‘Red Families v. Blue Families: Legal Polarization and the Creation of Culture’ By Naomi Cahn & June Carbone

In Red Families v. Blue Families Cahn and Carbone discuss ways in which political and ideological alignment affect and reflect a person’s views on family and family formation. Interestingly, the authors point out the fact that blue families, or liberal families, are more likely to be structured in the traditional family style, with both parents in the home. Red families, or more conservative families, are more likely to result from unplanned pregnancies and eventually lead to divorce. This seems counterintuitive because liberal individuals are usually more likely to support non-traditional family styles while conservatives are more concerned with a specific type of family structure. Several factors are discussed as contributing to this phenomenon, including birth control, sex education, abortion and gay marriage.

The book ends with several suggestions from the authors for reevaluating marriage and lowering the rate of unplanned pregnancies, especially to young mothers. Though the authors are for the most part very sensitive to both groups, their ideas for reform all seem to be more likely to appeal to blue families, families that don’t need to be convinced. Suggestions including reevaluating our definition of marriage, expanding contraception availability to both adults and minors and teaching sex education in a more comprehensive way are all things that are unlikely to appeal to conservative groups, despite the fact that these suggestions are aimed at achieving a goal that is important to them: promoting stable, two-parent households.

‘Are Men Necessary?’ By Maureen Dowd

It is a question that many women ask themselves at some point. In Maureen Dowd’s book, the answer is, I think, purposefully vague. This must be for obvious reasons; women keep asking themselves this same question because there is no easy answer.

Dowd tracks many changes that have been brought about by feminism from fashion to marriage to politics. Her style is conversational and very funny even when talking about subjects that are usually not treated as a laughing matter, like sexual harassment or adultery. People who are actually looking for an answer to the title question will probably be disappointed; I don’t know whether there is an answer. But those who come in search of an interesting overview of some of feminism’s triumphs and failures will be sure to enjoy.

I love men and I think they are wonderful for friendship and companionship, but do I need a man? It’s an interesting question, because my life would obviously have been very different without men. The author uses Hilary Clinton as an example; she is successful and has a career of her own, but would she have been able to accomplish this without her husband’s prior success and subsequent public betrayal? It seems likely that her success would have been on a smaller scale. A better question seems to be whether feminism can eventually bring women to a place where they can thrive politically without introductions and support from the men in their lives.

‘Wide Sargasso Sea’ by Jean Rhys

It is hard for me to imagine how Wide Sargasso Sea would be read by a person who isn’t familiar with Jane Eyre. (It’s actually just hard for me to imagine the lives of people who haven’t read Jane Eyre, but that’s another story.) For the most part, I think Wide Sargasso Sea is very accessible to all readers, which is refreshing and unusual for a spin-off book. The book tells the story of Mr. Rochester’s first wife, the crazy woman in the attic. Jane Eyre sympathizes with Mr. Rochester; Wide Sargasso Sea is unforgiving of his treatment of his wife. For the most part I think Wide Sargasso Sea is very accessible to all readers, which is refreshing and unusual for a spin-off book. However, despite the fact that Wide Sargasso Sea stands well on its own, it is even better when the reader is able to make comparisons.

The first thing that strikes me about Wide Sargasso Sea is that the girl, Antoinette Cosway seems to be likened to Jane Eyre. They are both lonely and poor as children with very little care or attention from their parental figures. Both latch on to a kind maid for companionship. Later, both leave home to go to school where they greatly admire the women who work as teachers. This is drastically different than Mr. Rochester’s comparison of Jane and his first wife in Jane Eyre: “This young girl [Jane] who stands so grave and quiet at the mouth of hell, looking collectedly at the gambols of a demon [Antoinette]. I wanted her just as a change after that fierce ragout. Wood and Briggs, look at the difference! Compare these clear eyes with the red balls yonder- this face with that mask-this form with that bulk”. My impression after reading Jane Eyre is that the two women are very different; my impression after reading Wide Sargasso Sea is that they are very much alike.

The other thing that strikes me about the relationships between these books is the difference between the sexuality of the two women. Jane Eyre is the very essence of self-denial while Antoinette is not. Granted, there were 100 years between the two novels, but I think the contrast is significant. Are affectionate, sexual women to be feared and ostracized? Would Mr. Rochester have accepted Antoinette if she had been repulsed by sexuality? These are all interesting questions, and hopefully we’ll all be a little less sympathetic towards Rochester after reading Wide Sargasso Sea.

‘Farewell Summer’ by Ray Bradbury

I think I may be getting too old to think about my mortality. Is this a contradiction? Maybe. What I really mean is that I’m getting to the point where aging and death is no longer interesting – just scary and depressing. Nevertheless, Ray Bradbury’s war of youth versus age is fun to read. Farewell Summer is the long anticipated follow-up to his classic Dandelion Wine. The story continues to follow Douglas and his younger brother as they interact with the elders in their town.

At some point I started getting the feeling that the aim of this book was to provide as many quotable phrases about life, age and death as could possibly be contained in 200 pages. There’s nothing wrong with this – there is definitely something to be said for being able to succinctly summarize important concepts in ways that are clever enough to be memorable. One such memorable quote:
“Life gives us everything then takes it away – youth, love, happiness, friends”
Unfortunately, I’m sure this is exactly right.

'Dead Until Dark' by Charlaine Harris

I am probably one of the last people on Earth to partake in the True Blood/Sookie Stackhouse phenomenon. It seems like everyone I know has either watched the show or read the books; until a couple weeks ago, I had done neither. In this situation the summary of the book seems a little unnecessary, but I’ll include a brief explanation anyway. Sookie Stackhouse is a mind-reading cocktail waitress in Louisiana. Vampires have come out of hiding and are somewhat commonplace; they are able to drink synthetic rather than human blood to survive. Sookie is very excited when a vampire shows up in her hometown. I’ve only seen one episode of the True Blood television program, but I understand that the first book corresponds pretty accurately to the first season of the show.

I sort of knew that I should be expecting the book to be completely ridiculous, but I didn’t really realize the extent of it. The writing and narration are just cheesy enough for me to really latch onto it, and Sookie is unbelievable enough to be a fun main character.

Should we be creeped out that Bill keeps referring to Sookie as being “his” human? Probably, but Sookie seems a little irritated by it too, which is nice. Their whole relationship is pretty spontaneous, but maybe that’s the point. I think that if you’re looking for depth in character relationships when you read then Sookie Stackhouse probably isn’t for you. But if you’re looking for an outrageous, sex-filled vampire drama, then Dead Until Dark is perfect.

‘Sex and the Single Girl’ By Helen Gurley Brown

I want to be kind of charitable towards Brown because she wrote this book so long ago and some of the ideas and tips that she included were progressive for her time. Things that Brown has going for her:

• She gives good nutrition advice



• She encourages women to be fit and healthy



• She believes that women should have enjoyable, fulfilling careers



• She believes that women should have and enjoy sex

Unfortunately, Brown mentions all of these things relative to their importance in meeting men. In fact, even though Brown says that men aren’t necessary to the happiness of the single woman, she starts the book by giving pointers (in the form of several chapters) on assessing potential mates/husbands.

Should women be healthy and eat nutritious foods? Yes, it will help them to be more attractive to men! Should women have careers? Yes, especially if their line of work allows them to meet lots of available men (maybe you should find a new job if you aren’t meeting men). Should women participate in mutually enjoyable sexual relationships? Absolutely, but hopefully the man will buy you lots of nice things.

Do I sound bitter? If so, it’s probably because I’m not following Brown’s advice.

‘Born To Run’ By Christopher McDougall

I haven’t been running at all lately, and thanks to Christopher McDougall, I feel really bad about it now. Or at least angry with myself for getting out of the habit. Born to Run follows several American endurance runners and an isolated tribe of Mexican runners who have what seems to be superhuman stamina. We begin with McDougall’s first meeting with Caballo Blanco (The White Horse, an American living near the Tarahumara tribe in Mexico); the story climaxes with a run in the desert that includes many of the characters introduced along the way.

Though McDougall is telling a very personal story about friends and acquaintances, he includes lots of background information to help the reader to better understand endurance running. To understand Barefoot Ted’s philosophy, it helps to have a background on proper running form and podiatric medicine. To understand the Tarahumara diet it helps to know a bit about general nutrition. To understand how the human body is adapted to running, it helps to know a little about evolution. Though Born to Run covers many years and includes many individuals, McDougall is able to travel easily between times and places in a way that isn’t confusing or overwhelming.

I suspect that this book will appeal equally to those who enjoy running and those who want to be more involved in the sport (people who have no intention of being physically active will probably not like it). Aside from being entertained, I also picked up some great tips about nutrition (Chia seeds – who knew?), running form and footwear (I don’t need to spend a lot of money!). Of course, I’m not really going to know how successful all this running information is until I try it for myself.