Not That Kind of Girl
A Young Woman Tells You What She's "Learned"
Published on 1. July 2015
Book
Paperback/Softback
288 pages
978-0-00-751554-7 (ISBN)
Description
For readers of Nora Ephron, Tina Fey, and David Sedaris, this hilarious, poignant, and extremely frank collection of personal essays confirms Lena Dunham - the acclaimed creator, producer, and star of HBO's 'Girls' - as one of the brightest and most original writers working today.
"If I could take what I've learned and make one menial job easier for you, or prevent you from having the kind of sex where you feel you must keep your sneakers on in case you want to run away during the act, then every misstep of mine was worthwhile. I'm already predicting my future shame at thinking I had anything to offer you, but also my future glory in having stopped you from trying an expensive juice cleanse or thinking that it was your fault when the person you are dating suddenly backs away, intimidated by the clarity of your personal mission here on earth. No, I am not a sexpert, a psychologist, or a dietician. I am not a mother of three or the owner of a successful hosiery franchise. But I am a girl with a keen interest in having it all, and what follows are hopeful dispatches from the frontlines of that struggle."
"If I could take what I've learned and make one menial job easier for you, or prevent you from having the kind of sex where you feel you must keep your sneakers on in case you want to run away during the act, then every misstep of mine was worthwhile. I'm already predicting my future shame at thinking I had anything to offer you, but also my future glory in having stopped you from trying an expensive juice cleanse or thinking that it was your fault when the person you are dating suddenly backs away, intimidated by the clarity of your personal mission here on earth. No, I am not a sexpert, a psychologist, or a dietician. I am not a mother of three or the owner of a successful hosiery franchise. But I am a girl with a keen interest in having it all, and what follows are hopeful dispatches from the frontlines of that struggle."
Reviews / Votes
'It's not Lena Dunham's candour that makes me gasp. Rather, it's her writing - which is full of surprises where you least expect them. This is a fine, subversive book' David Sedaris 'Always funny, sometimes wrenching, these essays are a testament to the creative wonder that is Lena Dunham' Judy Blume 'Dunham's writing is just as smart, honest, sophisticated, dangerous, and charming as her work on 'Girls'. Its essential quality is a kind of joyful super-awareness: of herself, the world, the human. Reading her makes you glad to be in the world, and glad that she's in it with you' George Saunders 'Very few women have become famous for being who they actually are, nuanced and imperfect. When honesty happens, it's usually couched in self-ridicule or self-help. Dunham doesn't apologise like that - she simply tells her story as if it might be interesting. The result is shocking and radical because it is utterly familiar. 'Not That Kind of Girl' is hilarious, artful, and staggeringly intimate; I read it shivering with recognition' Miranda July 'Frank, fearless and funny ... made me want to cry out with thanks that a talented, intelligent woman has said and done worse things than I have and is repeating them without a scrap of shame ... 'Not That Kind of Girl' is funny, empowering and as good a millennial guide for navigating and laughing at your foggy adolescence and murky twenties as there can be. I only wish it had been around earlier' Sunday Times 'I love Lena's book ... more shocking than I was expecting, sadder and more beautiful - anyway; within a few pages ... I'm charmed, anxious, furious and totally committed' Nina Stibbe, Observer 'Very funny ... and imbues the gloom with hope ... "Having it all" need not mean hitting narrow markers of success - the perfect job/man/body - but instead being able to own your experiences: the good, the bad, the ugly. All of it' Independent 'Dunham's first book is seldom less than very funny' Iona McLaren, Sunday TelegraphMore details
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Publishing group
HarperCollins Publishers
Product notice
Unsewn / adhesive bound
Paperback (UK-B)
Dimensions
Height: 192 mm
Width: 128 mm
Thickness: 24 mm
Weight
229 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-00-751554-7 (9780007515547)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
E-Book
09/2014
1st Edition
Fourth Estate Ltd
€6.39
Available for download
Person
At only 23 years old, Dunham wrote, directed and starred in the multi-award winning 'Tiny Furniture'. She now stars in the HBO series, 'Girls', which she created and also serves as an executive producer and writer. Dunham graduated from Oberlin College in 2008 with a degree in Creative Writing and currently resides in New York City.