MINNEAPOLIS — "Quit Like a Woman" by Holly Whitaker looks into the relationship this country has with alcohol. The book was a New York Times Bestseller that offers a different look at a path to sobriety and questioning of your own relationship to alcohol.
Gia Vang: The book does a good job using relatable language. It also is a serious book even with the author's free flowing language and storytelling, because addiction is serious. Whether you're looking to quit alcohol for good, the book does provoke questions of your own actions around alcohol, especially for women. Do we say yes to an alcoholic drink to oblige others? Do we like the ways we feel the day after drinking? How do we sleep after a night of drinking? What kind of opinions are drawn from women who "drink too much" versus men who do the same? Have you ever asked someone why they weren't drinking, as in drinking is the norm?
These were some of the many questions wandering in my head. I do think the author's relatable language becomes a bit too casual halfway through the book. But I would recommend the book as a thought-provoker on how you drink or how you observe the drinking culture in this country.
Jennifer Austin: I have wanted to read this book since earlier this year when Chrissy Teigen credited it with the reason she stopped drinking. After reading it, I understand why Chrissy made that decision. In great detail (but as Gia noted - relatable language), the author describes every way in which alcohol impacts a person's life, body, and health.
Spoiler alert: None of it is good. It made me question the way our culture embraces alcohol as the 'acceptable' drug. "It's okay in moderation." No, actually. As this book details, it's terrible for you. Particularly thought-provoking is the focus (as you may have guessed from the book's title) on how women especially are harmed by our drinking-obsessed culture.
Alicia Lewis: With 2020 in the rearview mirror, it's interesting to take a look back at how we all coped with the pandemic. I think for a lot of folks, they found themselves drinking more (myself included). You're stuck at home, there's not much to do, so why not have some wine or start an early happy hour on a week night? The book club pick this month intrigued me because I feel like the COVID-19 pandemic brought out the "drinker" in a lot of us.
This book pointed out how we live in society obsessed with alcohol and for a lot of people they use it as a crutch or a way to get by. The book helps us reflect on ourselves and on our own choices by pointing out some interesting factoids relating to "Big Alcohol" and comparing it to "Big Tobacco" and how it impacts women and markets to women. Although it didn't make me want to give up a glass of cabernet, it did help me look at drinking from a new perspective and focus on my own relationship with alcohol.
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