Girlcrush: The #1 Sunday Times Bestseller

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The hardest thing for me is to extrapolate who I would even be without the internet. Social media is my gateway to the world and to making connections with people. When it comes to the physical boundaries I have with my phone: it’s never in my bedroom, it’s always charging in the kitchen. And when it comes to what you share online, I always take a beat. In Given's debut novel, we follow Eartha on a wild, weird and seductive modern-day exploration as she commences life as an openly bisexual woman whilst also becoming a viral sensation on Wonderland, a social media app where people project their dream selves online. I’m grateful to Eli for this thread… and I hate it. Really, really, really hate the way that Given (a bisexual woman) writes about lesbianism

The plot was also questionable imo, the "twist" at the end felt like it was inserted as an afterthought and didn't seem to fit with the first 3/4 of the book... Spelling errors irritated me. Maybe it was rushed out for publication or more suited for a younger audience (what is happening to me) This steers our chat onto the standards we all face every single day and how they can push us into building a ‘close to perfect’ facade online (or at least try to, as after all there’s no such thing as ‘perfect’). “You create a standard for yourself on social media that's above the standards we already have from the patriarchy, and trying to be beautiful to get by in this world,” Florence says thoughtfully. “More people are living this split life [between who you want to be and who you currently are] to the point we don't even question it anymore, we just know that that's the way it is. And still we feel shit about it. We know everything is curated, but it still hurts to see people doing better than us, or who are happier in areas that we aren't.” This is not the queer affirming book it claims to be. This is a book doused in queer stereotypes and harmful language. As a bisexual woman I found it littered with biphobia and severe problems around identity, femininity, masculinity and many issues catered towards our non binary siblings too. Some of the things I liked about this book were the discussions about the internet and the complexities of being bisexual, even within the very lgbtqia+ community, as the character describes either feeling like people judge her for being too gay or not gay enough.

She SELF-REFERENCES!!!

So it's no surprise there's plenty of hype around her debut novel Girlcrush, published on the 9 August and set to be one of the best books of 2022. Girlcrush tells the story of Eartha, who embarks on a journey of sexual exploration as an openly bisexual woman who becomes embroiled in a dangerous online world. This is the perfect example of someone who is successful in one area believing that that success and skill will translate into others…… and it did not. In 2018, she launched a petition to cancel Netflix's controversial fat-shaming series 'Insatiable', it gained over 300,000 signatures in a matter of days. The story became global news and she appeared on many news networks across the US and UK, as well as being interviewed for various publications including Huffington Post and Grazia. Journalist Moya Lothian-McClean said: “I’m still thinking about Florence Given’s prose… Once again, publishers and editors involved in that… have a word with yourselves.” And I couldn’t have put it better myself, really. Related stories recommended by this writer:

Geall, Lauren (January 2022). "Celebrity podcasts: 24 of the best series to listen to in 2022, from Meghan Markle to Dua Lipa". Stylist . Retrieved 19 December 2022. If you’re a millennial or Gen Zer, it’s likely Florence Given needs no introduction – with over half a million followers, she’s well known for her feminist art and activism (and if you’re not amongst that 500,000-strong group, chances are you’ve still come across her colourful and kitsch illustrations at some point in your life).

The #1 Sunday Times Bestseller

Florence Given (born 1998 [1] [2]) is a British illustrator, writer, feminist social activist, and influencer. Basically, Florence uses the “F” slur far too comfortably throughout the novel, when it wasn’t ever a word for queer women to reclaim. Phrases like “d**e daddy” and “a random butch in leather” have pissed people off, too. The general consensus seems to be that Florence – a bisexual woman – has massively reduced her lesbian characters down to stereotypes.

There are parts of this book that were so ridiculous that it made me angry (why had she never heard of an INCEL? I know that biphobia is a thing but why are people acting like it's so ALIEN?).

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Eartha finds fame online on Wonder Land, a social media app where users can create an online persona that represents their dream self, but she soon realises that being a viral sensation isn't as glamorous and exciting as it first seems. Women Don’t Owe You Pretty was a concise, witty, compassionate guide to navigating feminism. Did it achieve what you wanted it to? More than 100,000 signatures on petition to cancel Netflix show Insatiable". Ilkley Gazette. 24 July 2018 . Retrieved 28 January 2020. The only part of this book that felt genuine was Eartha's experiences with the darker side of social media. The pain that Florence clearly went through at the hands of theslumflower's followers was awful to read through Eartha's experience (let's all agree not to comment/message people on social media and tell them to k*** themselves? maybe?).