Synopses & Reviews
Synopsis
Perfect for fans of Peggy Orenstein, Rebecca Traister, and Lindy West, this incisive, timely book pierces our nostalgic 1990s -girl power- bubble to reveal a decade that drastically undermined a century of gains for American women, creating a toxic culture that persists today.
The close of the 20th century promised a new era of gender equality. However, the iconic women of the 1990s--such as Hillary Clinton, Courtney Love, Roseanne Barr, Marcia Clark, and Anita Hill--earned their places in history not as trailblazers, but as whipping girls of the media. During this decade, American society grew increasingly hostile to women who dared to speak up, challenge power, or defy rigid expectations for female behavior.
Deeply researched yet thoroughly engaging, 90s Bitch untangles the complex history of women in the 1990s, exploring how they were maligned by the media, vilified by popular culture, and objectified in the marketplace. In an age where even a presidential nominee can be derided as a -nasty woman, - it's clear that the epidemic of casting women as bitches persists. To understand why we must take a long, hard look back at the 1990s--a decade in which female empowerment was twisted into bitchification and exploitation.
Yarrow's thoughtful, clear-eyed, and timely examination is a must-read for anyone seeking to understand gender politics and how we might end the -bitch epidemic- for the next generation.
Synopsis
To understand how we got here, we have rewind the VHS tape. 90s Bitch tells the real story of women and girls in the 1990s, exploring how they were maligned by the media, vilified by popular culture, and objectified in the marketplace. Trailblazing women like Hillary Clinton, Anita Hill, Marcia Clark, and Roseanne Barr were undermined. Newsmakers like Monica Lewinsky, Tonya Harding, and Lorena Bobbitt were shamed and misunderstood. The advent of the 24-hour news cycle reinforced society's deeply entrenched sexism. Meanwhile, marketers hijacked feminism and poisoned girlhood for a generation of young women.
Today, there are echoes of 90s "bitchification" nearly everywhere we look. To understand why, we must revisit and interrogate the 1990s--a decade in which female empowerment was twisted into objectification, exploitation, and subjugation.
Yarrow's thoughtful, juicy, and timely examination is a must-read for anyone trying to understand 21st century sexism and end it for the next generation.
Synopsis
Finalist for the Los Angeles Press Club Book Award, muse to a Givenchy fashion collection, and recommended by The New York Times, The Skimm, US Weekly, The Washington Post, The Boston Globe, Refinery 29, Book Riot, Bitch Media, and more.
The nostalgic, smart, and shocking account of how the 90s set back feminism, undermined girls and women, and shaped the millennial generation from award-winning journalist, Allison Yarrow.
To understand how we got here, we have to rewind the VHS tape. 90s Bitch tells the real story of women and girls in the 1990s, exploring how they were maligned by the media, vilified by popular culture, and objectified in the marketplace.
Trailblazing women like Hillary Clinton, Anita Hill, Madeleine Albright, Janet Reno, and Marcia Clark, and were undermined. Newsmakers like Britney Spears, Monica Lewinsky, Tonya Harding and Lorena Bobbitt were shamed and misunderstood. The advent of the 24-hour news cycle reinforced society's deeply entrenched misogyny. Meanwhile, marketers hijacked feminism, sold "Girl Power," and poisoned a generation.
Today echoes of 90s "bitchification" still exist everywhere we look. To understand why, we must revisit and interrogate the 1990s--a decade in which empowerment was twisted into objectification, exploitation, and subjugation.
Yarrow's thoughtful, juicy, and timely examination is a must-read for anyone trying to understand 21st century sexism and end it for the next generation.
Synopsis
Finalist for the Los Angeles Press Club Book Award, muse to a Givenchy fashion collection, and recommended by the The New York Times, The Skimm, US Weekly, The Washington Post, The Boston Globe, Refinery 29, Book Riot, Bitch Media, and more.
Yarrow's biting autopsy of the decade scrutinizes the way society reduced -- or "bitchified" -- women at work, women at home, women in court, even women on ice skates . . . Direct quotes from politicians, journalists and comedians about the women provide the most jarring, oh-my-god-that-really-happened portions of Yarrow's decade excavation. -- Pittsburg Post-Gazette
The nostalgic, smart, and shocking account of how the 90s set back feminism, undermined girls and women, and shaped the millennial generation from award-winning journalist, Allison Yarrow.
To understand how we got here, we have to rewind the VHS tape. 90s Bitch tells the real story of women and girls in the 1990s, exploring how they were maligned by the media, vilified by popular culture, and objectified in the marketplace.
Trailblazing women like Hillary Clinton, Anita Hill, Madeleine Albright, Janet Reno, and Marcia Clark, and were undermined. Newsmakers like Britney Spears, Monica Lewinsky, Tonya Harding and Lorena Bobbitt were shamed and misunderstood. The advent of the 24-hour news cycle reinforced society's deeply entrenched misogyny. Meanwhile, marketers hijacked feminism, sold "Girl Power," and poisoned a generation.
Today echoes of 90s "bitchification" still exist everywhere we look. To understand why, we must revisit and interrogate the 1990s--a decade in which empowerment was twisted into objectification, exploitation, and subjugation.
Yarrow's thoughtful, juicy, and timely examination is a must-read for anyone trying to understand 21st century sexism and end it for the next generation.