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This is an excellent book on the physiology of the female body. Angier, a well known science writer exposes the world of biology; each chapter explores a different part of the female body from its Darwinian origins to its purpose to some "mutations" as it were of that particular part of the body. Angier's witty voice and stunning prose keeps the reader interested throughout the book.
The book concentrates on how biology (along with many other subjects) looks at the male body as the norm rather than a more gendered look at both male and female biology. While many have dismissed the book as a feminist tirade, the clear transmission of science and the stunning way in which the body is presented makes this read well worthwhile. Angier dispels several common stereotypes about the female body and fully explains the reasons for these stereotypes and the reality. There are also some fascinating case studies of more unusual women and the way they have dealt with the difference in their bodies from other women.
Angier also displays some intelligent writing on the various myths coming out about differences between females and male, she attacks evolutionary psychology primarily for its view of women as monogamous and men as polygamous.
This is the best non-fiction book I have read in awhile and I would highly recommend it to females and males alike.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book, possibly the best fiction book I've ever read. Possibly, as I can't think of them all right now, but it definitely rates near the top. The way Tartt manages to weave together so many different themes and still make this book a highly enjoyable read speaks volumes about her talent as a writer.
The story is told by Richard, arriving at Hampden College; a rich upper class university in New England. Richard arrives at this school hoping to be accepted into Greek which he had already begun to learn. What transpires is the Greek professor, Julian Morrow, convincing him to drop all of his other courses (except French) and give himself fully over to the Classics. Richard finds himself in the midst of a sort of clique of strange, mildly friendly Greek-studying students. All of the students have strong characters built up by Tartt throughout the book. I won't try to describe them now, except to say that they all serve a part in this exceptional thriller or tale of misguided rich kids.
Richard finds himself invited into the group and is confused and fascinated by the students everyone else regards as slightly strange. He soon realises though that something is wrong. Thus, the plot thickens.
The story is extraordinarily told, drawing on Greek tragedy enveloped with Ancient Greek practices as well as drinking, jealousy and pressure. Tartt beckons the reader into the seemingly complex cycle of events and you are led not so much by what she says but what she suggests.
I would highly recommend this book to anyone.
According to Amazon, this astonishing book was originally written as Millett's doctoral thesis in 1968 and is now widely regarded as a feminist classic. The book looks at American literature including works by D.H. Lawrence, Henry Miller, Norman Mailer, John Stewart Mill and Jean Genet. Millett examines in depth the structures and values in the literature and the passages she quotes from each text are truly telling of the argument she puts across. The critique and analysis she provides is amazing and its in-depth look at the politics of sex is supported by the provided literature. While the reader can be stunned at these analyses, we can also see hope in the incredibly telling writings of Jean Genet.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book, it wasn't the easiest read in the world and more or less put me off at least Henry Miller's books for a good while, but at the same time it was incredibly thought-provoking of an area that has largely been overlooked as influencing public opinion of gender relations and sex.
The book also provided an interesting look at gender relations under the law of coverture in the Western world with excerpts from Blackstone's Commentaries - the foremost legal writings of the time included. It also took a look at sexual politics in Nazi Germany and Soviet Russia among others. This part of the book was so interesting I almost changed the topic of an essay plan in fascination over it. But I will leave the eager reader to devour its brilliant contents.
As well as this, there was an entire chapter on Freud, psychoanalysis and general beliefs about women's psychology. The social pretension of the concept of "penis envy" is displayed in what is remarkable from a book of the time, when these beliefs about psychology were still so prevalent.
A stellar read I would recommend to anyone and everyone.
This romantic fiction book offers a unique take on the concept of time travel. The book follows Henry as he travels through time and appears, disappears and reappears in Clare's life. His age is ever-changing throughout the book and Clare is forever skirting around what is his past, his future and his present. The reader is left like Clare, wondering where in Henry's life we are entering every time he reappears.
This extremely popular book was all a little too perfect for my tastes. Romantic, perfect and with an interesting twist and a purely confusing chronology; it entices the reader in. Despite all this, the character development leaves a little to be desired. The book also develops very well though, despite the fact we are taken from year to year, from seeing Clare as a young child to a grown woman. The whole concept of waiting for a man for that long sort of annoyed me, especially because Clare never seemed to question her own state of affairs. We also never hear enough about Henry's past, although we definitely know it is troubled. One would imagine that disappearing at random intervals only to appear unexpectedly again would create difficulties to say the least.
So it was mainly the plot and the design of the various intervals that seemed too "perfect" to me and because of the lack of character development inherent in the plot, it was also too easy to believe. A good book overall but it didn't ring true in my mind.
This dystopic novel follows the life of Snowman (previously Jimmy, seemingly one of the few humans alive who watches over the Children of Crake after a virus has completely destroyed the human population. Along with pieces of humour (New York is now New New York)and the makings of a cautionary story, the book critiques a world which has let itself die out through the vast hopelessness of human nature.
The book follows Snowman as he watches the Children of Crake and reflects on how things came to be this way. Crake was a childhood friend who dreamed of making the world a better place. He was incredibly intelligent and knew it and Snowman reflects on how Crake came to design his perfect race after watching what he sees as the dismal parts of humanity. His "children" have no sex drive except to pro-create and do not eat animals. He also works for a company who makes a whole array of strange and futuristic animals. Oryx, seemingly the love of Snowman's life is a woman who comes from a third world country after being sold as a slave by a desperately poverty-stricken mother. Her open acceptance of her previous life and lack of regret or anger confuse Snowman throughout the book.
I didn't enjoy this book as much as a lot of Atwood's other books. It is similar to many of them in its dystopic element and its critique of humanity and it is told successfully though Snowman's eyes. However, it did not have the same prose I loved so much in several of Atwood's other books. A decent read with a stunning message though.
This famous book spans over one hundred years and the generations of the Buendia family living in a jungle settlement in Colombia. A family tree at the beginning of the book helps the reader to keep track of the many almost-same-named characters and who they are in the scale of things. The Buendias appear from the beginning to have a rich history and the beginning of the book tells of how the (fictional) settlement of Macondo came to be.
The book also has a sort of magical view of time. The family is cyclical in operation. Indeed it seems that many people with the same names have similar attitudes and often similar fates. This appears to be Marquez's way of showing the destiny given to people by their very birth and this is highlighted by the demise of the many sons of Colonel Aureliano Buendia only after they are brought together in the discovery of their common father.
Many of the characters in this book, especially the male ones undergo periods of great despair and speculation and all the male characters starting with the patriarch Jose Arcadio Buendia seek out solitude in their different ways throughout periods of their lives. The women in the book are also given interesting characters, in particular Jose's wife who lives almost to the end of the book and who delivers some of the memorable dialogue about the fate of the family that comes through at the end. The women seem to be firm in their wants and desires unlike the men who almost seem to let emotion dictate their every move a little too much.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It is full of blackish humour which perpetuates until the very end. I think it's a must-read for everyone.
This novella tells the story of two men travelling around together, trying to find a job and to save up enough money to buy their own house. The backdrop of the story is the depression of the 1930s. George is a careful man determined to make a living and to be (eventually) his own employer. His friend, Lennie is a mentally handicapped and exceptionally strong man who sees the eventuality of his own place as a chance to have his own rabbits and to tend for them in his own way.
The book is written with extreme clarity about a time that was difficult for people all over the world. The understanding one gains of the characters from early on creates a new perception of the two characters and more so the protective instinct they hold towards one another travelling around California.
The dreams come tumbling down when the story is complicated by Lennie's skewed perception of his own strength and the story is left with the reader and with George who can see in the future a life of loneliness without Lennie and without self-employment. The experience mirrors that of many during this time - utter despair.
I would recommend this book to anyone, it is a relatively easy read and a clear picture of parts of the 20th century.
