Published in 2022
272 pages
Born in Newcastle-Upon-Tyne, Danielle Pender gained her BA in History of Modern Art, Design & Film at Northumbria University and MA in Creative Writing at Newcastle University. In 2013 she founded Riposte, a bi-annual print publication that offers a diverse and nuanced reflection on the lives of modern women. She has written for other publications including Refinery 29, Vogue and Metro, amongst others. She currently lives in London with her husband and daughter.
What is this book about?
“Every aspect of her body or personality was up for inspection: too big, too small, too available, too hidden, too much, not enough.”
A wedding day brings back memories of sisterhood and betrayals; a motorway service station is the site of explosive violence, but also strange bonds; a trip home forces a reminder of a life-changing, lost friendship; a woman confronts her own infidelity; an artist celebrates a life spent in observation.
This debut collection movingly explores how women and girls are looked at, look at one another, and look at themselves, and how living as an object can shape their passions, fears, and joys. With a clear eye and dark humour, Danielle Pender considers sex, parenting, grief and class as lenses for the ways in which the world watches women ― and how women are always watching back.
