Lindy West does it again! In this collection of essays, West continues with her feminism and wit. The work is relatable and humorous while still covering heavy topics.

For anyone who has read 'Shrill,' by Lindy West, or anyone looking for a quick witty read- make sure to pick this one up!

I really wanted to like this book because I loved Lindy West’s Shrill, but this book just didn’t hit me in the same way. The book was focused more on cultural criticism than on her own life and experience, which is fine, but isn’t as much what I enjoy.

I was excited to see Lindy West had a new book coming out. I loved "Shrill" and "The Witches Are Coming" did not disappoint. If you are a fan of West, this is a must read.

The book is a mashup of political critiques, pop culture reflections and much more. From Grumpy Cat to Adam Sandler to dresses with pockets, West covers a lot of ground, while continuing to be sharp, engaging and hilarious.

First and foremost—Thank you Lindy West for writing this, and thank you for being you.

Essay collections are, I find, the hardest types of nonfiction to review because there's so many topics covered in them typically that you either go by essay, reviewing each individually—or you're forced to give a general review of the book without getting too specific. I wish I had written this sooner so it could have been the essay-by-essay type of review, but it's been several months now (shame me if you must) so general review it is.

But better late than never right? No? Okay...

West's writing style is intense and dramatic, but I think that aids in getting her point across. At times her writing reads as being angry or baffled, but why wouldn't she be in our current political climate? Either way, she definitely doesn't hold back. 

Her humor lightens otherwise depressing topics, and makes feminist topics that people tend to turn away from easier to digest. In addition to hitting on relevant cultural issues, she does so in such a way that I believe the average non-feminist would have little to no trouble understanding the issue's significance. 

My only complaint? The way each essay is structured starts with West bringing up one topic, usually anecdotal, then introducing a feminist issue. After which she ties the two together by explaining how the anecdote makes sense in relation to the issue.

While it does come together in the end, and always in a witty way, for longer essays it can be hard to keep the personal bit straight until the two are tied together. I think it would have read more smoothly if the tie-in were between the anecdote and issue discussion.

To be honest though, even if this book had been absolute garbage, I would have loved it for the simple fact that it introduced me to the show Shrill—which I highly recommend if you haven't seen it.

Having never read anything by Lindy West before, I will definitely be looking into her other works after reading this—and I suggest you do as well!

Lindy West can do no wrong. She is entertaining as always. I fear many generalizations in this book will make it inaccessible to people who don't already agree with West, but that's okay. If you're already liberal, this book is good for you. Maybe it would be good for guys who are already politically liberal but still have blind spots due to the patriarchy.

Written with the author’s trademark sardonic wit, The Witches Are Coming by Lindy West is a series of essays tackling a number of timely topics. Some are serious (e.g. climate change, the #metoo movement), others less so (e.g. Adam Sandler movies, dresses with pockets and those who love them) but all are approached by West with a sharp tongue. I don’t think there is anything particularly novel for readers to find here, but if you are a choir that loves being preached to then give it a whirl.

This was such a fantastic social commentary on just about every topic affecting us as a society today and in the past. I am a big fan of Lindy West's writing style and each of her essays spoke to me and evoked so much emotion. I will definitely read anything West writes in the future.

I received an ARC of this book via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Funny, sharp, fantastic. Worth waiting for. I really liked Lindy's scope and her use of humor here, and the political slant to these essays.

The Witches are Coming reads like a discussion with a very passionate and educated woman who has worked her way not only through a vicious industry and brutal network, but also through the harsh world we live in today, especially when you are a female and fat.  In this book, West discusses and breaks down current political and social ideas and arguments, as well as strongly pushing an agenda packed with social and political reformation.  She argues for women, of all sizes and colors, and the reproductive rights we deserve.  She argues for the environment and the 11th-hour stewardship ideas barely being considered.  She argues for the right to be yourself, love what and who you want, be proud of who you are and what you look like, and be whatever race or gender or sexuality you are.  She argues against the rhetoric of "witch hunt" tossed around by certain political figures and revitalizes the term to mean so much more.  Above all, this book is a recognition of the negative that has and is occurring and a call to arms for the future.


One of my favorite parts of reading this book is the reimagining of the term "witch hunt," in a way that makes sense and that also subverts the original meaning put into place for this term when it was first used.  Turning the term on its head and acknowledging the use of the word witch and making hunt the verb is so smart.  I love that West says outright several times that yes it is indeed a witch hunt, and the witches are now hunting.  I enjoyed that West didn't just discredit the term and get angry, but found a way to subvert what was there in an even more powerful way.  Go Lindy!

This book, while packed with some salient political, social, and cultural themes and topics, is quite hilarious.  I didn't know who Lindy West was before reading this book and I gotta say, I am now a fan!  I love when women, especially those that don't fit into the perfect ideal image, speak up and out about concepts and issues that matter to them.  I wish I had that sense of whatever you may call it, instead of being quiet.  The humor she uses is great because it doesn't degrade anyone, it is honest, and it is funny.

This is such an important book to read --for anyone-- because it does delve into some heavy topics.  Where we are today, these things should be recognized and talked about even more lest they be simply hushed and pushed aside.  West is such an integral voice and figure for women and change; this book really showcases her power.  This isn't a book that you read for fun, but is one that you read to educate yourself or maybe change your opinion(s).  This is a book that should be shared.

Although things are not as pretty and nice as we wish they were in the United States at the current moment, West doesn't make this book completely negative and heavy.  I was happy that at the end of this book, she includes a couple of chapters that are quite positive.  I enjoyed her active and driven chapters that encouraged readers to think about things a bit deeper than they normally may which are then juxtaposed with a sincere hopefulness for the future and her readers.  West knows the power of change and what the younger generations are capable of if they are given the right tools and rhetoric to live in a different and stronger world than what we have now.  I have to praise West for her writing and for her assertive and assured way of sharing her ideas, constructing strong arguments and counterpoints, and offering solutions and ideas for the future rather than just complaining.

Overall, I would HIGHLY recommend this book to you if only on the basis of listening to another person's ideas as a tool to think about your own ideas and conceptualizations.  This book, while dense in strong argument, would serve as a great tool for discussion.

The autobiographical pieces of this are definitely the strongest and Lindy West is still as funny as she was in Shrill. That being said, a lot of the essays don't feel like they offer any particularly new insights on the current era. It feels like a regurgitation of ideas that have been expressed with some regularity since Trump was elected with the addition of West's sense of humor.

I was a huge fan of Shrill (still am) and I had a similar experience reading The Witches Are Coming. Lindy West doesn't let anyone get away with their BS, and the essays here don't back down. Absolutely recommend.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book is quite the conundrum. I agree with almost everything said in this book, but maybe that's part of the problem. The material just wasn't groundbreaking or insightful to me. Yes, mediocre white men succeed far too often in our society. Yes, our culture's view of what women or men "should" be is awful and outdated. I know this. I don't need a book to tell me this. Unfortunately, this book just felt a lot like short essays on the topic, and didn't really have anything new to draw me in. I ultimately made the decision to not finish at 40%.

I didn't read Lindy West's first book, so I was unfamiliar with her writing style, but I don't think it worked for me as much as I had thought it would. This is a very political book, and while I agreed with basically everything she was saying, it didn't keep my interest or make me want to read more. Some of the chapters kept my attention more than others, and some I only skimmed. I think going into this book with high expectations might have been a part of why it didn't work great for me. I did enjoy some of her commentary on things like global warming, politics, and Trump, and she had some really great lines. Overall, I thought the book was okay, and I do want to see if Shrill might be more my thing. I received this book free from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I haven't read Shrill but have enjoyed Lindy West's previous writings in Jezebel and the TV adaptation of Shrill.

I enjoyed the writing in this book and it feels very much like the type of late night chats you have in good company, where there's laughter and tears and serious shit and ridiculous stories. But it also felt like territory that has been covered. There were definitely moments of laughing out loud like a crazy person while I was reading this on my commute to work, and also moments of rage. Unfortunately there were also many moments of wanting just a bit more. Times when it felt like really interesting ideas were just being touched upon but not dug into (as an example, the unwillingness to continue growing as we age).

Overall, there were some great chapters/essays and some that felt a bit filler-y.

Lindy West has done it again! I so appreciate the way she's able to bring humor, insight, and exactness to difficult and important topics. This collection is timely and interesting, cleverly written, and sharp in tone and awareness. A great and thought provoking collection.

I am very here for all the books collecting the writings of angry, powerful, and disgusted women. Very timely collection from an author I love reading.

Thank you for the opportunity to read and review this excellent book!

Lindy West writes in such a clever, delicious, snarky way that it's more fun to read these essays than it should be, considering how serious her subjects are. The beauty of that though is that you *want* to read them, and read more and more, because they're entertaining as well as being important and educational, and very of-the-moment politically.

I have been recommending this book to anyone who I strike up even the faintest political-ish conversation with, at work or socially. It's great. Thank you again!

"So fine, if you insist. This is a witch hunt. We're witches, and we're hunting you."

Shrill: Notes from a Loud Woman is one of my favorite books, and while this followup didn't quite make me sob as much, it is another brilliant, insightful collection of essays from Lindy that takes a scathing look at the culture that led to us electing Trump. The title is a response to our president's liberal use of the term "witch hunt" - a phrase that has been used so much so wrongly in these past years that it has almost lost all meaning.

From Donald Trump to Adam Sandler to Southpark to Grumpy Cat's owners to all of us who bury our head in the sand when the going gets tough - no problematic part of our society is given any excuse. Lindy is able to make these issues resonate in such an accessible, hilarious way. She no longer has a Twitter (for very valid reasons that she explains...I should probably delete mine, in all honesty) but I miss getting her wit and insights every day. So books like these every now and then will have to do.

My favorite essays:
- Choosing the Lie
- Ted Bundy Was Not Charming - Are You High?
- How to Be a Girl ("Millennials. LOVE. Board game-based Cold War murder mystery sex farces chockablock with J. Edgar Hoover references")
- Anger is a Weapon
- Gear Swap (all hail the Seattle Music Gear Swap and Sale)

A smart, insightful, entertaining read. I think I may have enjoyed The Witches are Coming more than Shrill. West doesn't hold anything back in her second collection of essays whether it's going after Ted Bundy, South Park, Gweneth Paltrow's Goop brand or even Adam Sandler's comedy. For those who are feeling disillusioned about the world today but who share similar personal beliefs and political views with West, I think this book will reinvigorate your activism and beliefs. Recommended if you're a fan of feminist essays and Lindy West's work!

Lindy West just has this uncanny ability to take the thoughts from my head and form them into brilliant words that are just incredibly satisfying in the way that makes you feel like you're not alone in this weird, screwed up world in which we find ourselves currently living. I savored every chapter, every word, and I still finished it all too quickly. This is a book I'm adding to my Book Club's list before the paperback comes out because it is that important and the group will love it that much - I just know it. Thank you netgalley for the arc. This was the best early holiday gift!