The Society of Shame

By: Jane Roper

Narrated by: Thérèse Plummer

Length: 12 hrs and 49 mins

Publisher's summary

“If you liked Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus, read The Society of Shame by Jane Roper.”—The Washington Post

In this timely and witty combination of So You've Been Publicly Shamed and Where'd You Go, Bernadette? a viral photo of a politician's wife's “feminine hygiene malfunction” catapults her to unwanted fame in a story that's both a satire of social media stardom and internet activism, and a tender mother-daughter tale.

Kathleen Held’s life is turned upside down when she arrives home to find her house on fire and her husband on the front lawn in his underwear. But the scandal that emerges is not that Bill, who's running for Senate, is having a painfully cliched affair with one of his young staffers: it's that the eyewitness photographing the scene accidentally captures a period stain on the back of Kathleen’s pants.

Overnight, Kathleen finds herself the unwitting figurehead for a social media-centered women’s right movement, #YesWeBleed. Humiliated, Kathleen desperately seeks a way to hide from the spotlight. But when she stumbles upon the Society of Shame—led by the infamous author Danica Bellevue—Kathleen finds herself part of a group who are all working to change their lives after their own scandals. Using the teachings of the society, Kathleen channels her newfound fame as a means to reap the benefits of her humiliation and reclaim herself. But as she ascends to celebrity status, Kathleen's growing obsession with maintaining her popularity online threatens her most important relationship IRL: that with her budding activist daughter, Aggie.

Hilarious and heartfelt, The Society of Shame is a pitch-perfect romp through politics and the perils of being "extremely online"—without losing your sanity or your true self.

©2023 Jane Roper (P)2023 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

ONE OF THE MOST ANTICIPATED BOOKS OF THE YEAR: THE WASHINGTON POST • ZIBBY OWENS

PEOPLE MAGAZINE’S BOOK OF THE WEEK
ONE OF PARADE'S 10 BEST BOOKS OF SPRING

“The Society of Shame is like Tom Wolfe and David Sedaris had a baby and it was female. I read an advance draft of this novel in the ‘Before Times,’ on a pre-pandemic plane, and I was worried I was going to get ejected because I was HOWLING with laughter on every page. This is the book we NEED right now: not only because it’s absofreakinglutely hilarious, not only because it makes trenchant points about cancel culture, not only because it’s for women by a woman—but because it’s zany and zeitgeisty and, like all exquisite satire, it reflects us back to ourselves in a way that raises questions—and possible solutions. YOU NEED THIS BOOK.” —Jenna Blum, New York Times bestselling author of Those Who Save Us and The Lost Family

"Jane Roper has written the kind of novel that women will buy for each other, read together, and savor. A hilarious, fleet-footed romp that skewers contemporary culture, marriage, politics, and more even as it reveals the fears and desires that so often pit us against each other and ourselves, The Society of Shame made me laugh, wince, and think at every turn. I loved this book." —Anna Solomon, author of The Book of V and The Little Bride

"Fans of Where'd You Go Bernadette and Dietland are sure to love The Society of Shame. This down-to-earth, biting, cinematic, and funny novel perfectly captures the many absurdities of our modern age and the indignities of middle age for women. With intelligence and a satirical eye for the just right detail, Roper lays bare the dangers of public scrutiny and leaves readers laughing, cringing, and nodding all at once." —Heidi Pitlor, author of Impersonation and The Daylight Marriage, Series Editor of Best American Short Stories

Fun Read

I really like the premise of this book because it was fun and light but at the same time had a larger message about social media and identity. I did, however find that it went on a bit longer than necessary in the story line of the main character’s trials and tribulations.

Creative story

Great concept but a bit redundant and could nothing go right for Kat? Throw phones and social media away as well as reviews. Check this book out for yourself as who am I to tell you what you will like or not like?

Fun & fluffy, but w things to think & talk about

Excellent narration.

Most fun premise I've come across in a while.

This almost makes me wish my book club didn't choose books a year at a time because there's much here that would be a lot of fun to discuss, preferably with something light and bubbly. But don't think the entire story is fluff. From response to infidelity to what we expect/tolerate of our politicians, from cancel culture to who has your back when things go bad, & taking care of kids when families fall apart -- there is much here for good discussion.

Repetitive, thematically confusing, offensive

A silly story with a predictable ending. Some of what was supposed to be farcical was problematic and Kat’s character is not particularly likable. I didn’t care about the characters and found it to be depthless without charm. The only reason I finished it is because it was a book club assignment.

Couldn’t get into it

Very silly - Kept waiting for something interesting to keep listening - lot of unnecessary swearing and just seemed ridiculous

Not worth $ or time

Narrator is excellent but storyline not to my liking. Men Strew A Shun - didn’t need it repeated 50+ times…

Very funny story with a beating heart

I got a lot of ironic laughs from this story of a woman who gets swept up in a social media tidal wave and tries to surf it. But at the center of the crashing wave is her relationship with her 12-yr-old daughter. We come to realize that relationships are what tends to get lost in the click-bait world she, and we all live in. The solution to the problem is simple—but not easy!

All-in-all, The Society of Shame is a very fun and rewarding listen.

Great Take on Modern Life

Engaging story about more than just social media shaming. It’s also about how we find and hold on to our dignity. Really well done.