Sarah Ditum

The Story of Nine Famous Women in the Tabloid 2000s

Toxic

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****WARNING: this book gets 1 star because it’s written by a transphobic person. I did not realize beforehand, but while reading this book, I researched the author who spreads transphobic rhetoric all over her twitter page (and author also deadnamed Elliot Page in this book which was published in 2024). I donated $20 (price of book) to I Am Me, a DE/PA nonprofit LGBTQ+ safe space specifically for people of color.****

actual review of book: this was so underwhelming. i was super excited for this book because I love 2000s pop culture. but i just felt like the author lacked a lot of empathy when talking about a lot of the women (specifically britney and amy winehouse in particular). i found the chyna chapter the most interesting just because i was the least familiar with her. i was most excited (and let down) by the jennifer aniston chapter because i felt like it was a real opportunity to talk about women’s bodies in terms of being “baby making” machines. but every conclusion the author drew was so superficial to me. and if this is to be considered an “introduction” book to celebrity pop culture in the 2000s, why is it written like a educational thesis? it was giving “i use big words to make me seem smart”.

Toxic The Story of Nine Famous Women in the Tabloid 2000s

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