From the for­mer edi­tor-in-chief of Nylon comes a provoca­tive and inti­mate col­lec­tion of per­son­al and cul­tur­al essays fea­tur­ing eye-open­ing explo­rations of hot but­ton top­ics for mod­ern women, includ­ing inter­net fem­i­nism, impos­si­ble beau­ty stan­dards in social media, shift­ing ideals about sex­u­al­i­ty, and much more.

Gabrielle Korn starts her pro­fes­sion­al life with all the right cre­den­tials. Pres­ti­gious col­lege degree? Check. A lov­ing, accept­ing fam­i­ly? Check. Insta­gram-wor­thy offices and a tight-knit group of friends? Check, check. Gabrielle’s life seems to reach the crescen­do of per­fect when she gets named the youngest edi­tor-in-chief in the his­to­ry of one of fashion’s most influ­en­tial pub­li­ca­tion. Sud­den­ly she’s invit­ed to the world’s most epic par­ties, comped beau­ti­ful clothes and shoes from trendy design­ers, and asked to weigh in on every­thing from gay rights to lip gloss on one of the most influ­en­tial dig­i­tal platforms.

But behind the scenes, things are far from per­fect. In fact, just a few months before land­ing her dream job, Gabrielle’s health and well­be­ing are on the line, and her pro­mo­tion to edi­tor-in-chief becomes the ulti­mate test of strength. In this col­lec­tion of inspi­ra­tional and sear­ing essays, Gabrielle reveals exact­ly what it’s tru­ly like in the fash­ion world, try­ing to find love as a young les­bian in New York City, bat­tling with anorex­ia, and try­ing not to lose her­self in a mirage of women’s empow­er­ment and Insta­gram perfection.

Through deeply per­son­al essays, Gabrielle recounts her strug­gles to rec­on­cile her long-held inse­cu­ri­ties about her body while com­ing out in the era of The L Word, where swoon-wor­thy les­bians are por­trayed as skin­ny, fash­ion-per­fect, and pow­er-hun­gry. She takes us with her every­where from New York Fash­ion Week to the doctor’s office, reveal­ing that the forces that try to keep women small are more per­va­sive than any­one wants to admit, espe­cial­ly in a world that’s been new­ly brand­ed as woke.

From #MeToo to com­mer­cial­ized body pos­i­tiv­i­ty, Korn’s bit­ing, dark­ly fun­ny analy­sis turns fem­i­nist com­men­tary on its head. Both an in-your-face take on impos­si­ble beau­ty stan­dards and entrenched media ideals and an inspir­ing call for per­son­al authen­tic­i­ty, this pow­er­ful col­lec­tion is ide­al for fans of Rox­ane Gay and Rebec­ca Solnit.