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Trick Mirror
- Reflections on Self-Delusion
- Narrated by: Jia Tolentino
- Length: 9 hrs and 45 mins
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Trick Mirror
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Summary
A Times book of the year
A Guardian book of the year
We are living in the era of the self, in an era of malleable truth and widespread personal and political delusion. In these nine interlinked essays, Jia Tolentino, the New Yorker’s brightest young talent, explores her own coming of age in this warped and confusing landscape.
From the rise of the internet to her own appearance on an early reality TV show; from her experiences of ecstasy – both religious and chemical – to her uneasy engagement with our culture’s endless drive towards ‘self-optimisation’; from the phenomenon of the successful American scammer to her generation’s obsession with extravagant weddings, Jia Tolentino writes with style, humour and a fierce clarity about these strangest of times.
Following in the footsteps of American luminaries such as Susan Sontag, Joan Didion and Rebecca Solnit, yet with a voice and vision all her own, Jia Tolentino writes with a rare gift for elucidating nuance and complexity, coupled with a disarming warmth. This debut collection of her essays announces her exactly the sort of voice we need to hear from right now – and for many years to come.
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Critic reviews
"A whip-smart, challenging book. It filled me with hope." (Zadie Smith)
"Jia Tolentino is the best young essayist at work in the United States, one I’ve consistently admired and learned from. All through the book, single sentences flash like lightning to show something familiar in a startling way, but she also builds extended arguments with her usual, unusual blend of lyricism and scepticism, and in the end, we have a picture of America that was as missing as it was needed." (Rebecca Solnit)
"Magnificent." (The Times)
What listeners say about Trick Mirror
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- LAUREN
- 30-08-19
Astounding, relatable, impeccably composed
Some of Tolentono's phrasing left me breathless and whispering 'yes' on the train. Her ability to delve down into seemingly trivial facets of contemporary western culture and emrge with salient points that strike the heart of the matter every single time is unmatched among other essayists I have read. Loved this Audiobook from start to finish. For anyone who has ever felt torn between feelings cynicism and seduction towards ubiquitous 21st century manifestations of phenomena like self-optimisation, marriage, feminism, religion and spirituality, drug-induced euphoria... And bloody expensive leggings. Bravo Jia.
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2 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Lia Ferreira
- 10-11-20
Bright! Felt like sharing it with everyone.
Bright! Felt like sharing it with everyone. Great analysis on societal and patriarchal norms.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- G.Sinister
- 18-12-19
Enjoyable
I recommend this book to everyone. A very enjoyable and thought provoking listen. Thank you!
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- peixeespada
- 07-10-19
A modern masterpiece
I found this audiobook to be a modern masterpiece of courageous and compelling cultural critique.
Essential reading for 21st century humans. Classy and compassionate work by Jia.
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2 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Paulo
- 01-11-19
Insightful and thought provoking
A great listen on interesting and current topics. Would definitely be recommending to a friend.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- C. Dow
- 25-02-21
not the only one deluded
jia tolentino is fast becoming one of my favourite writers. articulates beautifully many of my own observations and discomfort as a women in the tech-heavy 21st century.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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- Lucy Morris
- 20-03-21
So much food for thought...
So relevant and astounding depth. I thought the audiobook was narrated a little fast but it was ok once I got used to it. I feel like buying the book and absorbing everything again.
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- MeganS
- 31-05-21
Insightful
Loved every minute of this. I’ve read a lot of similar books but because this was rooted in Tolentino’s personal experiences, for example her university life, it felt fresh and insightful.
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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- Catriona Ferris
- 28-04-20
Some excellent essays, some hard going
I found some of the essays excellent (the one on marriage at the end particularly good) but some of the rest were a bit hard going and more about her than an essay on feminist issues.
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Overall2 out of 5 stars
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- Peter Braga
- 23-12-20
Well Read, Poorly Written
Jia Tolentino reads her book well.
I take issue with her essays: they amount to reflections on self-obsession.
If you buy the stereotype that millennials (of which I am one) are spoiled, self-entitled, and vapid, then Jia Tolentino's essays exemplify this idea.
I guess it's in the title, “Reflections on Self-Delusion.” She's reflecting on things she once told or continues to tell herself.
Ultimately, I over-hyped myself. I so wanted her writing to be good. I heard people comparing her with Susan Sontag. But Tolentino concerns herself mostly with navel-gazing, and not the cultural and social cornerstones that Sontag chose to grapple with.
A major disappointment.
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2 people found this helpful