Girls Will Be Girls cover art

Girls Will Be Girls

Dressing Up, Playing Parts and Daring to Act Differently

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Girls Will Be Girls

By: Emer O'Toole
Narrated by: Olivia Caffrey
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About this listen

Being a woman is largely, about performance - how we dress and modify our bodies, what we say, the roles we play, and how we conform to expectations. Gender stereotypes are still deeply embedded in our society, but Emer O'Toole is on a mission to rewrite the old script and bend the rules of gender - and she shows how and why we should all be joining in.

Exploring what it means to "act like a girl", Emer takes us on a hilarious and thought-provoking journey through her life (including singing "Get Your Pits Out for the Lads" on national TV after growing out her body hair). Cross-dressing, booty shaking, sexual disasters, family dinners, and full-body waxing are all lovingly dissected in search of wisdom.

With game-changing ideas, academic intelligence, and laugh-out-loud humour, this book will open your mind and revolutionise the way that you think about gender.

©2015 Emer O'Toole (P)2015 Audible, Ltd Gender Studies Social Sciences Witty

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Critic reviews

"A fascinating exploration of how we 'do' gender. From the early labeling of infants to the ironclad enforcement of grooming and interpersonal behavior, gender expression is neither a matter of biological mandate nor individual choice. Emer O'Toole nimbly weaves philosophy and personal experience into a vivid depiction of gender identity as performance art." (Lise Eliot, author of Pink Brain, Blue Brain)
"The blogger and columnist, who is emerging as one of the leading lights of the new feminism, uses anecdotes from her own life - from 'cross-dressing to pube-growing and full-body waxing' - to illuminate some of the the dos and don'ts for women trying to set themself free from gender stereotypes." (The Guardian, "Unmissable books for 2015")
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Most relevant  
fantastically written, touching on important and difficult subjects and themes but also wonderfully relatable, and performed with humour and light-headness. thought-provoking in the best way. will recommend left, right and centre

fantastic

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I would recommend this book to just about anyone.

It is beautifully written, funny, though-provoking and very enjoyable to read.

I have learnt a lot from this book and it has changed the way I see things.

Amazing

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Now I am not Irish so I can't relate in that aspect but I can fully understand the sexism and the not wanting to conform to gender stereotypes. The book is both funny because of the way its told but in that, its also tragic that female and male genders are raised and treated so differently. I will continue my journey of reading/listening to author feminist experiences to keep improving my knowledge and understanding and hopefully make differences (even if they're small) for women and girls in the future.

Funny and relatable

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This book is wonderful a lovely read or listen whatever you choose and let’s you think about different subjects but also as a feminist it’s fun and lol worthy often x

Love love love

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Really great book. A wonderful mixture of humour, education and personal experience as a female in todays society. She’s very good at making every gender identity and sexual orientation feel included even when she speaks of her own personal experience and opinion.

Funny and poignant

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Of course we can find critiques in all writing, but O'Toole's way of drawing her theories from her own experiences makes this a delight to listen to /read. This is a personable and accessible place to start your ideas on your feminism.

Just great.

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I liked chapter 11 the most because I can relate to the story narrated. I would recommend this book to feminists who feel depressed by men in their society. Good for train trips!!

A good companion !!

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Loved this funny insightful book! Learnt more from this than any feminist book I've read so far! Everyone needs to read this!

Brilliant

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An excellently playful investigation into our expectations of gender roles, read engagingly by the author. I loved it, and I thought it was fascinating. Definitely some ideas I'm going to have a go at.

Personal experiments in gender performance

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What did you like best about this story?

Unlike many other books I've read that touch on similar subjects, this book is not ethnocentric, it's not a rant from a man-hater or spoilt girl with first world problems... Girls Will Be Girls is balanced, well researched, beautifully told, funny, thought-provoking and all-round-loveable. It's the kind of book that gives credit to feminism as a movement. The tone is refreshing (we don't have to be angry, defensive and offensive to champion equality. We can also be soft and conversational too). It's a book that men should read or hear...maybe even more than us ladies :)

A Treat for Women and a Must for Educating Men

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