Know My Name

The story that the whole world knows is finally being spoken from the victims side of the story, the most important side of the story. Chanel Miller is a survivor but also a hero, I cant imagine how many lives she will save with her words in this book and in her statement.

Dont click on the one star reviews for this book if you don't want to lose hope in humanity. Just a bunch of trump supports and Brock turner supporters wetting themselves over the fact that the victim has an opinion and a voice.

A harrowing account of the trauma and injustice faced by Chanel Miller not only in the criminal court, but also in the public arena, even in anonymity.

It also brings to light the unfair burden of evidence and effort required to get a shred of justice and closure - thus forcing survivors to relive the assault for an extended amount of time.

Chanel also highlights how victims have their qualities be put under the magnifying glass by defendants, almost insinuating that they were ‘asking for it' or deserved what happened.

The only criticism was that the back quarter of the book felt a little meandering/filler-y for my taste, but that in no way takes away from the gravity and value of Chanel's account.

A gut-wrenching, timely, f*cking beautiful memoir. A new fierce icon. ♥️

“When I listened to her, I understood: You have to hold out to see how your life unfolds, because it is most likely to be beyond what you can imagine. It is not a question of if you will survive this, but what beautiful things await you when you do.”

“This book does not have a happy ending. The happy part is there is no ending, because I'll always find a way to keep going.”

Chanel is extremely eloquent and a beautiful writer. I have a lot of respect and admiration for her, and will look forward to her future works.

I did have technical issues with the book. This may have been intentional, but things got pedantic in the last few chapters. While I thoroughly enjoyed how she weaved in her memoir, I was not convinced by the events she described which didn't personally happen to her. I get how they affected her, but it came off as too much of a push to align with her views and statements.

She did dot the book with meaningful quotes, which made me stop reading to take a breather - just as much as the traumatic events did. The maturity in her voice is impactful, and I'd consider this to be one of my top reads.

One sentence synopsis... A memoir by Chanel Miller reflecting on the devastating aftermath of her sexual assault and the subsequent court proceedings. .

Read it if you liked... Miller's succinct and gut-punching Victim Statement (which was published by Buzzfeed anonymously during the trial). All the poise and strength suggested in her statement are given room to breathe in this full length memoir. .

Further reading... ‘Not That Bad' by Roxanne Gay, ‘Asking For It' by Kate Harding, ‘Speaking Truth To Power' by Anita Hill

an absolute must-read memoir. it's raw, honest, and beautifully written. chanel miller takes you on her incredible journey, shining a much-needed light on important issues. i relate to this book on a multitude of levels and it is deeply personal to me. this book is truly life-changing and deserves all the praise. 

I heard the audiobook. Chanel's story read in her own words. Her voice breaking in places where she struggled to maintain composure. I felt sad, angry, violent. I admired her strength and self-awareness in the face of a society that stripped her of her privacy, her dignity and even tried to strip her of her words. What I didn't feel at any point of reading this book somehow, to my surprise, was helplessness. Even when I was bawling, my t-shirt soaked with my tears and mucus, I drew strength from her words. Because words are powerful and Chanel's story moves you, not only because of its dark, poignant nature but also because her writing is spectacular.

Read this book, even if it triggers you. Know her name, because she's so many of us.

Easy 5 stars and should be required reading. Chanel Miller is an excellent author and unflinchingly confronted and examined her rape and everything that happened after. I thought I knew a decent amount about how sexual assaults are handled by the police and the judicial system, but having to listen to Chanel navigate the entire process from start to finish brought out so many details that I have never thought about. People wonder why women and men don't report their sexual assaults, well, read this book and you will understand exactly why.

This book is centered on Chanel's particular case and experience, but unfortunately, her situation is not unique which means there are many takeaways on how we can apply the knowledge that we gained from this memoir to our own lives and how we approach the topics of rape, sexual assault, consent, victims, survivors, and the laws surrounding these issues.

“Most people say developing is linear, but for survivors it is cyclic. People grow up, victims grow around; we strengthen around the place that hurt, become older and fuller, but the vulnerable core is never gone.”

TRIGGER WARNING: sexual assault

There are no words to describe how this made me feel. It's not something you can go into lightly and as a survivor, this brought up a lot of emotions for me.

We are living in a world that is conditioned to protect abusers and rapists. Why is it that the first thought when someone speaks out about their assault is that they're lying? Why is it that the majority care more about how the rapist's life is affected than the victims?

Why is it always, what were you wearing? Did you provoke him? Why were you drinking? Why were you out alone? Rather than ask the questions you should be?

Why did he think it was okay to lay his hands on them? What gave him the right to decide what they do or don't consent to? What is it about a person drinking or having fun or wearing an outfit that might show a bit of skin that gives him the right to say, I am owed something from this?

There is power and strength in talking about subjects that society has led many of us to believe Taboo. There is power and strength in coming together as a community to heal and support one another as victims.

One of the most heartbreaking things about this book is the reminder that it isn't a work of fiction, not for Chanel, not for myself and not for the hundreds of millions of people across the world.

Chanel handled this with such grace and there are no words to describe how empowering and utterly phenomenal this memoir is, not just for me, but for many victims and supporters alike.

As heavy as this was, I am so grateful that I took the time to read it. This is extremely special to me.

Thank you, Chanel, for being our voice and for continuing to elevate others.

honestly my review of this book is less about the quality of the text/content more like my friend recommended it to me and said it wasn't really about what happened but then i listened to it and was like ??? it's only about what happened, and what happened after what happened, which is actually part of what happened don't you see??

i started screaming and having nightmares for months after reading this (i think i read several books on the same subject around the same time). thanks for sharing your story, i am so, so, sorry this happened. unfortunately reading this, for me, was a (self-inflicted) punishment. IYKYK i suppose ♥️

What a book. If the name is unfamiliar, Chanel Miller is the woman who was assaulted by Brock Turner behind a dumpster a few years ago- an assault his father disregarded in court as “20 minutes of action”, something I had actively repressed until it came up in this book. The memoir deals with Chanel's life before and, mostly, after this event and how the assault and the media attention affected her.

The sad reality is that many of the people who need to read this book the most- that is, the people who villainized her or defended Turner- will never read it. Regardless, it's an absolutely haunting, infuriating, and enlightening read. I think many women who have experienced similiar will find this book validating and/or inspiring and Chanel states that's the main reason she wrote it. I also think many men could gain some insight from this book about how women are treated regarding sexual assault. The way that Chanel was treated during the trial made my blood boil.

The way she describes events or the way she was feeling was so powerful. If I wasn't listening on audio, I would have stopped many times to write down some poignant quote or another. My only negative for this book was the length/pacing. The stuff dealing directly with her case was mostly paced well, but she started delving into things like Trump's presidency and police violence against black men. While a tangible point could be made with this, it felt out of place and more like someone just shouting “And another thing!!” at the end of their argument. Still a book I would strongly recommend to anybody.

"Each time a survivor resurfaced, people were quick to say what does she want, why did it take her so long, why now, why not then, why not faster. But damage does not stick to deadlines. If she emerges, why don't we ask her how it was possible she lived with that hurt for so long, ask who taught her to never uncover it."

this was a very emotional read for me. as a victim, there have been times where trauma is minimized and internalized, and chanel very eloquently described these deep-seated emotions that are hard to express. i am forever thankful for this book, for giving survivors a voice and validating the injustices they face. thank you chanel, i am so grateful for your courage <3

The experience of reading this memoir by Chanel Miller is extremely emotional. I found myself feeling angry at a flawed justice system, disappointed in a judgmental society that seeks to blame the victim, heartbroken over the pain and suffering Chanel and her family endured, and disgust at the lack of accountability placed on the rapist. Ms. Miller's account of her experience as Emily Doe, the victim of a sexual assault while unconscious, is very raw and revealing. It allows us to see her side of the story finally.

This book is not easy to read because it makes the reader feel uncomfortable emotions. But any book that is going to have an impact most likely needs to make us uncomfortable. My only complaint about the book is that some sections could have been better edited to eliminate some repetitiveness.