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A Little F'd Up: Why Feminism Is Not a Dirty Word

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Young women today have a bad reputation, and for good They’re sexting their classmates, they spend more time on FaceBook than they do in class, and their appetite for material possessions and reality TV is matched only by their overwhelming apathy about important social and political issues. Right?

Wrong.

FBomb blog creator Julie Zeilinger debunks these (and other) myths about modern youth in A Little F’d Up, the first book about feminism for young women in their teens and twenties to actually be written by one of their peers. In this accessible handbook, Zeilinger takes a critical, honest, and humorous look at where young feminists are as a generation, and where they’re going—and she does so from the perspective of someone who’s in the trenches right alongside her readers.

Fun, funny, and engaging, A Little F’d Up is a must-read for the growing number of intelligent, informed young women out there who are ready to start finding their voice—and changing the world.

272 pages, Paperback

First published April 3, 2012

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About the author

Julie Zeilinger

3 books22 followers
Originally from Pepper Pike, Ohio, 19-year-old Julie Zeilinger is currently an undergraduate at Barnard College, Columbia University. Julie is the founder and editor of the FBomb (thefbomb.org) a feminist blog and community for teens and young adults who care about their rights and want to be heard.

Julie has been named one of the eight most influential bloggers under the age of 21 by Woman’s Day magazine, one of More Magazine’s “New Feminists You Need To Know,” one of The Times' “40 Bloggers Who Really Count,” and one of the Plain Dealer’s “Most Interesting People of 2011.” She has contributed to the Huffington Post, Feminist.com, Skirt! magazine, and the Cleveland Jewish News, among other publications.

Julie’s new book “A Little F’d Up: Why Feminism is Not a Dirty Word” was released in May 2012 by Seal Press.
Julie is a wary optimist who loves chocolate and hates people who speak two inches away from her face. In her spare time, Julie enjoys discovering new haunts for a superb Sunday brunch.

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5 stars
91 (28%)
4 stars
110 (34%)
3 stars
79 (25%)
2 stars
21 (6%)
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14 (4%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 38 reviews
Profile Image for Jess.
215 reviews6 followers
August 3, 2015
I'm fairly new to the world of feminism, only recently really broaching the subject because I began dating a girl who identified as a feminist.

She immediately brought to mind my only encounter with a self declared feminist, years ago: The lady told me she was a feminist and her husband was too. I remember being explicitly shocked that she had a husband for one (apparently I assumed all Feminist ladies to be either gay or man-hating. Or both.) And my next trailing memory is thinking "That poor man"

I mean seriously, what the hell was I thinking? So throughout the years I carried this nebulous idea of feminism being about man-hating, non-shaving, lumber jack lesbian bull dykes. I never thought about that woman again, until I met my feminist girlfriend.

My fabulous girl slowly opened my mind with her posts on facebook from blogs like feministing and the Fbomb. She isn't just passionate about feminism, but other social issues like racism. So when she recently ordered this book I decided I would like to read it too.

The first thing I would like to say about this book is even though it is written for the young teenage feminist in mind, it's extremely accessible to any age group. The focus on young teenagers in general was not apparent until the very end of the book when she discusses age specific things dealing with high school. For the majority of the book I was educated on the history of Feminism, the debate behind the definition of feminism, racism, genital mutilation, body image and many other topics and how they all tie into the feminism.

There was even a moment when I forgot I was reading a book about feminism when it was addressing the topic of bullying (cyber bullying and real life bullying) It was only when she skillfully closed the chapter that I could see how it was completely tied in with the basic facet of feminism.

All in all this book is an excellent introduction to feminism for any age or gender or sexuality. Very accessible language and writing, breaks it all down piece by piece then ties it all back together in a manner that is clear and concise, and definitely has made me reevaluate how I perceive 'feminism' and how I myself have been a feminist with even realizing it.
Profile Image for Aimee.
1 review1 follower
January 28, 2013
I honestly can't recommend this. The author has a fresh style of writing that can be a great benefit to creative non-fiction, or creative fiction, but not here. This subject is a serious topic that is also extremely sensitive. The book is back to back opinion with no supporting evidence and nonstop contradiction. In one paragraph the author will make fun of, or scold female celebrities that have damaged the female image while in the next say that no one has a right to judge her for the clothes she wears. She alienates behaviors making it clear that feminism doesn't want certain types of women joining the movement, and then complains that not enough women want to join. This book does damage to the cause, presenting the movement as judgmental and unorganized.
Profile Image for Darlene.
1,766 reviews196 followers
October 1, 2012
I saw Julie Zeilinger on Melissa Harris-Perry's show a while back and was very impressed. And now that I have read her book I am even more impressed. She is well-versed and taught this old lady a thing or two.

I've always thought of myself as a feminist but until recently I felt I only vaguely knew what that was. Even with being a young adult during the last "wave," the arsonists. No, I never burned my bra but back then didn't feel I needed one either. But in the midst of all of that I went along with the pre-programed life set up by society at large and did the wedding and kids. I wonder sometimes how life might have been had I chosen to continue my education.

Ms. Zeilinger taught me more about my history than I could have gotten on my own. She boiled it down to readable bites and showed us how to use and understand the information presented. All in a younger voice that still speaks of being a real teen. I must admit that the times I have tried to do the research of my 'sisters' I would get bored or shake my head at the man-haters. But Julie conveyed the knowledge in ways I could understand.

This is a book everyone should read and then go out and respect everyone.
Profile Image for Jami.
47 reviews13 followers
May 11, 2016
This book is the epitome of mainstream white feminism. I absolutely commend the author for being interested in feminism at a young age, but her immaturity shows both in her voice and her opinions. I appreciate what she was trying to do, but a book full of comparisons to "those other girls" made clear that she wants people to embrace feminism, but only certain people that she deems fit. I'll admit that I didn't read the entire book, but only because her tone was so simultaneously patronizing and childish that I couldn't stand to continue. It also left very little room for LGBT folk interested in feminism, especially trans women. There was a lot of conflation between womanhood and certain body parts, which feminism really must stray from in order to succeed as an inclusive coalition for true equality. Again, I appreciate what the author was going for, but it definitely missed the mark.
Profile Image for Diana.
92 reviews
February 18, 2013
When I saw this book as a recommendation on a website I was really excited to read a feminist book written by a girl around my age. I have yet to meet another girl my age who is a feminist. I was also really eager to read this because I saw Jessica Valenti wrote the introduction (Love myself some Jessica Valenti!). Honestly though, this book is TOO opinionated. There are hardly any facts to back up what Julie is saying. I feel like at times she goes a little too much off topic, and as another reviewer mentioned she contradicts herself a lot. I just felt the book was a little unorganized at times. I will say though that I loved the first two chapters where she speaks on the history of feminism. A lot of the things she talks about I didn't know. I also don't mind the tone of the book. This is why I am a fan of Jessica Valenti because I liked a funny and laid-back writing style but also serious when it needs to be. I know a lot of people don't like that, but I enjoy reading something that has some wit even when it does come to a serious topic. Overall, it was an okay quick read. I don't think it would be the first Feminist book I would recommend to a friend, but I don't regret buying it. I just think it really could of been organized better, and more facts to the information she was presenting. Also, less opinionated because at times it really did feel like I was reading a rant on Tumblr.
Profile Image for Amelia.
111 reviews10 followers
November 14, 2012
At first I couldn't decide whether I loved or hated this book, mainly because it covers so much ground in so few pages. Also, her tone gets a little obnoxious after a while. But that's probably just because I'm old and boring.

In the end, I ended up really liking it, because 1) She was trying to write an introduction to feminism for teenagers. And she definitely succeeded at that. AND 2) Because she's a teenager, the whole tone of the book just ended up being really fitting. Who better than to write an intro to feminism for teenagers than a teenage feminist?

Also, I saw her on the Melissa Harris-Perry Show not too long ago, and she's super.
Profile Image for Carolyn.
137 reviews112 followers
February 27, 2013
Though it may be a breezy little primer for the budding feminist, Zeilinger's debut reads a little too hard as an advertisement for armchair feminists. The aroma of privilege wafts through each of the two hundred odd pages. The author, though repeatedly acknowledging her white middle class status, disserves those of lesser privilege in her lukewarm, nonchalant, kitschy voice. Condescending towards the more radical forms of feminism, too succinct to be respectful of feminist history, and too far oriented towards convincing non-feminists towards feminism to actually accomplish any feminist action. Chalk this one up to another one of 'those feminist blogger books' (we're looking at you, Valenti).
Profile Image for Ryan Mishap.
3,465 reviews66 followers
December 8, 2012
A breezy but serious tour of feminism that would be a great gift for the teenager in your life. She lays claim to the so-called "Third Wave" philosophy of feminism and presents the same things I have problems with when reading others in with that ilk, but the enthusiasm, humor, and right-on parts outweigh criticism.

I'd like to see the notion of "waves" either disappear, or, better, expand. After all, far more than three waves dampen the sand each day and what might be useful as a philosophical classification obscures the continuing continuum of the generations.
Profile Image for Alyssa.
85 reviews7 followers
November 25, 2012
An excellent introduction to the history of feminism and the issues women are currently facing as they fight for equality all over the world. The writing style in this book was so conversational and accessible; I could tell that more than anything, Zeilinger just wants to get the word out there about feminism and why it should not have the bad reputation that it does. I highly recommend this for both young women, young men, and anyone else who has never learned about what feminism is actually about and why it is still an important issue, even in the developed part of our world.
Profile Image for Shannon.
98 reviews14 followers
October 22, 2015
Finally, a feminist book written by a teen! Zeilinger does a great job delving into the teen girl psyche. This should be required reading for all high school students.
Profile Image for Michelle.
6 reviews14 followers
August 29, 2013
This book was so disappointing. It was full of cliches, narrow-minded, alienating, elitist, and privileged. I was hoping to find something for my younger sister to read, but I could not recommend this book to anyone, except perhaps as an example of what not to do.

From the book:

"But the reason so many of us fail to recognize the sexism that surrounds us is not that we're oblivious. (At least, most of us aren't. I won't speak for that one girl we've all been in class with - you know, the one who gnaws the erasers off of her pencils and only bothers to participate in class in order to inform everybody that the answer is 42, even though you're in Spanish class. She's probably pretty oblivious)"

This is essentially saying, "It is okay to degrade, demean, and dehumanize certain types of women; feminism isn't for them anyway, it's for women like US" - the exact thing that is one of the biggest problems with mainstream third wave feminism. (The irony of Zeilinger's internalized sexism clearly manifesting itself in a passage about recognizing sexism was also not lost on me.)

Also from the book:

"The mind of the teenage girl is understood by few"

"Though I imagine if you asked these girls how many DUIs Snooki has, they'd giggle, roll their eyes as if to say, 'Oh, that talentless, orange, ROLE MODEL OF MINE? and proceed to relay, in point-by-point detail, her entire history of binge drinking and legal infractions."

"They found themselves thinking things like, 'Hey, I really don't love my kids. I just resent them' while tossing back their third gin and tonic of the afternoon."

"But then why were they popping the 1960s equivalent of Xanax and sticking their heads in ovens while their kids napped upstairs (well, maybe that was just Sylvia Plath, but she probably didn't invent the idea, mkay)" [--not that suicide is EVER funny, but you would think a book about feminism wouldn't make light of this issue in particular--]

Please tell me this is not the future of feminism.
Profile Image for Dana Abel.
467 reviews9 followers
August 1, 2013
I am conflicted writing this review. I didn’t really enjoy my reading experience of this book, but I can appreciate it for what it is. I think, had I read this as a high school student it would have been more beneficial, but most of the topics covered in the book are ideas and information I came to in college. Perhaps someone my age with a less feminist-heavy college experience could also appreciate and take more away from this book than I did. But as it were, I was very involved in feminist causes during my college years, and should probably be reading more nuanced feminist texts than this one, which seemed to be a basic primer for those just happening upon the movement. This would be a great high school graduation gift to a niece, etc. Beyond the material being too basic for me, I did have a few qualms with the text itself. The style of the book was repetitive and it wasn’t organized very well. Perhaps Zeilinger expected people to just read the chapters they were interested in and not the book as a whole? Also, her writing style could use some work. Overall, she is a good writer (especially for a teenager), but the book comes off kind of high school essay-ish. Very obvious conclusion sentences, here’s a list of each topic I’m going to cover, etc. It just didn’t flow naturally all the time. Again, there is some good information here, just not for me.

Rating: 2.5 out of 5 stars.
Profile Image for Jesse.
461 reviews53 followers
June 24, 2015
This is a book written by a young woman while she was in high school and college. I am now seriously questioning some of my life choices. I wish I’d been that mature and driven in high school.

A Little F’ed Up is a great book to introduce young women to feminism. Zeilinger does a great job at relating feminist issues to what’s happening to high school and college women right now. As someone who’s a little closer to thirty than university, I didn’t get as much out of it as I would have liked.

Jessica Valenti has written several topics on what’s relevant to me right now. I’m dealing with feminism as it pertains to adult relationships, friendships, work, and the possibility of children (eventually, someday, maybe). Zeilinger hasn’t been alive long enough to relate to that. She’s a voice for young women and even gave them a place to express their voices (thefbomb.org).

Her tone was very conversational which is probably more welcoming to teenagers. I found it to work sometimes and a bit grating at others. She also uses a lot of the same language. I have an incredible amount of respect for Zeilinger for doing all this at such a young age. It’s a excellent read for young women but somewhere in your twenties, you’ll start to relate a little bit less.

I wanted to give this book 3.5 but since I'd have loved it not too many years ago, I'm rounding up.
Profile Image for Holly.
305 reviews25 followers
April 9, 2014
I really wish I could recommend this book because it's great that young women (or at least this one) care so much about feminism, but I can't. It begins with some Wikipedia research re-worded as background on important feminists then moves into some opinionated, but unsubstantiated talk about feminism. I love opinions, that's great, but not when they're presented as fact without citation or evidence. I think she wrote this when she was 17, and I'm afraid that it shows.

Young women interested in feminism would be better off starting with Jessica Valenti's Full Frontal Feminism.
Profile Image for Melissa.
761 reviews15 followers
November 15, 2014
This book started off strong, bit I can't really recommend it.

This book had a lot of moments where I agreed with the author, but with plenty of moments where my reaction was more along the lines of ew why would you say that. Some statements that implied far more a hivemind to feminism, and statements that created erasure for those in the queer community.

The author made some statements that were just not well thought out. I certainly don't think her intentions were bad or necessarily that she thought through that the statements would be seen that way, but since there are many books on feminism out there there is no need to read this one.
Profile Image for Jorie.
120 reviews46 followers
February 27, 2015
This book is a great intro to feminism, especially for a teenage/young adult age range. It was a great comprehensive guide to the history of the movement, where it is now, and some major issues that feminism is combating. There section on global issues was through a bit of an ethnocentric lens and the overall perspective of the book was that of a straight, white, younger woman, but Zeilinger made a point to try to address that she knew her experience isn't that of everyone and did try to point to other sources that would have other viewpoints, which was a good move, I think.
October 22, 2014
Sentences like "If I hear one more girl wonder aloud if Roe v. Wade was a boxing match that was recently televised by ESPN, I'm going to freakin' rip my hair out" characterizes the contrived nature of this 'feminist primer'.

The author, a teen, too often shows her immaturity and falls into the common trap of hypocritical arguments typical in current popular media -- i.e. women should be able to define themselves/dress themselves/display themselves however they like BUT in this section I shall shame all female celebrities who follow more traditional interpretations of femininity.
Profile Image for Grits Helme.
90 reviews1 follower
October 27, 2016
Hoo-boy, here's an indicator of quality: when addressing the possibility of a name-change for the feminist movement, the author suggests "intersectionalism" while complaining that every time she types it her computer underlines it in red. Yes. That's because the word is INTERSECTIONALITY. Who edited this?

Apart from "intersectionalism" being written REPEATEDLY, my biggest problem with this was that there's simply too much opinion and not enough reference. Fine for a blog post, not so great for a print resource.
Profile Image for Kathy (McDowell) Miller.
299 reviews2 followers
February 9, 2018
This book felt like a total waste of time for me. I was looking for a book that would tell me how to get involved; this is not that book. Ms. Zeilinger spends the entire first half of the book giving us a history lesson and her opinion on what feminism means to her, like I give a flying __. The only part of the book I found interesting was the part on global misogyny, most of which I already knew.
If you're looking to make a difference in the lives of young women, this isn't the book that can help you with your decision.
Profile Image for April.
357 reviews1 follower
January 8, 2013
If only the package were a little more attractive..the content is pitch-perfect for modern, accessible feminism for all women, especially those in the "post-feminist" (sarcastic air-quotes) generations.
Profile Image for Aspen Junge.
271 reviews4 followers
February 24, 2013
A decent primer of feminist theory and history for junior high through college. It's based on the author's feminism blog and uses contemporary language to explain what feminism is, why it's still relevant today, and suggestions for activism. I didn't really learn anything, but it was a fun read.
Profile Image for Ale.
102 reviews2 followers
September 13, 2013
It's horrible. I really tried to like this book, I did but he writing style and the things he writes annoy me. She has this whole thing with the "other girls" where she seems to think she is some kid of special feminist snowflake whereas every other teenage girl is an idiot. Yea not very feminist
Profile Image for Sam Poole.
414 reviews2 followers
February 7, 2015
Good for what it is, but incomplete. This deleted my long review. Damn. This isn't perfect by any stretch but it is effective and concise where it lacks in evenhandedness and thoroughness. Julie- you rock. Can't wait for the next one.
Profile Image for Laura.
168 reviews
September 3, 2023
A basic primer on feminism that is aimed towards teenagers. Although, at times the author rambled and strayed from the topic of the chapter, which only served to make it feel long. It could also be updated to include more intersectional terminology.
Profile Image for Allison.
755 reviews33 followers
April 24, 2013
It wasn't bad. The beginning and history was really good but I just wasn't the target audience and so the further I got into it I just started loosing interest.
19 reviews24 followers
April 5, 2013
Good overview of important concepts. Some parts could be revised to be more sensitive/understanding of social context.
196 reviews30 followers
November 21, 2013
I totes forgot to put the date that I finished this book. OOPS. ANYWAY. A good introduction to feminism in an interesting manner! I liked it. :)
Profile Image for Dana.
77 reviews3 followers
August 13, 2016
This has been probably one of the best overviews of what feminism is in today's world. Written by a woman close to my age she is witty, smart, funny nd relatable. Every girl should read this book.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 38 reviews

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