Not that kind of book
STORY BY AMANDA SPILKER
Many critics have savaged Lena Dunham’s new memoir Not That Kind Of Girl: A Young Woman Tells You What She’s “Learned”.
The 28-year-old writer and creator of HBO’s Girls released the controversial collection of essays in September.
In it, she delves into her own sexuality, which has been heavily influenced by her fear of being alone. Some of the taboo ground covered included: sex, masturbation, and quasi-incestual relationships.
Yet despite the media attention, throughout the 200-plus page volume readers may wonder what all the fuss is about.
Compared to what has been published in years before, Not That Kind Of Girl should be considered tame.
Many have blasted the book for its portrayal of rape and borderline incest.
Kevin D. Williamson of The National Review is one of the most recent reviewers to dissect the book, calling Dunham’s writing a “gutless and passive-aggressive.”
In Dunham’s telling of the chapter “Barry”, she describes herself as partying, taking multiple types of drugs and going home with a man willingly. But as the encounter grew rough and he was ordered to leave, the story takes a turn as she meets another woman who had the same type of encounter with the same man.
Nowhere in the story does she herself claim the man is a rapist but other characters do, which Williamson notes is her way of lynching the real Barry in print but denying to face him in court.
The book is spilt into five sections: Love & Sex, Body, Friendship, Work and Big Picture, which cover specific points in her life.
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All are jumbled into no real order.
She bounces around, writing about her life, going from the first time she had sex (and how her friend walked in on them) to the times she used to share a bed platonically with male friends.
She explores the times she went to camp only because her mother went before her (and liked it more then she did), and the time she looked at her little sister’s vagina (curiosity got the best of her).
The book seems like it was shoved into a grinder with a thesaurus and was spit out into a jumbled mess of words that weren’t necessary.
Dunham seems to be trying very hard to be humorous but unfortunately she misses the mark.
It’s a quick and easy read, but in the end, it won’t change your life.
