“She had me at Sweet Valley High. Roxane Gay’s Bad Feminist is a refreshing contribution to contemporary feminist debates that have devolved into scenes more appropriate for a Mean Girls remake than serious reflection on gender and inequality. In the midst of this internecine feminist toxicity, Gay playfully crosses the borders between pop culture consumer and critic, between serious academic and lighthearted sister-girl, between despair and optimism, between good and bad. This is the text for those of us who constructed our feminism from the pages of teen chick lit as much as from the musings of post-modern theorists. Gay gives us permission to take up the sword of feminism while laying down the shield of policed authenticity. As a result, we complete this book both more powerful and more vulnerable, just like Gay herself. And she gets how important it is to be a junior faculty member with a personal printer in her own office! How can you help but love this author?”