100 Times: A Memoir of Sexism

Description

A memoir of sexism, harassment, and assault. Shirley Jackson Award-winning author and three-time Lambda Finalist, Chavisa Woods presents one hundred personal stories of sexism, harassment, discrimination, and assault. Recounting her experiences with sexist discrimination, sexual harassment, and sexual violence-beginning in childhood, through the present-Woods lays out clear and unflinching personal vignettes that build in intensity as the number of times grows. Individually, and especially taken as a whole, these stories amount to powerful proof that sexual violence and discrimination are never just one-time occurrences, but part of a constant battle all women face every day. In these extraordinary pages, sexual violence and sexist discrimination occur regardless of age, in all spheres of society, in rural and urban areas alike, in the US and abroad, from Woods' youth through adulthood. Demonstrating how often people are conditioned to endure sexism and harassment, and how thoroughly men feel entitled to women's spaces and bodies,100 Timesforces the reader to witness the myriad ways in which sexism and misogyny continuously shape women's lives, and are built-in facets of our society.

Brooklyn-based writer Chavisa Woods is the author of the short story collectionThings to Do When You're Goth in the Country(Seven Stories Press, 2017), about whichBooklist, in a starred review, wrote, "This book is tight, intelligent, and important, and sure to secure Woods a seat in the pantheon of critical 21st century voices;" the novelThe Albino Album(Seven Stories Press, 2013); and the story collectionLove Does Not Make Me Gentle or Kind(Fly by Night Press, 2009). Woods was the recipient of the 2014 Cobalt Prize for fiction and was a finalist in 2009, 2014, and 2018 for the Lambda Literary Award for fiction. In 2018 Woods was the recipient of the Kathy Acker Award for Writing and the Shirley Jackson Award for Best Novelette. Woods has appeared as a featured author at such notable venues as the Whitney Museum of American Art, City Lights Bookstore, Town Hall Seattle, the Brecht Forum, the Cervantes Institute, and St. Mark's Poetry Project.

"'All my life when I've tried to talk to men about sexism,' Woods writes, 'my main obstacle has been trying to convince them, quite simply, that it exists.' Incident by incident, this memoir makes the case in stark personal terms." -The New York Times Book Review "Brilliant and simple, this is sure to advance understanding of a topic of intense national reckoning. Much of the sexism Woods experienced took place before her twenty-first birthday; teen readers will find validation and solidarity." -Courtney Eathorne, Booklist (starred review) "This text is not only a vital read for those who have experienced gender violence, but also for those looking to enact real allyship and create real change in the world. I suspect this text will become a vital tool for teaching, reclaiming, and collectively mourning for years to come." -Lambda Literary "In 100 Times: A Memoir of Sexism, Chavisa Woods tells a linear but fragmented personal story of growing up and coming of age in a misogynist culture. . . The chronological arrangement and pared-down writing style underscore the injustice of each of these incidents, which include bullying, sexual harassment, assault, and rape ... By articulating the full range of her own experiences, Woods stresses the need for a dramatic shift in societal attitudes if we ever want to live in a culture in which rape and sexist discrimination are no longer routine." -Mattilda Bernstein Sycamore, BOMB Magazine "Illuminating the ways in which sexism targets women and infects the society at large, Woods shares her experiences with daring openness. In clear, precise prose, 100 TIMES is interesting, educational, dramatic and emotional. A must read." -Beverly Gologorsky, author of Every Body Has A Story "Her deceptively plain method makes for a powerful double portrait: on one hand, we trace the hulking outlines of a distorted social order; on the other, we grow deeply absorbed in the story of a young queer artist's courageous self-making. I was touched and thrilled by the activist passion behind this memoir, which belongs on the shelf with feminist classics like Judy Grahn's 'Common Women Poems' and Audre Lorde's Zami." -Jan Clausen, author of Apples & Oranges: My Journey Through Sexual Identity