Not That Kind of Girl

A Young Woman Tells You What She's "Learned"

For readers of Nora Ephron, Tina Fey, and David Sedaris, this hilarious, poignant, and extremely frank collection of personal essays confirms Lena Dunham—the acclaimed creator, producer, and star of HBO’s Girls—as one of the brightest and most original writers working today.
 
“If I can take what I’ve learned in this life and make one treacherous relationship or degrading job easier for you, perhaps even prevent you from becoming temporarily vegan, then every misstep of mine will have been worthwhile. This book contains stories about wonderful nights with terrible boys and terrible days with wonderful friends, about ambition and the two existential crises I had before the age of twenty. About fashion and its many discontents. About publicly sharing your body, having to prove yourself in a meeting full of fifty-year-old men, and the health fears (tinnitus, lamp dust, infertility) that keep me up at night. I’m already predicting my future shame at thinking I had anything to offer you with this book,  but also my future glory in having stopped you from trying an expensive juice cleanse or having the kind of sexual encounter where you keep your sneakers on. No, I am not a sexpert, a psychologist, or a registered dietician. I am not a married mother of three or the owner of a successful hosiery franchise. But I am a girl with a keen interest in self-actualization, sending hopeful dispatches from the front lines of that struggle.”

Eh

What did you like best about Not That Kind of Girl? What did you like least?

I remember reading " Bossy Pants" and being delighted from the very first moment. This Book is the opposite of that. It is mostly a sad mosh-mash of psychosis. a young woman that spends most of her time worrying about things that don't make a bit of sense. Filled to the brim with sexual problems, true tales of sex that are not sexy or funny but like walking in on your parents. At the end you just kind of think " well, that just happened" and if you are me , wish you had just waited for the Amy Poehler book.

What could Lena Dunham have done to make this a more enjoyable book for you?

Give a little more and a little less. I wanted to hear about how she got noticed, how she made her show , her movies , something about the success and a little less about dysfunctional sex and fear of everything.

What didn’t you like about Lena Dunham’s performance?

It was ok .. It wasn't terrible.

Was Not That Kind of Girl worth the listening time?

not for me .

Any additional comments?

If you grew up very rich, overly analyzed and a little bit sad , this might make you happy.

Surprisingly Funny

I don't share all of Lena Dunham's outlook on life but I nevertheless found this book amusing, insightful and very well written.

The essays were of varying quality with many being superb and most of the rest still being interesting. Only one essay was really poor as the calorie log section didn't translate well to the spoken word. This probably worked in print but listening to a long list of food with calories is mind numbingly boring.

Overall I highly recommend this book.

Boring and self indulgent

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

I would not. There were some interesting moments but it was largely not.

What do you think your next listen will be?

Not sure

Which scene was your favorite?

It was important and valued that she shared her tale of rape.

Did Not That Kind of Girl inspire you to do anything?

not really but it did help me understand how rape could happen

Excellent narration - love Lena Dunham for her honesty

I thought this was a great book as it was empowering and embraced individuality and creativity. It’s nice that Lena can recognize personal growth and isn’t afraid to laugh at herself .

Great !!!!!

I wish there were more. Part 2 please ! I loved this book and enjoy Lena's work. She is amazing. Highly recommend.