This assortment of essays (1986 to 1994) assesses sexual inequality in America and demands deep structural changes for the future survival of all women and men. Chesler (Sacred Bond: The Legacy of Baby M, 1988, etc.) is on track in challenging women at a time when the feminist movement seems to have stalled. But backlash and conspiracy theories don't hold water if in fact women haven't achieved the long-sought-after gains. The essays are full of names, facts, and figures used to support her claims about overall sexual inequality, yet her extremist ravings tend to essentialize women, especially since she offers only occasional lip service to cultural differences. Throughout the essays she sharply challenges the liberal thinking of gender neutrality, but her radical perspective doesn't provide solutions to the problems she addresses, such as custody battles, domestic violence, and rape. Chesler's strongest piece examines the case of Aileen Wuornos, the female serial killer in Florida convicted and sentenced to death in 1992. According to Chesler, women are held to higher standards than men within the legal system and there consequently exists a double standard of punishment for criminal acts. In the final essay, an example of women at work for justice, Chesler visits a group of mostly lesbian feminists outside Ovett, Miss. Describing her trek to Camp Sister Spirit, Chesler tangentially critiques the overurbanization of America. Claiming there is nothing indigenous left, she carelessly uses as proof the fact that ``the Indians...are all dead and gone.'' Apparently Chesler has never traveled to any reservations or chatted with any urban Indians. This and other sloppy remarks about the state of the world diminish the points she tries desperately to make. Unfortunately, Chesler's expert testimony against patriarchy is full of rhetorical generalizations. But even those who might dismiss Chesler on grounds of political ideologuing cannot ignore the ardent analysis of critical issues buried in her radical jargon.
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 1994
ISBN: 1-56571-039-6
Page Count: 150
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 1994
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Stricter than, say, Bergen Evans or W3 ("disinterested" means impartial — period), Strunk is in the last analysis...
Privately published by Strunk of Cornell in 1918 and revised by his student E. B. White in 1959, that "little book" is back again with more White updatings.
Stricter than, say, Bergen Evans or W3 ("disinterested" means impartial — period), Strunk is in the last analysis (whoops — "A bankrupt expression") a unique guide (which means "without like or equal").Pub Date: May 15, 1972
ISBN: 0205632645
Page Count: 105
Publisher: Macmillan
Review Posted Online: Oct. 28, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 1972
This is not the Nutcracker sweet, as passed on by Tchaikovsky and Marius Petipa. No, this is the original Hoffmann tale of 1816, in which the froth of Christmas revelry occasionally parts to let the dark underside of childhood fantasies and fears peek through. The boundaries between dream and reality fade, just as Godfather Drosselmeier, the Nutcracker's creator, is seen as alternately sinister and jolly. And Italian artist Roberto Innocenti gives an errily realistic air to Marie's dreams, in richly detailed illustrations touched by a mysterious light. A beautiful version of this classic tale, which will captivate adults and children alike. (Nutcracker; $35.00; Oct. 28, 1996; 136 pp.; 0-15-100227-4)
Pub Date: Oct. 28, 1996
ISBN: 0-15-100227-4
Page Count: 136
Publisher: Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1996
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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