Tuesday, May 20, 2008

On Being a Bookworm, Part One

Books are the greatest tool of self-discovery and learning. Although the internet is always the first and last place I go for the most up-to-date feminist theory and news, I have really neglected my bibliomania lately. With the semester over, I thought I would walk myself down to the public library and read some books I have put on my mental "to-do" list ages ago.

My local public library is fantastic. Over three stories filled with the most diverse and interesting books gave me a lot to work from. Here's my book list for those interested:

  1. Refusing to Be a Man - John Stoltenberg
  2. The Beauty Myth - Naomi Wolf
  3. Pornified - Pamela Paul
  4. The Dialectic of Sex - Shulamith Firestone
  5. The Macho Paradox - Jackson Katz
  6. Scapegoat - Andrea Dworkin
  7. The Gate to Women's Country - Sheri S. Tepper

All of the above are non-fiction, except for Tepper's novel. I have read about or part of all of these books in my theory classes, but never in whole. Summer is a great time to rectify my ignorance. As I go through the books in the following weeks, I will try to post particularly striking passages and my reactions to them for the blogosphere's perusal.

Look for part two in this series soon!

5 comments:

Amelia said...

I am especially interested in The Beauty Myth. Can't wait to hear back from you!

Anonymous said...

I loved the Beauty Myth. I don't want to ruin it for you but when you get to the part about the cosmetics industry, you will laugh and be outraged at the same time. It is a "little" dated but still so relevant to how women perceive themselves and are treated by others.

Anonymous said...

Ok so now you reminded me of all the things on my very VERY long "to read" list. maybe I'll be inspired to make more time as you post!
I'll link and try to make it over here!

After years of academic reading, I fell into a pattern of indulging some silliness because I felt burnt out.

habladora said...

Wow, I haven't read any of those books, and now want to red them all (as soon as I'm done with the book I'm reading about pirates, that is). I can't wait to read your reviews.

Jenn said...

I'm starting on Pornified right now. I'm probably then going to skip right over to the Dworkin book because it's so theory-heavy, and because all of my professors shied away from assigning anything from her (probably because it's complex reading, and very radical).