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Notes to Self

4.4(155)
Language
English
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About the book

THE EXTRAORDINARY #1 BESTSELLER

'Fiercely feminist, fascinating. I have recommended this to several people. And I'm doing the same here' Sunday Times

'Do not read this book in public: it will make you cry' Anne Enright

'I am afraid of being the disruptive woman. And of not being disruptive enough. I am afraid. But I am doing it anyway.'

In this dazzling debut, Emilie Pine speaks to the business of living as a woman in the 21st century - its extraordinary pain and its extraordinary joy. Courageous, humane and uncompromising, she writes with radical honesty on birth and death, on the grief of infertility, on caring for her alcoholic father, on taboos around female bodies and female pain, on sexual violence and violence against the self. Devastatingly poignant and profoundly wise - and joyful against the odds - Notes to Self offers a portrait not just of its author but of a whole generation.

'Unsparing, formidable, raw. The kind of book you want to give everyone' Irish Times

'Complex, accessible, thoughtful... You will love these essays' Pandora Sykes, The High Low

'Every line pulses with the pain and joy and complexity of an extraordinary life' Mark O'Connell

RUTH & PEN, EMILIE PINE'S FIRST NOVEL, IS OUT ON THE 5TH OF MAY 2022

Editions (2)

ISBN9780241986226
PublisherPenguin Books Ltd (UK)
Publication Date06/06/19
Pages224

Reviews & Ratings

155 ratings

28 reviews

4.4

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  • 4.0

    Die Essays waren schnell und gut zu lesen. Einige haben mich mehr beschäftig, andere weniger. Insgesamt eine gute Sammlung, die es verdeutlicht, was es heißen kann, eine Frau zu sein.

    Die Essays waren schnell und gut zu lesen. Einige haben mich mehr beschäftig, andere weniger. Insgesamt eine gute Sammlung, die es verdeutlicht, was es heißen kann, eine Frau zu sein.

    Jan 29, 2025

  • lou_isa
    lou_isa

    85 Followers

    4.0

    This one surprised me - very touching, much food for thought!

    My bestie bought this for me on our Dublin trip last WE in a vintage bookshop cuz it kinda spoke to me - and I didn’t know it was even written by an Irish author so that was the perfect souvenir 🍀 Emilie Pines basically “just” gives us an insight into various formative phases of her life. However, being a woman, a human really, I related to so much, I shared worries and experiences, and for the ones I don’t, I was still touched by her honesty and thoughts. A piece that just depicts how complex life, family, social environments and - being a woman - is. I really liked it 🫀

    This one surprised me - very touching, much food for thought!

    Apr 13, 2025

  • marzipanhirsch
    marzipanhirsch

    122 Followers

    4.0

    Nachdem ich vor kurzem mit großer Begeisterung den Debütroman "Zwei Frauen in Dublin" von der Autorin gelesen habe, habe ich mich nun an ihre Essays gewagt, obwohl ich Essays und Kurzgeschichten nicht gerne mag. Diese Essays waren anders und haben mich wirklich berührt. Mit schonungsloser Offenheit schreibt die Autorin über ihr Leben als Frau, über Körperlichkeit, Menstruation, unerfüllten Kinderwunsch, Essstörung und den Umgang mit den älter werdenden Eltern und der kurzzeitigen Pflegebedürftigkeit des alkoholkranken Vaters. Das Buch enthält fast alles, was ein Frauenleben ausmacht und hat mir sehr gut gefallen. Ich freue mich auf weitere Bücher der Autorin

    Nov 29, 2025

3 of 28 reviews

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