Too Fat, Too Slutty, Too Loud

The Rise and Reign of the Unruly Woman

By: Anne Helen Petersen

Narrated by: Anne Helen Petersen

One of NPR’s best books of 2017.

“Petersen's gloriously bumptious, brash ode to nonconforming women suits the needs of this dark moment. Her careful examination of how we eviscerate the women who confound or threaten is crucial reading if we are ever to be better.” (Rebecca Traister, New York Times best-selling author of All the Single Ladies)

From celebrity gossip expert and BuzzFeed culture writer Anne Helen Petersen comes an accessible, analytical look at how female celebrities are pushing the boundaries of what it means to be an "acceptable" woman.

You know the type: the woman who won't shut up, who's too brazen, too opinionated - too much. She's the unruly woman, and she embodies one of the most provocative and powerful forms of womanhood today.

In Too Fat, Too Slutty, Too Loud, Anne Helen Petersen uses the lens of "unruliness" to explore the ascension of powerhouses like Serena Williams, Hillary Clinton, Nicki Minaj, and Kim Kardashian, exploring why the public loves to love (and hate) these controversial figures. With its brisk, incisive analysis, Too Fat, Too Slutty, Too Loud is a conversation-starting book on what makes and breaks celebrity today.

“Must-read list.” (Entertainment Weekly)

Named one of Cosmopolitan’s “Books You Won't Be Able to Put Down This Summer”.

Selected as one of Amazon's “Best Books of the Month”.

A Refinery29 editors' pick.

©2017 Anne Helen Petersen (P)2017 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

"Petersen interrogates our culture with precision and nuance." (NPR, Best Books of 2017)

"Supremely thoughtful...snappy and compelling...[Petersen’s essays] highlight the paradoxical expectations American culture places on women, in particular, the mixed messages it sends: the 'you can do anything', rubbing awkwardly against the 'you can’t do everything'." (Megan Garber, The Atlantic)

"A timely and essential read...Petersen’s analytical skills are as vigorous [and] her prose and reporting are entertaining." (Keziah Weir, ELLE)

Femenism and pop culture collide

Good narration by author. Each chapter chronicles the 'unrulyness' of a particular women in pop culture. Women centered storytelling with the right amount of femenist academic context.

Fantastic

So insightful and smart. Also very entertaining. at first it sounded like the author had this little growl I, her voice,but it didn't take long to get used to.

read this book

I really liked so many of the details in this, though I would have liked her to be clearer about reading quotes from others. I kind of expected this to read like a blog, but it was researched and full of feminist analysis. Every girl and woman (and man) might benefit greatly by reading a book telling us why uppity women need to be given room to breathe. It's inspirational without being too hokey.

Enlightening & Entertaining

I appreciated how Petersen gave words to a lot of issues and feelings that I have about how women are treated. I also found it educational to be given good arguments and enlightened vocabulary on how to express what I don't like about these women's work, without denigrating them or their work. I will probably never really like the majority of the work these women do, but I'll be able to hold an intelligent conversation about the value they add to our society with their unruliness.

very insightful!!!

5 star content and performance alike. I have to respond to another reviewers comment that it reads like a thesis or something. I disagree. it was easy to follow, to the point, very insightful. each chapter is unique and offers so much to think about.

the only thing I could do without.. the Hilary chapter. I'm a strident feminist and bernie supporter and if you zoom out and look at the establishment and where Hilary was coming from the entire chapter can be dismissed. I was all for a first woman president. but not her. so that chapters analysis is a zero for me. Peterson could have done a me too chapter. replaced Clinton's chapter with Christine blasey Ford. I'm sure she could have done it justice.

Truly Unruly

I loved everything about this book. The people were real, their stories honest, and the author stayed as true to unruly as she could.

Vocal Fry....

What made the experience of listening to Too Fat, Too Slutty, Too Loud the most enjoyable?

I loved the organization of this book. Each chapter-another woman and a different way to look at their particular circumstances.

How could the performance have been better?

Watch out if vocal fry bothers you. Parts of this recording were difficult to overlook it.

Love the message.. Hate the narration

The vocal fry is SO distracting. I’d rather read the book than continue to listen to this on Audible. I was only able to listen under 2 minutes before giving up. It’s way too much.

Best Feminist Book ever! Every woman/man must read!

Dang didn't dislike anything!
I loved loved loved it!
Some topics were different from my perspective but interesting nonetheless and got me thinking further.
This was a really educative book. It made me respect all females especially celebrities/ professionals because of the unruliness they have to build & stand firm in!

Excellent Book

This is an excellent analysis of current feminism, and the misogyny unleashed by the 2016 election. My only issue is the inclusion of Caitlyn Jenner. There have been many transgender activists before her who have done a lot more to advance the cause of the LGBTQ community, like Laverne Cox