Girl Logic: The Genius and the Absurdity

by Iliza Shlesinger, Mayim Bialik (Foreword by)

Overview

From breakout stand-up comedian Iliza Shlesinger comes a subversively funny collection of essays and observations on the secret genius of irrational behavior.

Have you ever been pissed because you're not pretty enough, and then gotten even more pissed that someone didn't find you as pretty as you think you are? Have you ever obsessed over the size of your thighs while eating dessert, all the while saying you'll work out extra tomorrow? Or spent endless hours wondering why you have to bear the brunt of other people's insecurities? I mean, after all, I'm pretty great. Why cope with insecurities I don't already have?

That last one's just me? All right, then.

But if the rest sounds familiar, you are experiencing Girl Logic: a characteristically female way of thinking that appears contradictory and circuitous but is actually a complicated and highly evolved way of looking at the world. You end up considering every repercussion of every choice (about dating, career, clothes, lunch) before making a move toward what you really want. And why do we attempt these mental hurdles? Well, that's what this book is all about.

The fact is, whether you're obsessing over his last text or the most important meeting of your career, your Girl Logic serves a purpose: It helps push you, question what you want, and clarify what will make you a happier, better person. Girl Logic can be every confident woman's secret weapon, and this book shows you how to wield it.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781602863248
Publisher:	Hachette Books
Publication date:	11/07/2017
Sold by:	Hachette Digital, Inc.
Format:	eBook
Sales rank:	154,403
File size:	12 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.

About the Author

Iliza Shlesinger has written and starred in four Netflix comedy specials: War Paint (2013), Freezing Hot (2015), Confirmed Kills (2016), and Iliza: Elder Millennial (2018). She is the creator and star of Forever 31 on Hulu as well as her late night show, Truth & Iliza, on Freeform. Iliza has appeared as a comedian several times on Late Night and The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon as well as the Late Late Show with James Corden and loves entertaining the troops on USO tours.

Table of Contents

Foreword Love Me Some Iliza xi

Introduction Girl Logic: It Doesn't Mean You're "Crazy"-It Just Means You're a Girl 1

1 You're a Woman-Be Confident! 13

("But Not So Confident That It Makes Anyone Else Insecure" Is Actually What They Mean)

2 Case Clothed 45

Two and a Half Guy Logic: A Primer 67

3 Oh Boy, It's a Guys' Girl 71

4 Sex: A Comprehensive Guide. JK, but I Did Write a Lot 103

5 Perfect Love, Perfect Life: The Ultimate Girl Fantasy 125

6 How to Text a Man Without Throwing Your Phone Through a Window 151

7 Sorry, I Can't Hear You over How Single You Are 169

9 Girl on Girl 185

9 The Unfunny Chromosome 197

10 It's All About the "At Bats" 217

Afterword I Care, You Care, We All Care, but … Not All the Time 233

Editorial Reviews

"Iliza is a fearless comedian because she is a fearless woman... She sees deeply, she thinks deeply, and she feels deeply . . [F]ind yourself in the pages of this book. Your hurt, your fear, and your loneliness will be remedied time and again with the laughter and the wisdom of a woman who will teach you to fight for your self-identification as a warrior and your destiny as a woman."

—Mayim Bialik, star of CBS' "The Big Bang Theory" and NYT bestselling author of "Girling Up!"

"'Iliza not only has a way with words, she also has an observational intensity that pushes those words into your brain with comedic fury."

—Marc Maron, comedian, actor, author, and host of the popular podcast WTF with Marc Maron

"Iliza is funny, fierce, and lightning fast, but don't let all that wit and beauty fool you - she's a feminist with the heart of a mommy, a truth teller who just wants us all to feel better so we can get what we want, dammit! She's thought long and hard about why women are so hard on themselves, and she's not afraid to say she's been there herself, which has endeared her already to millions of fans. Take my advice: take her advice. Iliza is a comedian wrapped in social critic wrapped in the good friend you need."

—Robbie Myers, Editor-in-Chief ELLE Magazine

"Iliza Shlesinger's brand of feminist comedy is quick, smart and doesn't suffer fools . . . [Girl Logic] is a call for women to celebrate themselves."—Los Angeles Times

"The takeaway messages of the book are important: cultivate confidence, develop the courage to be different, refuse catty competition with other women."
—Kirkus Reviews

"Hilarious."—Star Magazine

"The stand-up comic expertly explores the 'secret genius of irrational behavior' in this irreverent and insightful collection."

—InTouch Magazine

From the Publisher

2017-08-28
A successful comedian tries to square gender stereotypes with the realities of how women really live.Shlesinger, a winner of NBC's Last Comic Standing, calls her debut book a celebration of womanhood, though her own life and stand-up routine have hardly been paragons of feminist resistance. She locates her moment of awakening in a 2015 episode in which a male comic mocked a fellow female comic. Emboldened to seek equality, she sets out to define and deconstruct the "have-it-all" mentality forced on American women, the obsession to have the perfect partner, profession, and physique. However, despite her profession and stated goal to increase empathy, the author's recent realizations are neither especially funny nor noteworthy. Shlesinger leans on hackneyed clichés, such as dissecting the so-called guys' girl, only to reveal she once hid behind the stereotype of the sports-loving, beer-drinking woman. A handful of the anecdotes about dating and workplace drama are humorous, but most rely on the dated conventions the author supposedly seeks to abolish. Some profanity-laden diatribes come dangerously close to being offensive for their lack of nuance about race and sexual orientation. The takeaway messages of the book are important: cultivate confidence, develop the courage to be different, refuse catty competition with other women. Unfortunately, the intended lessons are often lost in the author's frenetic chatter—e.g., an entire chapter describing how women should text men—and memoir-style meanderings through her childhood and adolescence, many of which lack resolution. In a handbook seemingly meant for teens, the faux adolescent tone feels forced and obscures what could be an empowering message about how it is never too late to counter the reductive nature of stereotypes. Instead of instructions for how to grow up, this reads like a series of theories not yet fully formed. An amusing stand-up bit buckles under the weight of a book-length treatment.

Kirkus Reviews