Rules for Being a Girl (book review)// ft. an incredibly powerful message

Happy Tuesday!

How are all you guys doing? I’m relaxing this week because it’s Easter half-term and school is ‘closed’ so I have no work to do! We also got Disney + and I am fReaKIng out over all the things to watch!! Wreck-it Ralph!! Ice Age!! Cars!! Toy Story!! Gravity Falls!! Big Hero 6!! Zootopia!! i miss my childhood! (anyone interested in a post about my fave Disney shows+movies and what I want to watch?) Tell me your favourites because I’m really bad at making decisions I love having choices and I mean if I end up watching Disney for 24 hours straight I can just blame it on your brilliant recs! Today’s post is a review of the amazing Rules for Being a Girl by Candace Bushnell and Katie Cotugno.

Note: I received a copy of this book from the publisher (My Kinda Book) in exchange for my honest opinion. All opinions are my own and no one else’s. 

This review is part of a blog tour and you should check out all the other amazing stops on this tour! There are cool things like giveaways, excerpts and other feminist book recommendations across the tour!

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Rules For Being a Girl

By Candace Bushnell and Katie Cotugno// Don’t be easy. Don’t give it up. Don’t be a prude. Don’t be cold. Don’t put him in the friendzone. Don’t act desperate. Don’t let things go too far. Don’t give him the wrong idea. Don’t blame him for trying. Don’t walk alone at night. But calm down! Don’t worry so much. Smile!

Marin is a smart, driven, popular girl – she’s headed for Brown when she graduates and has a brilliant career as a journalist ahead of her. Especially in the eyes of English teacher Mr Beckett. He spends a lot of time around Marin, and she thinks it’s harmless . . . until he kisses her.

No one believes Marin when she tells them what happened, so she does the only thing she can: she writes an article called ‘Rules for Being a Girl’ for the school paper to point out the misogyny and sexism that girls face every day. As things heat up at school and in her personal life, Marin must figure out how to take back the power and rewrite her own rules.

Published: 16th April 2020 by My Kinda Book

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4 stars)

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My thoughts

Rules for Being a Girl is one of those books that you just can’t stop thinking about. Even a couple of days after I finished this, my mind still kept whirring over the thought-provoking topics discussed. As a teenager, I really understood and related to the school setting and this made the book have even more of an emotional impact on me.

I really connected to Marin and by the end of the book, I was so proud of how she had grown as a person! I also enjoyed reading about Marin finding the balance between being in a relationship and having someone be there for you, while also being a feminist and standing up for yourself. Friendship and family really came together in this book and I really liked how the importance of a support network was emphasised.

One of my favourite parts of this book is when Marin starts a feminist book club as it provided a space to discuss injustices and come together as one! I loved that lots of different people were involved and Marin began to break the stereotypes she had previously assumed about different people. also, books!

Rules for Being a Girl is incredibly powerful and really made me think about the double standards society has for women. This poignant book discusses the pressure on girls to be effortlessly perfect in modern society and what feminism means. Bushnell and Cotugno’s beautiful writing was gripping and I ended up finishing this book in one sitting! I would recommend this to everyone, especially teen readers!

Are you planning on reading Rules for Being a Girl? What are some of your favourite feminist books? What shows and movies are you watching at the moment? Any Disney+ or Netflix recs? Divulge your secrets…

Hugs and stay safe!

Kerys xx

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