Home Books Some of My Best Friends: Essays on Lip Service

Some of My Best Friends: Essays on Lip Service

Some of My Best Friends: Essays on Lip Service

by Tajja Isen

Atria/One Signal Publishers ·2022 ·240 pages
Maybe Someday
Maybe Someday
I Index
26/99
Bottom of the Pile

22/99

Critics' Rating Index

Maybe Someday

31/99

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Scholars' Citation Index

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Volume of Reviews

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About This Book

In nine daring essays, essayist and award-winning voice actor Tajja Isen explores the absurdity of living in a world that has grown fluent in the language of social justice but doesn't always follow through. Some of My Best Friends examines the cartoon industry's pivot away from colorblind casting, the pursuit of diverse representation in the literary world, the law's refusal to see inequality, and the cozy fictions of nationalism. In the spirit of Zadie Smith, Cathy Park Hong, and Jia Tolentino, Isen interlaces cultural criticism with her lived experience to explore the gaps between what we say and what we do, what we do and what we value, what we value and what we demand.


Reviews

"Isen's voice is both wry and sensitive as she fearlessly lays out the limits of talk in solving inequality; fans of sharp cultural criticism, take note."

Publishers Weekly Read review ↗ Near the Top

"Scanning the table of contents feels like reading a list of Twitter's most popular trending topics from 2020."

Celia Mattison· BookPage Read review ↗ Maybe Someday

"In the nine essays in this stellar debut collection, the author probes the gap between expectation and reality ..."

Kirkus Read review ↗ Top of the Pile

"Isen covers loaded topics in a light-hearted way that breaks down the history of how society has gotten to a point where empty words have taken the place of 'doing the work.' She provides personal anecdotes and experiences, and most importantly, points the finger back at us, reminding the reader of the subtle ways we too can be at fault for doing a whole lot of preaching, but not putting it into practice for change."

Pamela Avila· USA Today Read review ↗ Near the Top

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