Book Review: Not That Kind Of Girl by Lena Dunham

Not That Kind Of Girl: A young woman tells you what she's "learned" by Lena Dunham

I don't know Lena Dunham. Or should I say I didn't. I didn't know who she was or what TV show she was on/directed before all the news about her book and the controversy over it hit the news. Not that I'm not grateful for the the news bringing this book into my life, but I don't think this should have been talked about on the news as much as it was. Plus I have enough liberal friends that watch too much TV, that I'm sure I would have come across this book eventually.

From the reminiscence of AIM screen names and the curious-catness that accompanies childhood, I immediately felt connected and relatable to Lena Dunham. I know that may see cliché, but as someone who had multiple screen names (Jducky12, soccerdefender23, and SmileBig23 just to name a few) and was so curious that it's led me to become a journalist, I really connected with this book.

The things I liked most were her willingness to talk about all the different things in her life that would normally be considered taboo to air out. Talking abut seeing a therapist as a child, about body image and weight loss, self-gratification (masterbation) at a young age. These topics are still tough to discuss, even with family members or close friends. Admitting that you have these feelings that others might not understand really does something for people when a big figure is open about them.

The timeline of this book is not chronological. I find that it jumps around through the stages of Lena's life when she is retelling the stories of her first sexual encounters on multiple fronts. Because she goes back and forth I found it really hard to place when in her life these things were happening. She would talk about Egor for a little then later in the book bring him back in, as well as the other men in her life. I just found it very hard to follow.

However, I did like how this book was in a way like Mindy Kaling's Is Everybody Hanging Out Without Me? in the sense that it's a collection of essays about her life, filled with humor and a tinge in seriousness when it comes to the tough topics. It was easy to come and go with this book, to read a section and then put it down but be able to pick it right back up when you return. There was no need to re-read anything before moving forward which I loved.

Overall I really enjoyed this book even if I wish there were things I could change about it.