Untamed by Glennon Doyle

Photo by me - also on my bookstagram @bookworminkayla

If you haven’t read this book, this is your sign to do it now.   Everyone has to read Untamed.  That’s my initial thought with this book, which absolutely blew me out of the water! I was literally 15 pages in when I had to stop and write down all the great quotes I had read to that point. 

"It's the polar bears now.  But nobody cares.  So next, it's gonna be us." 

- p.15

I read this book at a time in my life where I’m expected to make a lot of big decisions and commitments and Glennon Doyle’s perspective on such things is so liberating. This book is all about the concept of freedom in your life, and she illustrates the different things that can mean as well as why it is so important, and ties it to how society tries to tame us when we should be wild.  So honest and unapologetic, the author presents her views on society in such a clear perspective it’s like drawing a curtain away from your eyes.

As a feminist, I love that Glennon has a feminist perspective. She often reflects on moments in her life where something happened to her as a female and then illustrates how she tries to adjust and account for that in her parenting style with her daughters (and just as importantly, with her son!) For example, beauty standards and the personality traits women and girls are expected to fit. And she touches on the fact that men are constrained by guidelines as well, which a lot of feminists overlook. She illustrates these differences by describing the difference between feminine and masculine bath products; where the feminine products gave a list of adjectives (“things to be”) the masculine products have verbs. That example says a lot, and the way she writes it says even more. 

"The epitome of womanhood is to lose one's self completely." 

- p. 116

There are so many other parts I could highlight but I do want you to have the chance read and experience it on your own if you’re interested. Untamed is just absolutely an amazing book and a perspective I really needed to read at this point in my life. Highly recommend!!