Rebel Girl: My Life as a Feminist Punk

Rebel Girl: My Life as a Feminist Punk by Kathleen Hanna (2024) I’d imagine most people coming to this book to be fans of Kathleen Hanna, her bands, and/or her zines, writing, riot grrrl stuff, etc. Somehow, I missed Bikini Kill and Le Tigre back when I was listening to a lot of new music—well, I missed a lot of stuff, and continue to. So, not being a fan, it took me awhile to make the connection to Kathleen Hanna, though I’d heard about her, here and there, with all she’s involved in, and with this book coming out. She was on a podcast (WTF), and I really liked the conversation, so I thought I’d check this out. I seem to read a lot of musician memoirs and biographies, for whatever reason—I guess I like reading about the lives of musicians! Maybe I shouldn’t have been surprised, after the podcast, but I was impressed with how engaging this book was—I feel like it’s cliché-y to say it, but it reads like a thriller (and I never read thrillers) but it’s exactly that—it’s riveting. Maybe more so in that it’s autobiography—I mean, even if it was fiction, there’s a truth to it that feels undeniable. A lot of her successes and traumas are familiar, but the specifics here! I mean, sadly, everyone knows stories of sexual abuse, sexual assault, rape—but hearing these accounts in this book horrified me, made me angry and sad. As a man, this is not firsthand experience. As well as that, just her accounts of various abuse, being stalked, attacked, and just verbally harassed—it’s all very sobering, at best, and often sickening. And then, with every layer of success, the shit she’d get from both men and women, even former friends and collaborators. Fortunately, aside from that, there is tons of inspiring and joyful stuff, and even some hilarious and goofy adventures. The book is never close to being boring, and you’ll learn a lot, as well. Some great insights into mental health (I jokingly thought she could have titled it: Learning to Be a Friend to Myself.) Also, illness and health stuff—which I won’t give away—that reads like a particularly harrowing mystery. And for fans of any kind of music, and musicians, that’s, of course, at the heart of the book.

11.26.24