I know a lot of people find The Female Man difficult or off-putting, but it always surprises me, because I first read it when I was sixteen and loved it. It made me feel so vindicated in rage. I went around being cheerfully angry for a week afterward. Unsurprisingly, Jael was my favorite -- though you probably haven't encountered her yet. It starts off with Jeanine, right? I did not get her at all when I was sixteen, though I feel rather more rueful and depressed kinship now.
I also liked how witty it is, I always love that with Russ. But mostly I find her writing compelling and hard to put down, whether or not it has anything like a propulsive plot -- I just get pulled into reading it. I am not sure if that is at all helpful, since it is hardly something you can make yourself feel if you don't feel that way already.
In my most recent reread, I was surprised at how much my perspectives on the characters had changed, and just how unreliable the narration was. I also really liked the Marxist feminist analyses of things. There's a lot of emphasis on money and the interactions of economic and social constraints.
The Female Man
I also liked how witty it is, I always love that with Russ. But mostly I find her writing compelling and hard to put down, whether or not it has anything like a propulsive plot -- I just get pulled into reading it. I am not sure if that is at all helpful, since it is hardly something you can make yourself feel if you don't feel that way already.
In my most recent reread, I was surprised at how much my perspectives on the characters had changed, and just how unreliable the narration was. I also really liked the Marxist feminist analyses of things. There's a lot of emphasis on money and the interactions of economic and social constraints.