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Biography & Autobiography. Sociology. Nonfiction. HTML:Universally acclaimed, rapturously reviewed, winner of the National Book Critics Circle Award for autobiography, and an instant New York Times bestseller, Chanel Miller's breathtaking memoir "gives readers the privilege of knowing her not just as Emily Doe, but as Chanel Miller the writer, the artist, the survivor, the fighter." (The Wrap). "I opened Know My Name with the intention to bear witness to the story of a survivor. Instead, I found myself falling into the hands of one of the great writers and thinkers of our time. Chanel Miller is a philosopher, a cultural critic, a deep observer, a writer's writer, a true artist. I could not put this phenomenal book down." â??Glennon Doyle, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Love Warrior and Untamed "Know My Name is a gut-punch, and in the end, somehow, also blessedly hopeful." â??Washington Post She was known to the world as Emily Doe when she stunned millions with a letter. Brock Turner had been sentenced to just six months in county jail after he was found sexually assaulting her on Stanford's campus. Her victim impact statement was posted on BuzzFeed, where it instantly went viralâ??viewed by eleven million people within four days, it was translated globally and read on the floor of Congress; it inspired changes in California law and the recall of the judge in the case. Thousands wrote to say that she had given them the courage to share their own experiences of assault for the first time. Now she reclaims her identity to tell her story of trauma, transcendence, and the power of words. It was the perfect case, in many waysâ??there were eyewitnesses, Turner ran away, physical evidence was immediately secured. But her struggles with isolation and shame during the aftermath and the trial reveal the oppression victims face in even the best-case scenarios. Her story illuminates a culture biased to protect perpetrators, indicts a criminal justice system designed to fail the most vulnerable, and, ultimately, shines with the courage required to move through suffering and live a full and beautiful life. Know My Name will forever transform the way we think about sexual assault, challenging our beliefs about what is acceptable and speaking truth to the tumultuous reality of healing. It also introduces readers to an extraordinary writer, one whose words have already changed our world. Entwining pain, resilience, and humor, this memoir will stand as a modern classic. Chosen as a BEST BOOK OF 2019 by The New York Times Book Review, The Washington Post, TIME, Elle, Glamour, Parade, Chicago Tribune, Baltimore Sun, B… (more)
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This is one of the most intense and emotional books I have ever read. Miller writes with a strong, authentic voice and doesn’t mince words. She begins by describing her experience waking up on a gurney after the assault, her body’s condition, and the gradual realization of what happened to her. This is horrific and difficult reading, made even more so by Miller’s candor about the impact of this traumatic event on her mental and emotional health and her relationships with important people in her life.
While reading this memoir, I was compelled to keep going, but the emotional impact was palpable. I had to force myself to take breaks, reading smaller segments in order not to be overwhelmed. That this happened to me, a reader with no personal connections or experience, says a lot about what it must have been like for Miller, and what it must be like for any victim of sexual assault.
In the latter part of the book, Miller turns her attention to more recent cases of sexual assault involving high-powered public figures like Harvey Weinstein and the 45th President of the United States. She describes the evolution of public discourse and opinion, and her hopes for the future. It’s worth noting that Miller has twice been recognized as one of Glamour’s women of the year: first in 2016, as Emily Doe, and again in 2019 as herself. I suspect we haven’t seen the last of Chanel Miller, and hope she continues to be a voice for change.
In luminous and crystalline prose, Chanel Miller proudly reclaims her identity, while admitting that
For anyone interested in the court system and how it struggles to protect victims, for anyone brave enough to share Ms. Miller's pain for a while, this book is highly recommended.
“My pain was never more valuable than his potential.”
Chanel Miller, at age 22, was sexually assaulted, while attending a college frat party, at Stanford University.
She woke up in the hospital, having no idea what had happened. She became Emily Doe. Her attacker was Brock Turner, a star swimming athlete, at the school. He was revered. She was scorned.
This memoir is Miller's attempt to reclaim her identity and tell her story, which was sparked by her victim impact statement, that she stated in court. These strong, heart-rending words, quickly caught fire, online and she was universally admired for her courage and tenacity.
I saw Miller being interviewed on 60 Minutes, a few months back and was impressed at the way she presented herself. Her writing is no different. She is a natural. Not an easy read. The reader will be disturbed and infuriated, in equal measures, but the triumph of this story wins out. Her timing is perfect too, with the Weinsteins, and Cosbys of the world, finally paying a price for decades of abuse.
This is
Miller is a good (not great, but good) writer and makes many good choices here. All that said she is very young with very little life experience. Her broad overly confident indictments of the justice system and higher education's response to sexual assault on campus are occassionally tin eared and nearly always display a lack of foundational knowledge. I do not question her statements as they apply to her case. Objectively, the judge was a privileged white man who used his power to protect privileged white males. Objectively, Stanford mucked up their response in this case. But. As a lawyer who now codirects a program at a large universty's law school, I can tell you that protecting our students and providing support to victims and censure to perpetrators is something we work very hard to do right. We so because we care deeply about our students and all people who visit our campuses. This is our community, and making it a place of humanity, of equality, of respect is paramount. This is not because we fear legal consequences (though we are and must be mindful of those) but because we believe in these fundamental principles. I would be shocked to learn this was any less true at Stanford than at the school where I am employed. Miller's account of her experience can help us all be better, but her cultural commentary sometimes ends up being pat "Karen on Facebook" answers to complex problems. These sorts of pronouncments often lead to empty changes meant to placate rather then remedy. She attributes motivations to people with no information and makes pronouncements about how things should be that ignore the very purposes of the legal system and the realities of a university campus. Her attack on the rights of defendants is simply incorrect. Our Constitution is there to protect individuals in their dealings with the government, not to protect victims from non-government perpetrators. I am not saying victims should not find support granted by law, but low taxes do away with those sorts of services that do not stem from Constitutional guarantees. Protections for defendants come from the Constituition, and though budget cuts shave those protections very close, the states cannot (and should not) ignore them. They are the foundation of liberty.
Though imperfect this is an unquestionably good book, it should be mandatory reading for freshmen and again, I am grateful to and in awe of Chanel Miller.
Near the end of the book she details a dispute with Stanford over a proposed plaque in a garden that
She points our all the faults with our system, the victim shaming, the problem with the courts and society’s opinions, and the acceptance of men’s poor behavior, decisions, and sexual assault. Call it what it is-assault, and make them take responsibility.
Thank God for the two Swedes, thank God for Chanel Miller, and for all those who support her every day.
#KnowMyName #ChanelMille
Chanel reads the audiobook herself, which made listening to it just that much more heartbreaking and personal. Before I started, I wondered how she could get a whole book out of what happened – I was thinking there would maybe be enough material for a long magazine article. Boy, was I wrong. I was truly stunned by the amount of time she had to take out of her life to prepare for trial. It took over three years. During that time, she was also dealing with the trauma of the rape itself. There was no way she could hold down a job. I found myself wondering how any victim carries through with a rape trial – it takes a lot of time and energy.
One thing that surprised me was that Chanel became an amateur stand-up comedian as part of her healing journey. I looked for a clip online but I couldn’t find one – I’m really interested in seeing her act. I wonder if she’s still performing. I did watch a clip of her being interviewed by Trevor Noah on The Daily Show and was impressed with her sense of humor.
Chanel does a great job of pointing out how prevalent rape culture is. For instance, the focus of most “unbiased” news articles was on how Turner’s life would be impacted and wasn’t it a shame. Very little was about the impact on Chanel’s life. And Turner’s father said something like, “Brock shouldn’t be punished for the rest of his life for 20 minutes.” That made my stomach turn. No wonder Turner was so entitled as to think he could have his way with someone just because she was passed out.
Know My Name is an unflinchingly honest, important memoir. Highly recommended.
Content warning for graphic depictions of sexual assault
This book is amazing, and I wish it didn't exist. It makes me angry and sad and furious. It makes me scream in injustice and break down in tears.
As women we carry around the possibility of sexual assault our
Chanel Miller speaks about her own reality with startling honesty and compassionate detail about the horror and humiliation of what happened to her. She speaks about her life before Brock Turner assaulted her unconscious body outside of a Stanford frat party. She speaks about waking up in the hospital not knowing what had happened. No one really explaining why she was there. One officer saying they thought she might have been assaulted but it could turn out to be nothing.
It was not nothing.
This book was always going to be important but what makes it stand out is how skilled Chanel is as a writer. How in the midst of a book about sexual assault she places her own story in the centre. She is not just a body. She is not just a victim. She is a protective big sister, a funny stand up, an artist, a foster mom to aging dogs, she is so many more things that got lost or ignored in the wake of her assault when she became Brock Turner's victim, Brock Turner's accuser not a person in her own right but only how she relates to him and his actions. His future.
Over the course of the book, she becomes an advocate. First for herself and then for other survivors. I listened to this on audiobook and at fifteen hours it is long. Chanel has a slow way of talking that draws out the content longer than another narrator might have but to hear her own words in her own voice was an important and brave decision.
A book I would recommend everyone to read.
The fact that she reads the audiobook has authenticity of course, but I did not enjoy her voice. Not many of us do have voices that are a pleasure to listen to through the length
Some parts a bit choppy written
Everyone should read her Victim Impact Statement. I would make it required reading in high schools.
As I read the reviews posted below, I wonder how many men have read/will read this book. Ideally man would and thus develop a deeper understanding of life as a woman subjected to sexual violence. Am I asking for the impossible?