy West is the definition of talentless hack IMO.