Two books explore phases of female life, girlhood and womanhood

NPR's Book of the Day

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Arts, Books

4.2 • 672 Ratings

🗓️ 13 December 2024

⏱️ 19 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Two books of essays consider the female experience through different stages of life. First, Kate Kennedy's One in a Millennial documents coming of age as a member of a highly-scrutinized generation. Her book explores the origins of millennial stereotypes and pop culture, but also focuses on the way that shared experiences of girlhood are often dismissed as frivolous. In today's episode, Kennedy joins NPR's Juana Summers for a conversation that touches on AOL Instant Messenger, college pre-games, and self-editing our own desires. We then hear from Jenny Slate about her new book Lifeform, a compilation of experimental essays that follow her life through five phases: Single, True Love, Pregnancy, Baby, and Ongoing. Slate joined Here & Now's Emiko Tamagawa at a live event in Boston, where the two discussed the confidence it takes to write down our ideas, fear and bravery in love, and Slate's perspective on childbirth and motherhood.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	Hey, it's Empire's Book of the Day. I'm Andrew Limbong. Today we've got two books that deal
0:07.4	in their own ways with this feeling of not being able to say the thing you want to say,
0:13.5	especially if you're a woman. In a bit, we'll hear from comedian, actor, and writer Jenny Slate,
0:18.2	who has since shed this feeling and now shows up to readings
0:21.7	with her own harpist, apparently. But first, Kate Kennedy's memoir, one in a millennial,
0:26.5	is about girl and womanhood in a very specific time period. The internet is relatively new,
0:32.6	MTV is still zeitgeisty, and female wants and desires are still dismissed.
0:38.2	Kennedy spoke with NPR's Juana Summers about how friendships were key in getting through
0:42.8	this time and how the expectations of growing up never quite meshed with the reality.
0:48.6	That's ahead.
0:50.2	In the U.S., national security news can feel far away from daily life.
0:55.0	Distant wars, murky conflicts, diplomacy behind closed doors.
0:59.5	On our new show, Sources and Methods.
1:01.6	NPR reporters on the ground bring you stories of real people,
1:05.3	helping you understand why distant events matter here at home.
1:08.9	Listen to sources and methods on the NPR app or wherever you get your
1:12.5	podcasts. Millennials have experienced an interesting evolution of stereotypes. Starting out in a place
1:20.6	that was lazy and titled basement dwelling and then the mid to late 2010's trend of saying we
1:25.6	killed major industries and economic sectors,
1:28.3	like paper napkins or low-fat yogurt.
1:31.1	And then to the 2020s where we kind of have been mocked by Gen Z for like side parts and skinny jeans.
1:36.7	That's Kate Kennedy.
	...

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