Elaine Welteroth’s book More Than Enough was published in 2019 but I discovered it (and her) recently as part of my quest to read more widely about the facets of identity I wrote about in my book, and to learn from women with different backgrounds and perspectives than my own.

First off, I must confess that I have never picked up a copy of Teen Vogue, and it was not on my radar at all when I was a teenager. As a New Zealander my go to’s were Girlfriend and Dolly magazines - I even got my picture in Girlfriend once when I was at the very front of the audience for Smokefree Rockquest.

No, I was much older than a teenager when Teen Vogue first came to my attention, and I remember it clearly because it was during the pandemic.

Teen Vogue found a whole new audience during this time, far beyond its appeal as a fashion magazine. Its regular online articles and Facebook posts leaned into social justice and political commentary on public health inequities, racial disparities in COVID outcomes, and critiques of capitalism and government inaction. Through a Gen Z lens, Teen Vogue gave readers not only beauty tips for Zoom life but also sharp commentary on Medicare for All, economic injustice, and voter mobilization.

What set Teen Vogue apart was how naturally it linked the pandemic to broader systems of inequality. It wasn’t just reporting on COVID; it was contextualising it within the lived realities of young people - especially marginalised ones - and encouraging political awareness and action. While some critics dismissed its activist tone, others praised its ability to meet teens and young adults where they were: online, anxious, angry, and hungry for something more honest than mainstream news was offering.

I also really really like their articles like this one on the anatomy of the penis that share factual information that so many of our teenagers cannot get from their parents or school. There was stuff in here that even I didn’t know! I sent it to my daughter and she was like, ew, but read the whole thing.

This was all the context I had when I started reading, although by the end of the book I learned that while Elaine Welteroth was a big part of the magazine’s activist approach, she had actually moved on before covid hit.

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This book was exactly what I wanted: an insight into the life and identity of someone completely different than me. Although we did have something in common as well. I was delighted that Welteroth copped to having made her “bad” school choice because of a boy. She could have created a whole narrative around why she chose that school, but she was honest and I appreciate that. I made a lot of life choices because of boys I didn’t love myself enough between the ages of 15 and 23 yesterday that I wouldn’t necessarily stand behind now; it’s nice to see a successful woman acknowledging that there were some major bumps along the road.

Welteroth introduced me to the concept of “F.O.D.”

Shonda Rhimes first talked publicly about being a “First. Only. Different.” in her 2014 book Year of Yes.

In the book, she reflects on how being the first Black woman (or the only woman, or the only person of color) in many professional spaces shaped her identity and experience in Hollywood. The F.O.D. concept captures the feeling of being hyper-visible, expected to represent an entire group, and often under extra scrutiny.

"No matter how much you try to blend in, your race walks into every room before you do." - Elaine Welteroth

Success = opportunities + talent

So many rich white people get incredible opportunities and never make anything of them. And so many people have incredible talent but never get the opportunity to shine where it counts.

Elaine Welteroth came from a very ordinary background, with a couple of good connections. But damn, the girl knew what to do when it counted!

As soon as I heard everyone start shouting, "Talib, Talib!!" I cut through the crowd like a hot knife through butter. I walked right up to my subject, introduced myself, and calmly, without skipping a beat, whipped my head around to my crew and said, "Let's go." Lights. Camera. Action. I asked my questions in a conversational manner, as if the cameras weren't there, and as we closed out, Talib shook my hand and said, "Good to meet you."

AS AN INTERN. 19 YEARS OLD.

The book ends with Welteroth leaving Conde Nast in 2018, but since then she has built an incredible career spanning authorship, media, and advocacy. She became a judge and producer on Project Runway, and briefly co-hosted The Talk on CBS. She created a MasterClass called Designing Your Career, sharing her insights on purpose-driven work and navigating imposter syndrome. Through her columns in The Washington Post and contributions to Time and The New York Times, she’s continued using storytelling to empower young professionals, especially women of colour.

Welteroth now has two sons, born in 2022 and 2024, so is definitely in the thick of it right now. I guarantee she is one to watch and over the next few years is going to have an incredible impact.

Do you love fashion? Was Elaine Welteroth on your radar before now?

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I loved this book.

You know the drill: if it’s showing up here, it’s one I think is worth your time.

The Bookshop Sisterhood is a story of four best friends - Celeste, Yasmeen, Toni, and Leslie - who long ago made a pact to open a bookstore together, and are now on the cusp of making that dream real. But then… life happens.

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This book is made of the stuff of midlife: parenting a sick child, relationship challenges, family secrets, mental health issues and financial changes.

Each woman comes with her own story, flaws, and dreams and none are perfect. They argue, misunderstand, drift apart, and sometimes behave badly, but come back together in a way that feels honest and real.

The themes of identity run deep: what does it mean to pursue a dream you built with your best friends when life pulls you in a different direction? Who are you when a big part of your life is creating a persona rather than being a real person? There’s no villain here—just real people facing real choices.

Absolutely anything we pursue in life can bring us back to the fundamental questions of identity: who am I, and who do I want to be?

For me, a story like this always makes me wonder: is this the norm? Do most women have a sisterhood of ride-or-die besties that survives all these life changes?

Personally, I don’t have that. In my world, it feels like everyone is too busy to commit to a book club, too stretched to prioritise anything other than kids/work/home. Don’t get me wrong, I have some dear friends, but I don’t have a girl gang the way women in these books always seem to.

Maybe that’s why I am attracted to these stories: “who I want to be” is definitely someone with a girl gang. How about you? Do you have a gang of besties, friends here and there, or something else altogether?

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(I’m pretty sure every book review I publish is going to start this way - I’m not about to share bad books with you!)

Women of Good Fortune was a cross between Ocean’s 8 and Sex in the City set in Shanghai. I really hope it gets made into a film.

Firstly, I love an ensemble cast. I will take 8 co-leads over one star any day. This book also has many other elements going for it: a heist, a wedding, a bad boy turned good, a wrong guy who might just turn out to be the perfect guy after all - it’s all here.

Underneath all that superficial rom-com stuff is a deep, deep reckoning with identity, autonomy, and the roles women are expected to play in societies shaped by patriarchy and tradition. It’s so much easier to see it when it’s not your own culture, but its just as applicable outside China.

What this book really boils down to is a feminist meditation on the costs of obedience, and the small rebellions women stage in their own lives: walking away from relationships that other people think we should be grateful for, unapologetically putting our career ambitions before domestic ones, refusing to pretend we aren’t aware of how our looks are measured and appraised at every step of our lives.

None of these women are even close to an archetypal feminist - their choices are always messy, incomplete, or compromised. But this novel doesn’t ask its characters to be perfect, and neither does feminism.

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Aside from gender, other elements of identity are woven throughout the book. How much of who we are is shaped by our parents’ expectations, by the city we’re born in, by how others see our beauty, education, or class?

What this book excels at is honing in on the tensions between who we are, who we want to be, and who the world expects us to be.

Poor People With Money was gripping from the start. Monday Wooldridge is a young woman with real problems, but no self pity. She has jobs, but they don’t define her in the least. She is a big sister, and she is a fighter: in the both the literal and the figurative sense.

Monday wants to make things happen in her life, but she gets in over her head. I didn’t want to put this book down, I was so eager to find out what would be the next consequence of her ill thought-out plan.

The other thing I enjoyed about this book is that it is by a local author and set in places that are very familiar to me. It made me realise how much more often I read British or American literature than kiwi authors. I should definitely put some more on my ‘to read’ list - any recommendations?

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I listened to the audio version of this book, which was narrated by the (male) author. At times it was a little jarring, and I forgot the protagonist was a woman, but mostly it worked well - I think the author is the only person who can truly know exactly how a phrase is meant to be said. Although I suppose that’s the beauty of a paperback - you put your own voice in there too.

Audiobooks used to always be read by voice actors but that seems to have changed. I can remember Gretchen Rubin re-recording her book The Happiness Project after her podcast became successful because her voice was so familiar to her audience that they were shocked not to hear it in the audiobook. What do you think? Do you prefer to hear the author read it themselves, or listen to a more polished performance from a voice actor?

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It is amazing how much time I can find to read when I am reading a good book.

I found Book Lovers by Emily Henry on a Goodreads Challenge (I’m a sucker for a sticker chart) and it was a light read, but well written, and very engaging. While the premise of a book about a book agent pitching a book about a book agent was a bit inception-y, it worked.

I liked the way it portrayed its female characters, particularly the protagonist Nora. There was a lot of talk about her being too obsessed with her career to have a life. I don’t want to give away too much but in the end everyone decides that the way she wants to live her life is just fine - phew!

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I love books. I love reading. I love how I feel when I skip the doomscrolling and remember to read instead. I love audiobooks in my ears when I’m walking, commuting, cooking, and pretty much anytime I can get away with not listening out for the kids. If I’m reading a particularly good book I’ll take the train instead of the bus even though it takes longer - reading on the bus gives me motion sickness.

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asynchronous

adjective

asyn·​chro·​nous (ˌ)ā-ˈsiŋ-krə-nəs -ˈsin-

1: not simultaneous or concurrent in time : not synchronous

I’d love to be part of a book club but I am also so desperately overcommitted. And I like going to bed at 8.30pm. And what if the book is bad? There are waaaaay too many books waiting in my reading pile to waste time finishing bad books.

So here’s my idea for a book club. I tell you what I’ve read, if I enjoyed it, talk about how it relates to identity, and if you ever get the time to read it, pop back to the post and we can chat about it.

And hopefully you recommend books for me to read too? Happy (asynchronous) reading!!

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