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Die Männer
Die Männer/Hexenherz - bk372; Goldmann Verlag; Margaret Diehl; pocket_book; 1993
Perfect Paperback
First published August 1, 1988
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
March 2, 2017
the narrator likes to sleep around. a wide variety of guys are observed, slept with, and coolly analyzed. one of them is really sweet but gets alcoholic and develops a man-boob problem as well as some unattractive issues with inertia. another one is also rather sweet, quixotic in temperament, and walks around nude in his gothic house, just thinking his various deep, dreamy thoughts. there are many, many more and that last one (my personal favorite) takes up maybe two pages of the novel, if that.
the narrator remains rather sympathetic towards each of the many men. she appears to be trying to make some kind of emotional connection, perhaps one that could lead to a genuine, long-term relationship. but one can't help but get the feeling that overall she is unimpressed by the male gender and simply won't admit it to herself. will she ever find love? well, she's not really looking for it - she just wants to bone. and then think about the experience. and then move on. the end.
the prose is excellent. elegant and witty and dry and full of splendid, surprising little sentences here and there. but the key word is dispassionate. which led to a block for me as far as identifying or even empathizing with the protagonist. but identification and empathy are overrated, right? "i don't want to get to know you, i just wanna slap skins." still, it made the experience rather like reading clinical case notes on various patients. i.e. not hot. although the actual sex scenes were sorta hot - when they actually occurred, which is not as often as one might imagine.
hey who is Margaret Diehl anyway and why hasn't she written more books? she sure has the writing chops. ah, mystery. also, check out that awesome cover. creepy!
the movie version starred Sean Young... bizarre choice for such an affectless character. when i think of Sean Young, i do not think of "lack of affect". perhaps the casting director was thinking of Young's glassy-eyed replicant from Blade Runner - which is a phrase i literally just stole from Brad below - rather than the manic Young of various other efforts. Dylan Walsh (known for having a plus-sized stick up his ass in the often laughable Nip/Tuck) is also in the movie version. i was disappointed that they removed man-boobs from his character. instead he smokes cigars while getting sloshed in the bathtub and it is all rather cute and endearing. gosh, so much for realism!
the narrator remains rather sympathetic towards each of the many men. she appears to be trying to make some kind of emotional connection, perhaps one that could lead to a genuine, long-term relationship. but one can't help but get the feeling that overall she is unimpressed by the male gender and simply won't admit it to herself. will she ever find love? well, she's not really looking for it - she just wants to bone. and then think about the experience. and then move on. the end.
the prose is excellent. elegant and witty and dry and full of splendid, surprising little sentences here and there. but the key word is dispassionate. which led to a block for me as far as identifying or even empathizing with the protagonist. but identification and empathy are overrated, right? "i don't want to get to know you, i just wanna slap skins." still, it made the experience rather like reading clinical case notes on various patients. i.e. not hot. although the actual sex scenes were sorta hot - when they actually occurred, which is not as often as one might imagine.
hey who is Margaret Diehl anyway and why hasn't she written more books? she sure has the writing chops. ah, mystery. also, check out that awesome cover. creepy!
the movie version starred Sean Young... bizarre choice for such an affectless character. when i think of Sean Young, i do not think of "lack of affect". perhaps the casting director was thinking of Young's glassy-eyed replicant from Blade Runner - which is a phrase i literally just stole from Brad below - rather than the manic Young of various other efforts. Dylan Walsh (known for having a plus-sized stick up his ass in the often laughable Nip/Tuck) is also in the movie version. i was disappointed that they removed man-boobs from his character. instead he smokes cigars while getting sloshed in the bathtub and it is all rather cute and endearing. gosh, so much for realism!
July 20, 2007
Very erotic, but insightful book. Hot sex scenes. Good hot, not cheesy hot. That's hard to do.
May 23, 2025
how is this not a cult classic??? it should be up there with weird fucks by lynne tillman & suicide blonde by darcey steinke. a truly wonderful novel about the messiness of desire
June 27, 2013
This book is my absolute favorite. I first read it when I was 15 years old after finding it in the local library. I read it several times over the next couple of years. More than 15 years later I found a used copy and have since read it again and loved it even more than the first time I read it.
June 27, 2012
Well-written. Author is a real master of words and imagery. What witty one-liners! She makes the simplest action/vain thought seem profound. I thought the sex scenes were elegantly erotic and powerful. Oh and the characters were so interesting. In just a couple of paragraphs, she can describe such an interesting character history, that you're anxious to meet the new addition to the cast.
October 24, 2020
The cover shown here on Goodreads is pretty awful - definitely not the cover I came across when I read this book years ago.
The book is a long time favorite, one I lent out quite a bit, until it didn't get returned. I tried for years to find it, but couldn't remember the author's name: googling "men" got me lots of 'hits' but nothing I was looking for. I think with a different title, it might have done better - I'd have found it sooner, anyway.
It is a sexy book, it is a heart-filled book - is it feminist? Depends on your definition. If by feminist you mean that women's sexuality, intellect, and heart's desires are worthy of skillful attention by a talented writer, than yes. If you include a spirited good romp of a coming of age story, then yes.
The book is a long time favorite, one I lent out quite a bit, until it didn't get returned. I tried for years to find it, but couldn't remember the author's name: googling "men" got me lots of 'hits' but nothing I was looking for. I think with a different title, it might have done better - I'd have found it sooner, anyway.
It is a sexy book, it is a heart-filled book - is it feminist? Depends on your definition. If by feminist you mean that women's sexuality, intellect, and heart's desires are worthy of skillful attention by a talented writer, than yes. If you include a spirited good romp of a coming of age story, then yes.
May 7, 2017
Read this decades ago. At the time, I absolutely loved it.
July 12, 2026
Found this in a Montclair bookshop. Absolutely loved the meandering narrator and inner monologue
July 9, 2009
This book was okay as far as a story is concerned. As for being as poignant as Margaret Atwood or other women contemporaries writing about female sexuality, this book does not meet up to those expectations. AT ALL.
The main character spends the entire book searching for love and recognition in casual sex. Hardly a feminist issue.
The main character spends the entire book searching for love and recognition in casual sex. Hardly a feminist issue.
July 9, 2012
Awful - couldn't finish it.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews