...IF THEY REALLY LOVED US.

According to this wide-ranging manifesto, it’s time for women to examine men’s leadership failures and turn the world around.

This latest book from Parsons (The Murder of the Church Secretary, 2012, etc.) argues that men had their chance to lead and they squandered it. Because they have failed, she writes, “women must accept the responsibility of pulling the whole planet back into balance and taking that role away from the aggressive, dominating barbarian male.” In addition to men, she casts scorn upon political conservatives, the American South (where she claims women cannot access birth control), New Jersey (“atrocious” for its hate groups), and Walmart, whose business she hopes declines. She encourages readers to consult books about good manners, and posits that candidates who claim to be Christians are false if they show contempt for others. In the next paragraph, however, she criticizes New Jersey’s governor for showing his “@$$” and notes “what a big @$$ it was.” On the subject of Islamic jihad, she writes that people wouldn’t have to fear it if the Middle East had jobs, freedom, hot tubs, dishwashers, and electric razors. Freedom makes sense, but hot tubs? In the book’s most self-aware sentence, the author acknowledges wandering off-topic: “What does this rant have to do with voting?” Indeed, “rant” is often a fitting term for these stream-of-consciousness writings. The author occasionally offers constructive points, as when she says that “[r]egistering to vote begins a great journey of taking part in life.” She also sprinkles in mini-biographies of famous women—including social worker Jane Addams, Pocahontas, and actress Holly Hunter. Overall, though, the writing is uneven, bouncing from Bible verses to sarcasm in an instant. Also, there are many awkward, largely unattributed photos, including one of a business-suited woman with her head in the sand and her posterior in the air. The book concludes with the author’s “LibbyCon” directory, which lists liberal and conservative activists, media personalities, politicians, and others that she deems worthy of a listen.

Occasionally pointed but often disjointed musings on politics, religion, and popular culture.