More Than a Woman picks up where Caitlin Moran's wildly popular How to Be a Woman left off. Moran is a mother of two feminist girls both thriving and struggling with adolescence. She analyzes her daughter's destructive eating disorder, her own aging body, touches on the COVID-19 pandemic, and how far feminism has come along with the resulting criticism and backlash. Moran does all this with the wit and humor she has become known for.
The greatest criticism I have heard of Caitlin Moran is that her brand of feminism lacks intersectionality. More Than a Woman is her first book that I have read through the lens of that criticism. I acknowledge that she only briefly touches on intersectional topics. I would like to give her grace because the book is about herself and if she does not identify with other intersections then it is not her story to tell. With that said, I enjoyed More Than a Woman. I identified with many of her observations. I would recommend it to feminists, both good, bad, and aging.
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Seriously LAUGH OUT LOUD. Just what the atmosphere ordered during these stay at home "stuck at home" times. Full review to come - I just had to share how much joy it gave me!

Caitlin Moran is my go-to author for when I simultaneously want to feel better about the systematic sexism women encounter every day, and feel like someone shares my frustration with it. As a columnist, Moran has a talent for observing small details about the ways society frames men and women differently — in this book, there's a whole section on how we have a ton of terms and phrases for men's sexual arousal and they largely have positive connotations, whereas until recently when women started redefining how we talk about sex, we had to settle for words like "moist."

But she also turns righteous outrage into supportive humor. I've enjoyed all of her books, fiction and non-fiction alike, but this is the first one I've been glad to read in e-format so I could highlight big chunks of it. There are passages here that women should have on speed-dial to reference when they're feeling down about anything from their age to their bodies to the burden of being expected to be full-time caretakers on top of everything else "because women are better at that" to being expected to take the word "moist" seriously.

And here, one of the most telling and vivid chapters is about the current round of anger and frustration men are currently feeling in society, and how necessary it is to reframe it: In Moran's view, women have made huge strides forward this century in terms of joining the vote, getting jobs, holding political office, creating their own art, owning their own homes and cars and lives, whereas men feel like they're going backward because they just have the same rights they've always had. She suggests what men need to take from women in return is all the "woman" things that are currently portrayed as unmanly — the ability to have and express and share nuanced emotions, to communicate with each other freely and openly, to connect with their kids and with others, and a whole lot more. She goes a lot further and is a lot friendlier and funnier and more expressive about it all, but her level of sympathy for frustrated men is warm and supportive, and her suggestion that they need to take charge about fixing the problem feels subversive and righteous at the same time. She makes a convincing and compelling argument for the underlying elements of society that need to change before we can all consider ourselves equal, with men having the same opportunity of community, communication, support, and personal expression that women have.

There's a strong streak of female empowerment and pride in this book, but it also laughs off the idea of gatekeepers who want to limit feminism to a certain set of expressions or behaviors, and who want to police other people's forms of feminism. It's a relief to see someone so fiercely and specifically defend feminism without laying out a narrow course of what it's not allowed to be or what it has to be. Along the way, she touches on everything from cancel culture to middle-aged clothing choices to eating disorders, the later in a long, sober section about facing her daughter's anxiety and anorexia. That last is pretty grim and pretty florid, and I really hope she got her daughter's full permission and buy-in before outing her about all of this, because it's a whole lot to have in a public record.

I pretty much consider Moran's books to be feminist bibles — full of witty insight that helps me make logical sense out of inchoate frustrations, and brings things to light that I hadn't considered before. It's almost a relief every time I see a new book from her in the world, because I know I'm going to learn something, and I'm going to laugh at the same time.

First line: I am in the spare room, which doubles as my office, and I have just finished my day’s work.

Summary: Caitlin Moran, the humorist feminist writer, is back with a new book that takes a look at life for a middle aged woman. She delves into questions like; can a feminist get Botox? And why isn’t there a thing called “Mum Bod”? She gets real with her life and shows us that it is okay be fine with our bodies but still have fun.

My Thoughts: I laughed so hard when reading her first book, How To Be a Woman. I laughed while reading this one as well. Even though this one had humor it also delved into some very serious subjects. I love reading her insight into important topics like eating disorders, body image and men’s rights. She brings up topics I have never considered but now it is something I am very aware of. Her voice is very much her own. She has been compared to Tina Fey and Chelsea Handler. I feel this is accurate but she does so much more. I would highly recommend that anyone who wants a strong feminist icon with a great sense of humor pick up Moran’s books.

FYI: Some language and naughty bits but lots of fun and thought provoking!

I fell in love with my womanhood when I read Moran's "How to Be a Woman." I am not the target audience for her latest title, part memoir-part feminist discourse focusing on middle-age-hood. But I felt like I was getting a sneak peek into my future. I was comforted by Moran's last chapter, laced with her calm fortitude and joy. The refreshing and honest tone she brought to "How to" is here, as she evaluates rediscovering her womanhood and motherhood and feminism in this new stage of life.

*I received an eARC copy of this book via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. My thanks to Ebury Press for the opportunity to read and review in advance of publication.