First published in 1996, Virginia Trioli’s feminist manifesto, Generation F, answered two defining moments of the zeitgeist. When two young women from Ormond College, and the University of Melbourne, decided to take their sexual harassment complaints about a staff member to the police, renowned Australian feminist and author, Helen Garner, responded controversially with her non-fiction book, The First Stone. Trioli’s book was a response to a response, a way to call out the culture that permeated sexual harassment law at the time and answer the question of whether women should use the laws the feminist movement had fought so hard for.

Nearly 25 years on, with only a new preface and conclusion, many aspects of this book still ring alarmingly true for young women attempting to make their way in the world. Trioli carefully considers sexual harassment, violence, the workplace and the law, presenting arguments along the way for why women should no longer be expected to ‘just cop it’.

In the #MeToo context, Generation F breathes new life into its pages, creating an unnerving read that makes the reader wonder how far we really have come after all. This is an intriguing and short read for those hoping to deepen their understanding of feminism and the law.

Reviewed by Erin Christie