Praise For All THe Lives I WAnt:
"Finely wrought . . . Massey is best when she pinpoints the particular viscousness of living under patriarchy."
—New York Times Book Review
"Together the chapters add up to more than a lived trajectory: They are an argument for girls' complicated selfhood and underrated power, an examination of the ways in which female celebrities have been misrepresented and reclaimed... Massey seems to aspire to a kind of complicated soulfulness. Her prose is measured and cool."—Slate.com
"Massey engages lovingly but thoughtfully with the lives and work of her subjects, and she offers herself the same even-handed treatment. As she writes her own feminist canon, she insists on the veracity and value of her own presence and voice: Courtney Love and the Olsen twins and Britney Spears, imperfect and compelling, belong in books-which means that Alana Massey does, too."
—New Republic
"Searingly insightful reminders of shared experience-- humor-filled rafts of humanity in a sea of contemporary TMZ and Trump-fueled despair. Massey's prose captures barely perceptible nuances of feeling we have all felt and holds them up to hilarious effect--all while discussing Daily Mail headlines and Gwyneth Paltrow's kids' multilingual tutors."—VICE
"Though Massey discusses celebrities she doesn't personally know, she writes about them with intimacy, drawing connections between their lives and her own... this book reminds readers how celebrities' seemingly dazzling lives can provide insight into their own."
—Publisher's Weekly
"Alana Massey is rightfully hailed as one of the sharpest voices today. When she's writing about women and pop culture, there's no one I'd rather read."—New York Observer
"For those who have fantasized about being BFFs with all their favorite celebrities, you have to read Alana Massey's incredibly smart book analyzing the way society lifts and destroys famous women."
—Cosmopolitan
"At times funny and refreshing, other times honest to the point of cruelty, but always genuine in her words, Massey's prose drips with passion and flare... A collection that celebrates and critiques the lives of everyone from Britney Spears to Courtney Love to Massey herself, ALL THE LIVES I WANT is a sharp, insightful, and hypnotizing debut..."—Bustle.com
"A beautifully articulated, personal collection of cultural criticisms . . . All The Lives I Want is the book we want to be dissecting with all our girlfriends in the months to come."—Refinery29.com
"Massey's collection of essays strikes a nerve with her poignant and grittier form of celebrity worship... enlightening and powerful."
—Library Journal
"Massey traverses the corners of the internet that are home to Plath-esque female melancholy, resuscitating girlishness and female pain as objects worthy of study in their own right. She reminds us that girls' expansive documentation of their own vulnerability is fundamentally a project of making meaning of their (our) lives. She insists we bear witness."—Feministing.com
"... a smart, well-curated look at the reality of celebrity womanhood and the burdens we create when we expect so much of our idols....We admire not just what they symbolize, but that they can be symbols at all, that they have the capacity to become something more than what they actually are..." – Bitch Magazine
"Massey bridges the gap from Sylvia Plath to Amber Rose, and all the high- and lowbrow female celebrities in between with her deeply contemporary voice and sense of humor." – The Week
"Massey’s meditation on our cultural fascination with the iconic, prematurely deceased writer is a standout of her upcoming collection, in which she probes the lives of famous and infamous women and incorporates her own experiences to arrive at sharp insights on celebrity fascination..." – Huffington Post