I rate non-fiction/biographies differently than I do fiction. It is not up to me to rate other people’s actual life experiences. This book was interesting enough. I follow Drew’s social media accounts and adore her women empowerment movement. When rating true story experiences I judge more on the ability to write and use correct grammar versus the storyline. I don’t think everyone is necessarily meant to write a book. I think the book was good but I think Drew is better where she has been- on social media.

I was so excited about this book, as I love Drew, however upon reading it I found the same moments being reiterated. It could be my years of therapy, my own brand of living authentically, but it just didn't hit the mark for me. There's also something to be said that it could be that my last journey into nonfiction was "I'm Glad My Mom Died" an dI think I enjoyed that storytelling more.

I joined TikTok in late January 2021 and I found Drew on my FYP pretty quickly and fell in love with her content. I find the more I learn about Drew, the more I like her. She has been doing amazing things with her platform. I knew this would be mostly not a memoir because Drew is pretty young. It's definitely more of the self-affirmation style of read. There are many good passages throughout. I did feel like it got a bit repetitive at times, but overall solid. Her voice comes through very well and you can tell it is distinctly her talking to you. I will say that my favorite bits of Loud were Drew talking about her family and journey to where she is now.

I’ve loved Drew since the first TikTok I saw of her. This book was one of the most affirming things I’ve read. It encompassed all that Drew is about but also opened my eyes to the amount that me and my own views have grown.

Agreeing with every word was automatic but it’s stepping back and thinking about the version of me in high school, my first years of college, my first job, etc that needed this. I didn’t get this kind of affirmation and perspective until my late twenties, I can’t imagine what a book like this would have done for me years and years ago.

And what’s magic is that this book exists now and is going to alter the lives of all the women who pick it up and read it, hopefully early in their lifetime.

THIS IS A BOOK FOR WOMEN WHO SEE THE MAGIC IN BEING WOMEN 💖 absolutely honored to receive this ARC

Thank you to Farrar, Straus, and Giroux and NetGalley for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

I was blown away by how good this was. If Drew has no haters I am dead. I have loved Drew’s online content for years and have enjoyed her ability to bring the faults of terrible men to the forefront of the conversation. This translated into a book so well! Drew is both poignant and eloquent in her writing and as someone that is the same age and grew up with the same experiences as me, to see them dissected in this was incredible. Seriously, so good!! Funny, heartwarming, educational, and inspiring, I can’t recommend enough!

“Growing up in a patriarchal society, men are always at the center, and you have to rip them out root and stem if you ever want to stop internalized misogynistic beliefs from growing inside you”

And my personal favorite:
“I’m just like every other bitch you know. In fact, I’m worse”

Obsessed!!! Drew stan for life

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5

Drew is definitely one of the good things that have come out of TikTok, and when it goes she will definitely be here to stay.

This book touched on a bit of everything when it comes to Drew’s life before and after TikTok fame. Reflecting on her pick me self, and the growth she has done as an individual, Her place within samoan culture, Decentering men in society, and letting us into more of her personal life when it came to her relationship with her boyfriend, her mom, and older sister.

Some parts were repetitive, but within the content it was good to bring up again.

I was hoping to hear that contagious laugh in the audiobook!!!

But overall I absolutely enjoyed learning more about one of my favorite influencers!

Thank you Macmillan Audio for the ALC and Farrar, Straus and Giroux for the e-arc!

Love love love this book! I am not sure where to even begin, Drew did an amazing job of breaking down various topics while reminding us why our voice/ feelings matter. How to do pulse checks on all aspects of our lives & what it means to be a fundamentally good person not only to ourselves but to those around us.

Drew goes through various tactics of how to decentralize men while breaking down in bite size pieces of why patriarchy impacts everyone including men & how she was able to overcome this within her own life despite her young age.

As an avid Drew fan it was a great honor & privilege to read LOUD before its release and as a fellow loud & proud women of color, thank you Drew for making me feel seen & empowered in a way I’ve never felt before through your words. Thank you sharing your story & experience to the world & giving us a little piece of you.
I cannot wait for the rest of the baddies to get their hands of this incredible book!

Thanks NetGalley & AUWA/FSG for letting me get my hands on this book early!

I’m only a little familiar with Drew’s TikToks but everything she came up on my FYP, she earned my respect. This audiobook is the feminist big sisterly advice every 20-something needs. I’m so glad this next generation has Drew in their corner.

I loved jumping into this book because Drew really takes the girl we all love watching on Tim Tok and put herself into a book, giving you all the advice you wish you got as a young girl growing up. This book is warm, funny, and so honest, in true Drew fashion that it makes you feel good about reading it.

It made me laugh, cry, and smile. I was absolutely entranced by this book and couldn't put it down! What a fantastic read! Everyone should be read this book!

Thank you NetGalley for an eARC!

Thank you to NetGalley and Farrar, Straus and Giroux for this ARC!

4.5 Stars!!

As soon as I saw Drew had written her own book, I requested it immediately! She is an icon and someone that a lot of women look up to. What I loved about this book, is that we clearly see her personality throughout it. I was amped up, laughing out loud, and tearing up. While I love her for her humor, I found a lot of what this book to go over as things we as women struggle with while growing up. I would've loved to have read this book a few years prior. I am a big sister, and to me this book is the big sister talk.

Overall, I really enjoyed this one and I will be recommending it!

Thank you to Farrar Straus and Giroux and Netgalley for this e-ARC.

I absolutely adore Drew as a content creator and as a woman of colour, I love all the content she makes and I was extremely excited to read this book.

This book did not disappoint. The pacing was just perfect and I absolutely devoured and flew through this book. The experiences of being a woman/femme presenting individual in this world are strongly explored, especially the experience of being a person of colour which I could heavily relate to. A lot of the book focuses on from an intersectional feminist standpoint which we love to see!! I saw a lot of myself within the experiences Drew recounts and it was just amazing to relate to another woman of colour. Highly recommend this!!

Oh wow, I REALLY enjoyed reading this book. Drew on her many platforms has always felt like a sister giving cut-throat but honest advice and this book only expanded upon that feeling for me. She was vulnerable and brought me more into her life and purpose with this book and I feel more confident about navigating this male dominated world then I did before. I heard her voice the whole time I read it (I read this as an e-arc not audiobook lol) which only made it feel more personal. I don’t know if she plans to write another book, but I’ll be there if she does. 😊

When I first saw that Drew would be writing a memoir, I was perplexed as I felt like her career was still in its infancy and she has so many transformative experiences in front of her. However, this book I would say is less memoir and more a book of essays on topics such as the patriarchy, trusting yourself, finding your identity and so many other important topics for so many women and femmes. The perfect gift for anyone entering their early adulthood beginning to navigate the experiences she writes about, Loud is sure to be a hit.

We need more Drew’s in the world. Self-assured empowered women who empower other women and give them the space and grace to unlearn what the patriarchy has ingrained in us from childhood. I could go on for about this book for hours but I think this quote from the book sums it up best “In so many ways, we are all our own first generation.” Ultimately, it’s up to us to show up for ourselves and each other, build community and reinvent what our different identities mean. While the information may not be groundbreaking for anyone who exists in these spaces and read similar literature, Drew has a charisma and voice that can make this palatable and understandable for everyone.

This was an enjoyable read. The author grew up in a great Samoan family and mentions that many times. She has a great boyfriend who supports her and actually got her into making TikTok content that helped her spread her word.

I think this a good read.

Thank you NetGalley and Farrar Straus and Griroux for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.

Thank you so much to Farrar, Straus and Giroux and NetGalley for the ARC!

I have loved Drew for years now. She is so hilarious and confident and has inspired me to be the best version of myself. So when I found out she was writing a book I was so excited. And then I got my hands on an ARC and I got even more excited. Listen y'all, this book is fantastic. I was cackling the whole time. It is full of humor, heart, and wit. I felt so validated as a woman. I felt validated in my anger at the patriarchal world we live in today. Drew has a way of explaining things in an intelligent but accessible way so that we all can understand. I appreciate all the things she took time to explain. I learned a lot in reading this book.

Overall, I loved it! I absolutely adore Drew and her voice shines through in this book!

“The Devil works hard, but the patriarchy works harder.”

This quote aptly summarizes the need for this book. I found it uplifting and thought-provoking. If you have already picked up this book or are thinking about reading it, I am sure you are aware of who Drew is. But if you aren’t familiar, she is known for being a bad bitch that makes fun of awful misogynistic men on the internet. This is a big aspect of her platform and this book aims to help her audience uplift themselves in the face of misogyny and patriarchy. I quite like how Drew put it:

“If you don’t have your supportive unit just yet, you can use this book as a tool to start building support within yourself.’

Through telling her life story, Drew conveys big life lessons she has learned in life. She shares stories from childhood all the way up to getting fired from her dream job out of college and how it turned out to be a blessing in disguise that paved the way to her starting her social media career she is known for today. To put it simply, I found that this book was therapy in disguise. It is one that will stick with me for a while. There were so many points that hit home and made me self-reflect and I found myself relating to just about everything in this book even though my life and upbringing are so different from Drew’s. I think all women and femmes navigating this patriarchal world can relate to something in this book no matter where you are in life.

In short, here is the message I came away with:

Live LOUD! You only have one life so live it for yourself and to its fullest extent!

Loud: Accept Nothing Less but the Life You Deserve by Drew Afualo is part memoir, part how-to on living your best life and stopping terrible men from dictating how you see yourself. It addresses so many issues young women & femme-presenting people face today.

Anyone who knows Drew from TikTok knows how funny, witty, and smart she is and that is on full display in her book. It’s not just anecdotes of her taking down misogynists but stories about her family, her adolescence, and her life before & after fame.

There are some sections that felt elementary in its discussion of feminism but I think that’s only because I’m a bit older than the target demographic and have already gone through the early stages of learning how to be an intersectional advocate. I still believe this book would be a great read for anyone who calls themselves a feminist whether they are a veteran or just starting out in their journey. Drew does a great job of stressing the importance of showing up for all marginalized communities, especially the ones you are not a part of.

I really enjoyed reading this and will most likely revisit it in the near future. It’s laugh out loud funny at times and overall just a good read.

Thanks to FSG Books, Auwa Books, & NetGalley for the ARC!

Have you ever watched Drew’s tik tok videos and been left wanting more? This book does that and so much more. It was definitely a new experience to read her words without hearing her amazing laugh to go with it. Drew is vulnerable with her readers as she discusses childhood, culture, fears, family, the patriarchy, love, and everything in between. The writing has a way of making you feel motivated and validated at the same time. While acknowledging and explaining the misogyny of daily life, she counters this with her own outlook on life and strategies for self care. The content is easy to read, relatable, and enjoyable. I loved reading this before bed so I could go to sleep with Drew telling me what a badass I am. Overall, I definitely recommend picking up this book to help you understand why you should, “accept nothing less than the life you deserve!” Thank you Farrar, Straus and Giroux for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

I really love Drew on Tik Tok so I was very excited to get early access to her book. Hearing her story was really eye opening and enlightened me to who she is as a person. One thing I really loved about Drew's writing was that she also discussed her mistakes, not just her victories. It made her more relatable and honestly made her content more real to me. The only downside I had to this audiobook was it lacked Drew's enthusiasm. I didn't really hear her voice shine through and instead it felt like she was reading from a script. Reading the book itself without narration, I felt that I could insert the Drew's voice that I knew and loved. Overall this book was a fun memoir that helped me learn more about someone I find to be hilarious and entertaining.

Rating: 4,5 stars

Let it first be known that I am a huge fan of Drew Afualo and the work she does online. When I got my copy of this arc, the thing I was most excited for was learning more about Drew’s life and upbringing, i.e. the memoir part of the book, and it definitely delivered! Drew spends some time of her novel talking about pick-me-ism and how she was a pick-me girl herself when she was younger, which came as a surprise. She described pick-me-ism as “one woman leveraging her self-worth in exchange for a man’s affection, all at the expense of another woman” and mentions examples such as engaging in “not like other girls” behaviour and letting disrespectful behavior to slide just to be seen as “cool” and “chill”. I found this part of the book very interesting to read, because it is such a modern and current aspect of living as a girl and a young woman in today’s flavour of the patriarchy. What I mean by this is that pick-me-ism is something not often found discussed in other feminist books or memoirs, at least not in the ones I have read. I also found it interesting due to how much it resonated with my own experiences as a girl growing into womanhood. I fear we can all find the pick-me girl in us if we look hard enough.

However, the manual and manifesto parts of the novel are amazing as well! Drew writes about her life and her journey to becoming the loud, confident woman she is today in a very intelligent but at the same time accessible way. The book almost feels like reading a podcast episode, Drew’s voice is powerful and present and so entirely her. At first this threw me a little off, because it is very unlike the narrations I am used to reading. However, as soon as I got properly into the book I stopped being bothered by it. Drew writes about topics such as: body neutrality, rather than positivity, how it is a good thing if you are okay with dying alone rather than being ready to compromise on who you are just for human companionship from men, and how you are worth it, which is always a necessary thing to hear. Drew inspires her readers to look inwards and start searching for the sneaky tendrils of misogyny in their own hearts, and she inspires us all to work harder to empower and love ourselves as women and femmes in this “man’s world”.

I loved this book, and if there is only one thing to take away from it, I would say it is this: dare to be mean, dare to be loud, and dare to always be yourself!

Do yourself a favor and go read this book.