Bossypants

Tina Fey is funny. She was on SNL for years, and now she's the head writer of her own show, 30 Rock. She's funny, and people like her for that.
Bossypants is more than just funny, though, as is Tina Fey. The book deals with being a woman in a male-dominated work environment. It grapples with the gender norms our society has built into it's very foundations.
Why are men seen as funny and women are not? Why are men allowed to make fun of other men without hurting anyone's feelings, but women are not? Why can men have a career and a family without anyone worrying about it, but women cannot?
I recommend this book to all feminists (men can be feminists, too!) and I'd like to use it as a platform to discuss gender norms and sexism in our culture and the media.
These norms are ingrained into the institutions of this country. It starts from childhood: colors, appropriate toys, activities that children join, commercials, etc. It's the language that is used. Women are raised to be gentle and emotional, men are raised to be strong and not emotional.
It then subtly or overtly affects everything else we do. Women are objectified by all: the magazines and TV shows and advertisements tell women what makes them valuable (being pretty) and the men whistle and honk.
Women who are bosses are bitches. Women who sleep around are sluts. Men who are bosses are "have earned it." Men who sleep around are players.
It's built into our very language--we have two pronouns: "he" and "she." Our culture is obsessed with being able to put everyone in a box. Are they male, or are they female? Even more so, women have been defined by marital status(though this is changing): do we call them Miss or Mrs.? --it depends on whether or not they are married. This draws attention to a woman's marital status before one is even introduced.
Just because something has become normalized, does not mean it's actually acceptable. Bossypants is a light, funny read that shines some light on sexism and norms. Is Tina Fey crazy or selfish or neglecting her child because she wants to have a career and a family? Some would have you believe this is true.

Read the book. Laugh at Fey's jokes and ironies. Reflect on the gender norms of our culture and the root of them. They are archaic and make no sense in modern society. Identifying characteristics and personalities and abilities and salaries and worth based on an x or a y...it's primitive.

--Megan