Read: How to be a Woman, by Caitlin Moran

Unlike a lot of voracious readers, I go for long periods without reading a single book; there might be an extract here or an article there but I can go for months without reading a whole book. Then, seemingly from nowhere I will have what counts for me as a burst of productivity wherein I devour four or five about the same number of days. January this year I tried to pace myself, but Moran's How to be a Woman was so good that I just couldn't help myself.

Any prospective male reader shouldn't be put off by the title; it's not an instruction manual (though don't be disappointed by this if that's what you're looking for- it's worth reading anyway). It is partially a manifesto of Moran's feminist beliefs and partially an autobiography of how and why she came to be a feminist- from her awkward adolescence through to the present day. Even though I consider myself a feminist I would ordinarily avoid (like the plague) a book described as a feminist manifesto. However, this is a book about true feminism- not about misandry, or some kind of belief that women are better than men, but  about equality and fairness, and more importantly it is accessibly written and absolutely embarrass-yourself-by-laughing-out-loud-on-the-train, read-out-so-many-extracts-your-friends-won't-need-to-read-the-book hilarious.

In fact, the only reader I know that I wouldn't recommend this book to is my Nan, and that's because of the proliferation of profanity (specifically a certain Anglo-Saxon word beginning with the letter 'c' that I am quite happy to use in real life but wouldn't use in writing on the internet and certainly wouldn't use in front of my Grandparents. I once accidentally used the F word in front of them. Mortifying.) although I think she would be approving of the overall message. On a serious note, it helped me look at important issues such as abortion in a new and logical way. This book is not only brilliantly entertaining but timely and significant- for too long feminism has been discussed either in serious academic books that pass most of us by or in glossy magazines that perpetuate the same things that we should be resisting. Moran has helped me articulate my own beliefs.

I give this book a rating of: 9 out of 10