Word: books
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Dates: during 1990-1999
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...defenders minimize the latest round of deconstruction. "That Einstein was a cad and mistreated women," says Schulmann, noting this aspect of Zackheim's book, "is nothing new." But it is critical for cultural iconography. Einstein reshaped our view of the universe. That he was a flawed human being is not only fascinating in a tabloid sort of way but reassuring as well. It makes our heroes, even those of unfathomable genius, seem a little more like...
...this is exactly what the Pulitzer-prizewinning journalist has done. With her new book, Stiffed: The Betrayal of the American Man (Morrow; 662 pages; $27.50), we meet men on the edge and over the edge: porn stars, hyperfanatical sports fans, wife beaters, gang bangers, a battle-weary parade of America's veritable down-and-outers. This is masculinity in crisis, all right, and Faludi, the author of Backlash, a 1991 best-selling study of feminism, wants to know why. Initially, she writes, her question was, "Why are so many men so disturbed by the prospect of women's independence...
...Stiffed is a brilliant, important book. Unlike Backlash, which felt at times like a compendium of statistics and a sweeping survey of popular culture, here Faludi's reportorial and literary skills unfold with a breathtaking confidence and beauty. These men talk to her as they have probably never talked in their lives before, and the rich and intricate tapestry she weaves from their stories is enough to make one rethink our entire Western value system. When she describes the family spirit and pride in their work of the men at the Long Beach Naval Shipyard, shut down by the government...
...book is overlong--even the paperback will be hungry-man size--but it is easy to see why Faludi couldn't stop writing. Her men have much to say, and in Faludi they found their dream woman: one who listens, and who understands...
...feeling superior to his surroundings, McCourt suffers brief spasms of unworthiness. There are his infected eyes, "like two pissholes in the snow," a phrase he likes so much that he repeats it many, many times. Another thoroughly used favorite is "not giving a fiddler's fart." Reading this book can push you to just that point...