Book Review: It's Not That I'm Bitter . . .: Or How I Learned to Stop Worrying About Visible Panty Lines and Conquered the World by Gina Barreca (158)

It's Not That I'm Bitter . . .: Or How I Learned to Stop Worrying About Visible Panty Lines and Conquered the World by Gina Barreca

LOVED IT

Product Description
In a world where eye cream is made from placenta, Gina Barreca is the lone voice calling out “But wait, whose placenta is it?” She asks the crucial questions: Why is there no King Charming? Why does no bra ever fit? Why does are there no tutus in XL? Why do more intelligent women have trusted psychics than have trusted financial advisors? While she definitely wants everyone to know that she's not bitter, Gina does want to know why no one realizes that Anne Bancroft was only thirty-six when she played Mrs. Robinson, the quintessential cougar. In "It's Not That I'm Bitter..." Gina shouts out her message to women everywhere: “You are smart enough to conquer the world, so please stop weeping when you try on bathing suits at T.J. Maxx.” As Gina declares "The world lies to us and we want to believe. We want to believe that, if we wear a pair of palazzo pants with a latex escape hatch built into the stomach area, we’ll appear five pounds slimmer instantly… We torture ourselves, even though we are smart broads." In deliciously quotable essays on the ability of both chin hairs and tweezers to affect your life, the reason every woman believes she’s crazy, the possibility that the "glass ceiling" may just be a thick layer of men, and thoughts on intimate conversations she’d have with Michelle Obama, Hillary Clinton, Cindy McCain and Sarah Palin, Barreca gleefully rejects the emotional torture, embraces the limitless laughter, and shows other women how they can conquer the world with a sharp wit, good shoes and not a single worry about VPLs.

About the Author
GINA BARRECA, Ph.D. is a professor of English and Feminist Theory at the University of Connecticut and author of Babes in Boyland, They Used to Call Me Snow White, but I Drifted and I’m With Stupid: One Man, One Woman, and 10,000 Years of Misunderstandings Between The Sexes Cleared Right Up (coauthored with Pulitzer Prize-winner Gene Weingarten of The Washington Post). She grew up in Brooklyn and now lives in Storrs, CT. Go figure.

Visit Gina Barreca online at http://www.ginabarreca.com/

Product Details
Hardcover: 240 pages
Publisher: St. Martin's Press (May 12, 2009)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0312547269
ISBN-13: 978-0312547264

I was looking for a light, funny read and this was just what I wanted. If you like Jen Lancaster or Laurie Notaro, you will probably enjoy this one. Barreca is witty and snarky, but sometimes can be a little bit preachy. This was a very quick read.