A nice, short book with pictures that illustrate the plethora of things that make women from all walks of life sick and tired, from periods to FGM.

For all intents and purposes, while not really fitting in the official coffee table book definition, that’s exactly what it is. Who’s more likely to pick this up? Teens? Grown Adults? It’s meant to start conversation, regardless of who it's targeted to. Whether you want to remind yourself of how unfair this society is, or if you’re young and want to learn just how unfair this society is, it’s essential. I loved the monochromatic drawings and how simplistic they are.

While it is an extremely basic list of what we go through, I could see myself recommending this to the kids I work with to spark some type of conversation and to introduce the kids to some very basic feminism.

Thank you Second Story Press and Netgalley for this digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I might very well use this text in my own classes. While it’s a little bit more simplistic than I expected, the artwork is engaging and it provides a nice beginning overview for people who aren’t sure if we need feminism or who aren’t familiar with women’s issues. i think this text would be good fodder for writing prompts and assignments, as well as a good place to discuss visual argument. While a bit over simplistic, still a nice text.

Thank you to NetGalley and to Second Story Press for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

What Makes Girls Sick and Tired is a very powerful and eye-opening graphic novel about women and feminism. The illustrations and color palette throughout this story are incredibly beautiful. The story is told in repetition starting with "Girls are sick and tired..." and discussing various issues that women face on a day-to-day basis. There are some very dark topics discussed, so trigger warning for sexual assault and violence against women. The story is intersectional, with stories of women of color, LGBTQ+ women, women with disabilities, and more. The authors are both white women and I was happy to see this acknowledged at the end of the book. "What Makes Girls Sick and Tired was created to provoke discussion, reflection, and action around feminism and the struggle for women's rights. As privileged white women, the author and illustrator are conscious that their experience is far from being the experience of all women. This book is therefore not a complete description of all lived experiences, but it hopes to offer a wake-up call to everyday sexism and the other systems of oppression that women and girls are subject to across the world."

I would recommend this book as a great way to start a conversation about feminism and intersectional feminism.

I received an e-ARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Everything that I wrote here is what I felt about the book. You may or may not feel the same. Enjoy!
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This book screams feminism out loud. This book tells us about what makes girls sick and tired of this society and how girls are more than that. Also, this book provides some graphic facts.
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I love it so much. I love the concept. I love the drawing. I love the colour combination. Yet, this book could be more than that... like it has so much potential if it could be longer and deeper.
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Thank you for writing this book! Thank you for providing me this eARC. ☺

I liked this book, but it lacks subtlety. I understand that was likely the point and something the author did intentionally, it just doesn't appeal to me personally.

This is a great book. It answers the questions if we still need feminism and why we need it. A must read for everyone!

This is one of those books that's important, yet not exactly executed well. I agree with many of the facts stated in the book, as one of my volunteer roles is to research gender inequality. My main complaint is that, while it references nonbinary/queer/trans girls, we don't actually see them illustrated. There are maybe two images of fat women, despite the fact that we do indeed exist. It's important, but it could have been better.

This book represents beautiful artwork and stark truths about the challenges women in America and in Canada face on a daily basis. The reader is met with recent statistics as well as calling awareness to everyday harassment and sexism. This is a wonderful book to jump start discussion, reflection, and activism.

I appreciate the inclusivity of this graphic novel. There were women of all shapes, sizes, different sexualities and races. This was definitely a feminist manifesto, but I’m a little confused who the target audience is. It doesn’t reveal anything new if you have any knowledge or background of feminism. But the topics are a little too mature for young girls asking what feminism is. But overall an enjoyable read.

The statements and ideas in this book are great, but to me, nothing new or profound. This doesn't solve anything or do anything for me except tell me what I already know about girls. I think anyone who picks this up will not be necessarily provoked to do anything or feel anything much. The illustrations are good and the statements good and true. It was so short it literally took me like 2 minutes to read. I see the good intentions of this but it just didn't feel as powerful as I was hoping it would be. This was so short that I feel like it won't have the impact intended. Maybe holding it physically will be a different situation and being able to see the illustrations in their full glory with the statements will be a lot better. This just wasn't really something I"m into.

YES. I love this book so much. I want to make everyone who doesn't believe in feminism read a copy. The solidarity that comes with being inclusive does help us feel less sick and tired. Highly recommend this read.

I received a copy of this ebook in exchange for an honest review.

This was a very quick read that I very much enjoyed. I loved the art. I left this book empowered but nothing new was discussed.

“Women are sick and tired because it is often physically painful to be a woman.”

This book in everything my feminist heart has ever wanted, except for equal rights of course. It was a quick read, but the power behind the words stayed with me long after. We life in a world where women are treated differently than men, that’s just the way it is. In this book, the authors bring forth all the different situations in which women are treated unequally to men. It’s not a book about bashing men, but instead about showing what women all over the world go through.

“Women are sick and tired when men don’t understand that no means NO.”

I’ve been preaching the “no means no” phrase for a long time. I’ve been in countless situations where no had magically changed to a yes. I’ve had to say no to friends, strangers, and family. For some unknown reason not everybody understands that “no means no”. Which is why I’m so happy that this phrase has a place in this book.

The length of the book helps with giving short but powerful messages. I liked how the thoughts were raw and got straight to the point. The authors didn’t hold back on what they want to communicate. Beautiful illustrations accompanied the words. I loved how simple yet aesthetic each page looked. What I would have liked is some more discussion surrounding feminism and women’s rights. I hope this book will be a steppingstone for more discussions concerning detailed experiences, and how women can make their voices heard. If you are a feminist, or know someone who struggles with the concept, then definitely check out this book!

* Thank you NetGalley for providing me with this arc in exchange for an honest review.

I feel like this was just scratching the surface.

I loved it. I truly did. I loved the way the words came together with the illustrations.
But in the end it wasn't anything new. It is still important, don't get me wrong. There are so many things wrong with the world when it comes to how women are treated. And it's super important to talk about it, to not just start this conversation but to keep it going.

I loved it for what it is. I just wish they would have gone a bit more deeper. But there is always the opportunity to make a second part, cause let's be real, this can be a never ending series of books.

Very short and to the point. If you want a brief overview of feminism with some beautiful illustrations this book is for you.

I think I read this book in about 3 minutes total.
While I appreciate the messages this book spreads, it is very surface level stuff. Just statements that are answers to the question, 'what makes girls sick and tired'.
If anything I would say this is the 'baby's first book of feminism', although it does mention rape and other sensitive topics in the statements, so maybe don't give it to a baby or a toddler.
I think this book was interesting in the definitely-will-become-an-instagram-thing because the illustrations are absolutely stunning. They really are. I'm curious to know what the actual audience for this book was intended for though.

Pros: Empowering message for girls of all ages. and sexual orientations. I really enjoyed it for the message. Cons: The artwork was too simple, I would've liked to have seen something a bit more elaborate or at least use different shades of colors, rather than just purple.

2.5 stars.

What I liked: I liked the message that this book is trying to promote. I am all for feminism, equal rights, and empowering the LGBT+ community. I just want it to be known that I have never and will never clean up after anybody, man or woman. "Bisexual & queer girls are sick and tired of being made out to be unstable, insatiable, or confused."I agree with that statement.

What I didn't like: None of the statements in this graphic novel were elaborated, there weren't enough statistics to back up anything, and the "girls" in questioned were not listed. Did they interview a bunch of random girls and ask these questions?

Artwork: Extremely bland. 2-3 shades of purple.

I was intrigued when I saw this graphic novel pop up on my Netgalley. However, although I understand what the message of this novel was, I just don't think it added anything new to the world of women and feminism that I am aware of. I did enjoy the illustrations, and this was the highlight for me. I will admit I was confused as to who was the target audience of this graphic novel. The writing style seemed more likely to be aimed at teens or younger, but the content of the writing doesn't seem to match.

I felt like it's a good novel to show people who don't have a great understanding of feminism and what women experience on a daily basis. However, I would like have liked to see further diversity of the abled bodies. I did enjoy the colour diversity, but as a white woman, I will not comment on if this was done well or not. But I do believe that there was a lot of the white, slim body female within this book, and other body shapes and sizes were just skimmed over in my opinion.

I believe that this book had the right idea, but it fell short for me personally, as I believe it could have done so much more with what they started with.

Thank you very much to Second Story Press for providing me with a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.