Trick Mirror: Reflections on Self-Delusion

By: Jia Tolentino

Narrated by: Jia Tolentino

Length: 9 hrs and 45 mins

Publisher's Summary

From one of the brightest young chroniclers of US culture comes this dazzling collection of essays on the internet, the self, feminism and politics. 

We are living in the era of the self, in an era of malleable truth and widespread personal and political delusion. In these nine interlinked essays, Jia Tolentino, the New Yorker’s brightest young talent, explores her own coming of age in this warped and confusing landscape. 

From the rise of the internet to her own appearance on an early reality TV show; from her experiences of ecstasy – both religious and chemical – to her uneasy engagement with our culture’s endless drive towards ‘self-optimisation’; from the phenomenon of the successful American scammer to her generation’s obsession with extravagant weddings, Jia Tolentino writes with style, humour and a fierce clarity about these strangest of times. 

Following in the footsteps of American luminaries such as Susan Sontag, Joan Didion and Rebecca Solnit, yet with a voice and vision all her own, Jia Tolentino writes with a rare gift for elucidating nuance and complexity, coupled with a disarming warmth. This debut collection of her essays announces her exactly the sort of voice we need to hear from right now – and for many years to come.  

©2019 Jia Tolentino (P)2019 HarperCollins Publishers Limited

Critic Reviews

"A whip-smart, challenging book. It filled me with hope." (Zadie Smith)

"Jia Tolentino is the best young essayist at work in the United States, one I’ve consistently admired and learned from. All through the book, single sentences flash like lightning to show something familiar in a startling way, but she also builds extended arguments with her usual, unusual blend of lyricism and scepticism, and in the end, we have a picture of America that was as missing as it was needed." (Rebecca Solnit)  

Every single woman should read this book

I listened to this book in its entirety over the course of 3 days. With only 2 hours left of the audio, I pre-ordered 3 copies from my local retailer. I plan on giving a copy to my mum and friends. This is the single best book I’ve ever read and I’m so happy to have stumbled upon it via the Fresh Air podcast in which it featured. Thank you Jia for writing this. It’s hard to put into worse what this book means to me but the closest I have is, Jia took what was very real in my heart and psyche and put it into words better than I could have imagined. I cannot wait to get a physical copy of this book in my grubby phelanges so I can read parts out loud to my boyfriend and any man who will listen.

Insightful and thought provoking

A great listen on interesting and current topics. Would definitely be recommending to a friend.

A modern masterpiece

I found this audiobook to be a modern masterpiece of courageous and compelling cultural critique.

Essential reading for 21st century humans. Classy and compassionate work by Jia.

Astounding, relatable, impeccably composed

Some of Tolentono's phrasing left me breathless and whispering 'yes' on the train. Her ability to delve down into seemingly trivial facets of contemporary western culture and emrge with salient points that strike the heart of the matter every single time is unmatched among other essayists I have read. Loved this Audiobook from start to finish. For anyone who has ever felt torn between feelings cynicism and seduction towards ubiquitous 21st century manifestations of phenomena like self-optimisation, marriage, feminism, religion and spirituality, drug-induced euphoria... And bloody expensive leggings. Bravo Jia.