Home › Books › Strip Tees: A Memoir of Millennial Los Angeles
Strip Tees: A Memoir of Millennial Los Angeles
by
15/99
Critics' Rating Index
7/99
Readers' Rating Index
n/a
Scholars' Citation Index
51/99
Volume of Reviews
77/99
Volume of Reader Ratings
Sign in to add to your shelf, rate, or review this book.
About This Book
Strip Tees is a fever dream of a memoir—Hunter S. Thompson meets Gloria Steinem—about a recent college graduate and what happens when her feminist ideals meet the real world. At the turn of the new millennium, LA is the place to be. "Hipster" is a new word on the scene. Lauren Conrad is living her Cinderella story in the "Hills" on millions of television sets across the country. Paris Hilton tells us "That's hot" from behind the biggest sunglasses imaginable, while beautiful teenagers fight and fall in love on The O.C. Into this most glittering of supposed utopias, Kate Flannery arrives with a Seven Sisters diploma in hand and a new job at an upstart clothing company called American Apparel. Kate throws herself into the work, determined to climb the corporate fashion ladder. Having a job at American Apparel also means being a part of the advertising campaigns themselves, stripping down in the name of feminism. She slowly begins to lose herself in a landscape of rowdy sex-positivity, racy photo shoots, and a cultlike devotion to the unorthodox CEO and founder of the brand. The line between sexual liberation and exploitation quickly grows hazy, leading Kate to question the company's ethics and wrestle with her own. Strip Tees captures a moment in our recent past that's already sepia toned in nostalgia, and also paints a timeless portrait of a young woman who must choose between what business demands and self-respect requires.
Reviews
"A racy, thoughtful memoir of her tenure during the rise and fall of the controversial company ..."
"A candid and provocative memoir."
"The illusion of choice forms the basis of Flannery's prima facie case against the toxic pre–#MeToo workplace."
"Though Flannery is clear-eyed about the exploitation and pettiness of American Apparel under Charney — and the cruelty of a culture in which a woman's best method for career advancement was turning him on — she avoids the pitfalls of easy dogmatism, weaving in the sneaking suggestion that perhaps every company is just as exploitative, if not quite so nakedly."
"Flannery succeeds in illustrating the fashion industry's blurred lines in the decade prior to #MeToo, and the tough choices women faced between professional success and personal safety."
Preview
Reader Reviews
0 reviewsSign in to write a review.
No reader reviews yet. Be the first!