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Sep 28, 2007

David rated it:

The takeaway from this book is that the average woman is a hyper-sensitive control freak ruled by hormones such as estrogen, progesterone, oxytocin, testosterone in the same way that some people feel they're controlled by the movement of the stars. These hormones in turn are determined by a combination of genetics and rearing but developed over time as a reaction to evolutionary necessities. All of which enforce behavior which you know of as a set of common stereotypes. There's not much scientif More...

1 comment like (16 people liked it)

Feb 14, 2009

Jennie rated it:

This book pissed me off more than anything I've read in a long time. In fact, I think the last thing I hated this much was Sharp Teeth. And this piece of drivel was way worse.

This crazy bitch makes Dr. Laura look like a raging feminist. I understand that this woman is a doctor and I get that she thinks she was doing the world a favor by explaining why women are the way they are. HOWEVER, she takes a very stereotypical view of women and does not make any allowances for women whose be More...

21 comments like (26 people liked it)

Aug 24, 2011

Veronica added it

I stopped reading this book on page 68.

It's amazing I made it that far. Part of me thinks I should finish the book because I should know what is inside. People not only like to come to me for gender advice, but also test my boundaries on "gender roles." A friend loaned me this book, I believe as a way to see what my expert opinion of it would be. I have no idea how she feels about it.

It frightens me to think this was a NY Times Best Seller. Oh, the masses who read t More...

2 comments like (7 people liked it)

Aug 30, 2007

Katie rated it:

Okay, this is serious. We ALL need to read this, and we need to get our significant others to read it, too. This author is a neuropsychiatrist and she analyzes how we (women) work (in easy to understand language) and why we do the things we do with regard to our moods, our biology and our evolutionary inclinations. It is infinitely interesting and lends an amazing insight into how we as women function on a daily basis. She also does a bit of the same for the male gender and it is really very More...

0 comments like (4 people liked it)

Apr 28, 2008

Audrey rated it:

I'm extremely wary of "science" on the cognitive differences between men and women, because I feel like it's often used as an argument for women's inferiority. (For instance, a recent Washington Post op-ed used that fact that women's brains are smaller to suggest that women were "just a little bit dim.") So I was ready to be disgusted by this book -– but instead I find myself recommending it to women I know and considering it for my next book club pick. It's a straightforward More...

0 comments like (4 people liked it)

Dec 07, 2008

Heather rated it:

This book was pretty interesting though too chatty in style for me - a common fault of 'mass market' science books. It talks about the hormone and other neurochemical differences between women and men, nothing in it was too earth shattering and I did still have a nagging voice in the back of my head complaining that this was essentialist/reductive/oversimplified...but the actual mechanics of neural processes being different were interesting, and the chapter discussing the "mommy brain" More...

0 comments like (3 people liked it)

Apr 17, 2009

Khalid rated it:

The Female Brain is a science book that discusses the physical and psychological aspects of the female brain. It will teach you how the female brain works, and why does it work the way it does.

I have thoroughly enjoyed reading this book and learned a lot by reading it. It contains enough science that you feel convinced yet not bored, and enough stories that entertain you along the way.

To be honest, I didn't like it at first when she started talking about females as super More...

3 comments like (3 people liked it)

Jun 05, 2007

Nicole rated it:

I thought this book was an interesting exploration of the specific structures of the female brain. While I do think that it was a worthwhile read, I wish the author had delved a bit deeper than she did. That said, it is for a trade audience so it is understandable that some of the more technical elements might have been left out. Overall it's a good book to challenge the way we think about sex differences and the whole nature vs. nurture argument.

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Dec 18, 2009

Emily rated it:

If you could hear my brain as I read this book, it would seem to say, "Aye donnnnn't knooowww" or "I can see how that Couuuld be true," all with a skeptical head turn to the side. It's interesting, this book. It is. And I keep thinking about it. So that's good. It's just that, well, her science seems a little fuzzy. And a little generalized. So it's hard to really get behind her thesis.
I am, I admit, a little uncomfortable with the idea that gender roles are based entir More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Feb 02, 2009

Heather rated it:

Chauvinists around the world will thank Dr. Brizendine for her pop-science oversimplification excuse of a book that will add a modicum of misplaced credibility to the belief that women are powerless over their emotions an hormones.

"Don't tell me it's not your period, honey! Dr. Brizendine proved that you are powerless over the hormones in your brain! It's ok!" *pat,pat* "Why don't you take a Quaalude and zone out in front of an episode of Grey's?"

Thi More...

1 comment like (9 people liked it)

Jul 25, 2011

Esmeralda rated it:

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here

0 comments like (4 people liked it)

Dec 02, 2008

Monica rated it:

My mom recommended it, I think, because she was overjoyed to discover a scientific rationale for her new-found post-menopausal selfishness (which I think is a good thing for her...to be selfish after decades of tending to others).

I felt a bit "meh" about the book...while the science and anthropological studies were mildly interesting, if a little cursory, the anecdotal "tales from the couch" were really annoying, in the way that, say, "The Tyra Banks Show" More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Dec 20, 2007

Lori rated it:

Wow! Where to begin! Julie recommended this book to me. I'd suggest all women read it; especially those going through changes in life and these can be the obvious, like menopause, to your girls going through puberty. It will definitely keep me more patient and "grounded" as Ellie goes through puberty to remember not to take things personally and to remember what she is going through.

I did find it interesting/comical that she listed each stage of life separately. Which is o More...

0 comments like (3 people liked it)

Apr 07, 2008

Kate rated it:

This book is amazing. I normally do not read books like this, but it is so worth it. Dr Brizendine describes the various stages of the female brain, from fetus through menopause and all the changes in between. I now find myself looking at Louisa and thinking how her brain is begging for reassurance that she's doing 'it' right. Then looking at myself, current owner of the 'mommy brain'. Amazing. I really appreciated how the author presented the material to explain actions of individuals whi More...

1 comment like (2 people liked it)

Dec 18, 2009

Christine rated it:

Interesting book about how intense emotions and such are a part of how the chemical make-up of the female brain, but I would've liked to have seen more about how to counteract said chemicals/hormones with herbs or nutrition. For example, I've found that a deficiency of Dopamine and Serotonin, which can cause depression and anxiety, is counteracted by steering clear of caffeine, nicotine, and alcohol, which act to further inhibit those chemicals.

Bottom line: This book does a great job o More...

1 comment like

Mar 11, 2009

Joan rated it:

Very informative & lots of aha moments!!

3 comments like (1 person liked it)

Feb 05, 2009

Bookmarks Magazine added it

Louann Brizendine, a neuropsychiatrist at the University of California, San Francisco, explores groundbreaking issues in brain science with mixed results. Critics debate the author's presentation and research; some extol her many and varied sources and the book's accessibility, while others take her to task for relying too heavily on anecdotal evidence and "dumbing down" the text (Robin Marantz Henig cites the author's repeated use of "cutesy language" and slang). Despite the

More...

0 comments like

Jan 19, 2009

Leslie rated it:

I found the information interesting and could generally agree with the points made (solely based on my qualifications as a female) but felt that the book lacked a scientific feel. The appendix contains about 40 pages of sources and citations, but the actual reading of the text feels a little light on pure data and more reliant on anecdotal information. I'm not really sure why that is, but that's how I felt throughout the reading of the book.

However, any insight we can gain is appreciat More...

0 comments like

Jan 17, 2009

Eric rated it:

On what I found out about the female brain: Dammit! They're smarter than us. I wish I had this book a couple years ago. But seriously, intelligence is relevant and this book is not about that. Instead, it's about the different ways in which both brains operate.

In no way is this book fluff, which is what someone coming across the title, and in light of its mainstream success, might think. What this book is, is an attempt to understand the circuitry of the female brain; which, More...

3 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jan 03, 2012

Rajesh rated it:

First off, I'm not in the target audience intended by the author, as I understand this book is written for women. However, my approach to this book was to understand any scientific advances in the field of biology that finds interesting difference between the sexes. In this regard, I think the book fails. Firstly, it constantly talks about proximate rather than distal causes as in "estrogen triggers this circuit during this time that causes this". This perhaps is interesting to a clini More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Oct 10, 2011

Emily rated it:

The book does take a very general view on the topic, and there were a lot of things she mentioned in the book that I already knew, and there wasn't much that changed my outlook already of what I've already gathered and heard about the female brain. However, that is because I realized this book is more about offering biological, and strictly, chemical/hormone explanation for women's behavior. It is not as psychological as I expected it to be. Its more of a verification of general ideas we already More...

0 comments like

Aug 08, 2011

Crosby rated it:

Always nice to read a book that is based on more than just "common knowledge" or "all in your head" or "Venus and Mars" type explanations of the differences in male and female behaviors. Brizendine is a medical doctor who treats female patients and uses this knowledge to explain behavioral changes in a way that is more persuasive than usual. Whereas some would pass off the inability of couples to have children with a "because you are trying too hard" or " More...

0 comments like

Jun 05, 2011

Sara rated it:

I really enjoyed reading this book - it was a little window into all the chemicals I know are in my brain and what they are doing each month and it really helped me feel 'less crazy' - and the ladies out there will know what I mean. Apparently waking up depressed with absolutely no reason for being so is pretty normal during certain weeks/days and now I know exactly what's causing it (and guess what - it's not because I think I'm fat! It's the chemicals!)

She explains very clearly how t More...

0 comments like

May 08, 2011

Mimi rated it:

This book was fascinating. One point that I had never considered before is how reality changes from person to person. It is not a fixed thing. I had never really realized how powerful hormones are.

I liked how she said, "Biological instincts are the keys to understanding how we are wired, and they are the keys to our success today. If you're aware of the fact that a biological brain state is guiding your impulses, you can choose not to act or to act differently than you might fe More...

0 comments like

May 04, 2011

Krista rated it:

Had to give it three stars instead of two... stylistically, I felt like it was a thick volume of drudgery, with occasional useful insights or valuable physiology. (It took two library renewals for me to make myself finish it.) Seems like it really could have benefited from footnotes, instead of endnotes, too: Every time I'd read a sweeping, gender-specific statement, I'd want to see a source for it, but I didn't even realize sources were provided until I got to that appendix at the end. I kno More...

0 comments like

Jan 07, 2011

Megan rated it:

I mostly really liked this book. It is a somewhat scientific book that describes the effect of hormones on the female brain from birth through death, specifically examining puberty, child-bearing and rearing, menopause, etc.
I was left feeling like the worst parts of myself are all controlled by my hormones. And that the best parts of myself, are also a product of my hormones. It made me wonder what my personality would be left with once I didn't have any hormones? It was really educatio More...

1 comment like (2 people liked it)

Sep 16, 2010

Fajribudi rated it:

Selama bertahun-tahun kalangan medis menyimpulkan problem kegairahan kaum perempuan ditentukan oleh aliran darah ke area klitoris, sama halnya seperti kaum lelaki dengan teori hidrolika dasar dalam gairah laki-laki, yang ditentukan banyaknya darah yang mengalir ke penis.

Asumsi ini tidak terbukti benar. Kenyataannya, perusahaan sekelas Pfizer menghentikan produksi Viagra merah muda untuk perempuan pada tahun 2004, karena ternyata upaya ini ternyata tidak pernah berhasil. Lantas, stimu More...

0 comments like

Aug 09, 2010

Paulo rated it:

Here's a blog I wrote about this book:

Just finished the book "The Female Brain." Wow ... I can see that I needed more insight into what you ladies are dealing with ... and am so glad for the increased knowledge!

Every 28 days or so, your brain is bobbing in a surging sea of fluctuating hormones. (Although I haven't read her book "The Male Brain" yet, I'm know that men must be much more boring.) I can see how a better understand of your own and your frie More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jul 27, 2010

Lacey rated it:

It's been over a week since I finished this book and I'm still not certain what I think of it. I have decided that it is a good book to keep on the shelf as a reference and I may try to pick up future editions (if there will be any) to see what new research there is.

As I try to figure out what bugged me about this book, there are two things that come to mind. First, the writing style wasn't quite what I expected. The back cover has quotes of what various people thought of the book an More...

0 comments like

Jul 12, 2010

Aerin rated it:

I found this a fast and interesting book about the basic changes in brain chemistry a woman faces in her life. This isn't a hard science book, but she does provide many references and notes in the back if you want to read more thoroughly on the subject.

Research into how hormones and chemicals in the brain affect us throughout our lives is only just beginning. This book brings a first look at some of the important work out there and the need for more to be done.

As a w More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

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