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What Do Women Want? : Bread, Roses, Sex, Power
This is a kaleidoscopic collection of Erica Jong's provocative prose, covering politics, pornography, motherhood and writing, with turns from Hillary Rodham Clinton, Lolita, Princess Diana and Louise Woodward. It surfs the waves of feminism from the bold ancestors to the modern truce between the sexes.
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First published January 1, 1998
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About the author
Erica Jong
119 books862 followersErica Jong—novelist, poet, and essayist—has consistently used her craft to help provide women with a powerful and rational voice in forging a feminist consciousness. She has published 21 books, including eight novels, six volumes of poetry, six books of non-fiction and numerous articles in magazines and newspapers such as the New York Times, the Sunday Times of London, Elle, Vogue, and the New York Times Book Review.
In her groundbreaking first novel, Fear of Flying (which has sold twenty-six million copies in more than forty languages), she introduced Isadora Wing, who also plays a central part in three subsequent novels—How to Save Your Own Life, Parachutes and Kisses, and Any Woman's Blues. In her three historical novels—Fanny, Shylock's Daughter, and Sappho's Leap—she demonstrates her mastery of eighteenth-century British literature, the verses of Shakespeare, and ancient Greek lyric, respectively. A memoir of her life as a writer, Seducing the Demon: Writing for My Life, came out in March 2006. It was a national bestseller in the US and many other countries. Erica’s latest book, Sugar in My Bowl, is an anthology of women writing about sex, has been recently released in paperback.
Erica Jong was honored with the United Nations Award for Excellence in Literature. She has also received Poetry magazine's Bess Hokin Prize, also won by W.S. Merwin and Sylvia Plath. In France, she received the Deauville Award for Literary Excellence and in Italy, she received the Sigmund Freud Award for Literature. The City University of New York awarded Ms. Jong an honorary PhD at the College of Staten Island.
Her works have appeared all over the world and are as popular in Eastern Europe, Japan, China, and other Asian countries as they have been in the United States and Western Europe. She has lectured, taught and read her work all over the world.
A graduate of Barnard College and Columbia University's Graduate Faculties where she received her M.A. in 18th Century English Literature, Erica Jong also attended Columbia's graduate writing program where she studied poetry with Stanley Kunitz and Mark Strand. In 2007, continuing her long-standing relationship with the university, a large collection of Erica’s archival material was acquired by Columbia University’s Rare Book & Manuscript Library, where it will be available to graduate and undergraduate students. Ms. Jong plans to teach master classes at Columbia and also advise the Rare Book Library on the acquisition of other women writers’ archives.
Calling herself “a defrocked academic,” Ms. Jong has partly returned to her roots as a scholar. She has taught at Ben Gurion University in Israel, Bennington College in the US, Breadloaf Writers’ Conference in Vermont and many other distinguished writing programs and universities. She loves to teach and lecture, though her skill in these areas has sometimes crowded her writing projects. “As long as I am communicating the gift of literature, I’m happy,” Jong says. A poet at heart, Ms. Jong believes that words can save the world.
In her groundbreaking first novel, Fear of Flying (which has sold twenty-six million copies in more than forty languages), she introduced Isadora Wing, who also plays a central part in three subsequent novels—How to Save Your Own Life, Parachutes and Kisses, and Any Woman's Blues. In her three historical novels—Fanny, Shylock's Daughter, and Sappho's Leap—she demonstrates her mastery of eighteenth-century British literature, the verses of Shakespeare, and ancient Greek lyric, respectively. A memoir of her life as a writer, Seducing the Demon: Writing for My Life, came out in March 2006. It was a national bestseller in the US and many other countries. Erica’s latest book, Sugar in My Bowl, is an anthology of women writing about sex, has been recently released in paperback.
Erica Jong was honored with the United Nations Award for Excellence in Literature. She has also received Poetry magazine's Bess Hokin Prize, also won by W.S. Merwin and Sylvia Plath. In France, she received the Deauville Award for Literary Excellence and in Italy, she received the Sigmund Freud Award for Literature. The City University of New York awarded Ms. Jong an honorary PhD at the College of Staten Island.
Her works have appeared all over the world and are as popular in Eastern Europe, Japan, China, and other Asian countries as they have been in the United States and Western Europe. She has lectured, taught and read her work all over the world.
A graduate of Barnard College and Columbia University's Graduate Faculties where she received her M.A. in 18th Century English Literature, Erica Jong also attended Columbia's graduate writing program where she studied poetry with Stanley Kunitz and Mark Strand. In 2007, continuing her long-standing relationship with the university, a large collection of Erica’s archival material was acquired by Columbia University’s Rare Book & Manuscript Library, where it will be available to graduate and undergraduate students. Ms. Jong plans to teach master classes at Columbia and also advise the Rare Book Library on the acquisition of other women writers’ archives.
Calling herself “a defrocked academic,” Ms. Jong has partly returned to her roots as a scholar. She has taught at Ben Gurion University in Israel, Bennington College in the US, Breadloaf Writers’ Conference in Vermont and many other distinguished writing programs and universities. She loves to teach and lecture, though her skill in these areas has sometimes crowded her writing projects. “As long as I am communicating the gift of literature, I’m happy,” Jong says. A poet at heart, Ms. Jong believes that words can save the world.
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
May 31, 2025
Quella che si presenta in “Cosa vogliono le donne: potere, sesso, pane, rose” è una raccolta di articoli incentrata sui grandi temi della lotta e della vita femminista. La scrittrice non si risparmia e – attraverso la sua scrittura semplice e ironica – si mette a nudo, parla della sua vita, dei suoi fallimenti, della sua famiglia e della sua vocazione per la scrittura, diventa ella stessa il primo vero soggetto di questa raccolta, il punto di partenza dal quale fare emergere la riflessione sulla realtà che la circonda.
Come ci ricorda Jong è nella natura delle donne osservare il mondo da una prospettiva di rabbia, rivolta e rivoluzione, perché è nello sguardo delle classi subalterne che si cela la verità, la possibilità di cambiare la società e abbattere il dominio del patriarcato, del pensiero dominante. Ed è partendo dalla propria esperienza personale, dal racconto della propria vita, delle proprie difficoltà, è dalla ricerca di risposte che riescano a spiegare la propria condizione che si può aprire la mente al mondo esterno e alle ingiustizie che sistematicamente lo popolano. Solo così possiamo illuminarle con la luce della nostra giustizia interiore, farci creatrici e protettrici di un mondo nuovo e migliore, che ci assomigli di più.
Jong parla di famiglia, del peso e delle gioie della maternità, dei contrasti inevitabili tra madri e figlie; queste ultime, in un cerchio che continuamente si rinnova, sono quasi costrette a rinnegare, nella loro adolescenza, tutto ciò che la madre rappresenta per poter trovare la propria strada, diventare veri e propri individui, donne capaci di muoversi nel mondo con coraggio. E per imparare a comprendere la realtà la letteratura è un ottimo strumento, diventa una scialuppa di salvataggio in un mondo in tempesta che non sa proteggerci.
continua a leggere qui: https://parlaredilibri.wordpress.com/...
Come ci ricorda Jong è nella natura delle donne osservare il mondo da una prospettiva di rabbia, rivolta e rivoluzione, perché è nello sguardo delle classi subalterne che si cela la verità, la possibilità di cambiare la società e abbattere il dominio del patriarcato, del pensiero dominante. Ed è partendo dalla propria esperienza personale, dal racconto della propria vita, delle proprie difficoltà, è dalla ricerca di risposte che riescano a spiegare la propria condizione che si può aprire la mente al mondo esterno e alle ingiustizie che sistematicamente lo popolano. Solo così possiamo illuminarle con la luce della nostra giustizia interiore, farci creatrici e protettrici di un mondo nuovo e migliore, che ci assomigli di più.
Jong parla di famiglia, del peso e delle gioie della maternità, dei contrasti inevitabili tra madri e figlie; queste ultime, in un cerchio che continuamente si rinnova, sono quasi costrette a rinnegare, nella loro adolescenza, tutto ciò che la madre rappresenta per poter trovare la propria strada, diventare veri e propri individui, donne capaci di muoversi nel mondo con coraggio. E per imparare a comprendere la realtà la letteratura è un ottimo strumento, diventa una scialuppa di salvataggio in un mondo in tempesta che non sa proteggerci.
continua a leggere qui: https://parlaredilibri.wordpress.com/...
May 2, 2018
Just ignore the cheesy title. I like how many modern important female figures and female literature she touched in this book from a fairly relatable angle to the general readers. Camilla Paglia talked a lot of the same female figures in her sexual persona, vamps and tramps and sexual culture. Camilla “s perspective is innovative and mind blowing while Jong “s is more like listening to a girl next to door.
The verse and writing style is not colourful but the ideas are grounded in. After read hers You will say yes I totally agree with you and I think the same way! Jong “s writing run parallel in resonance. It is a book for general readers and some academia who are not snobbish and are willing to sit down and listen to another woman to talk.
I think as a woman, you will find reconfirmation of your thoughts in this book and also find strength and encouragement while facing the world as a female.
Erica Jong is not afraid to talk about the truth and not afraid of sharing our most universal fear and worrisome.
Although I don’t like her opening about emphasizing herself being a writer, maybe she can be a bit humble ??
The verse and writing style is not colourful but the ideas are grounded in. After read hers You will say yes I totally agree with you and I think the same way! Jong “s writing run parallel in resonance. It is a book for general readers and some academia who are not snobbish and are willing to sit down and listen to another woman to talk.
I think as a woman, you will find reconfirmation of your thoughts in this book and also find strength and encouragement while facing the world as a female.
Erica Jong is not afraid to talk about the truth and not afraid of sharing our most universal fear and worrisome.
Although I don’t like her opening about emphasizing herself being a writer, maybe she can be a bit humble ??
August 8, 2020
Heb niet alle essays even goed gelezen, maar wel weer wat mooie citaten opgedaan over vrouwen en creativiteit.
November 27, 2010
I like Erica Jong, and I liked these essays. But I think the title was misleading. They were not all about women, so I think "Essays by Erica Jong" would have been a much more appropriate title.
July 14, 2016
Just not for me. It was recommended to me; the title and cover already made me hesitant. I found the essays to be fairly boring and not holding any refreshing or new ideas. Oh well.
February 27, 2022
"Ked sa obzriem na roky po skonceni skoly a pokusam sa zhrnut, co som sa naucila, zaver je jasny: nebat sa zmeny, neocakavat, ze zivot bude stale rovnaky. Vsetko dobre, co ma postretlo v poslednych rokoch, prislo bez vynimky vdaka tomu, ze som ochotne prijimala zmenu, riskovala a casto robila veci, ktore mi nahanali strach. Neprestala som sa bat, ale uz nedovolim, aby ma strach ovladol. Akceptujem ho ako sucast svojho zivota, najma strach zo zmeny, z neznama. Isla som dalej, hoci ma srdce varovalo: vrat sa, vrat sa, ak zajdes pridaleko, zahynies."
Erica Jong is my spirit animal. Milujem jej Strach z lietania, ktory mnohi povazuju za brakovu literaturu. Ciastocne autobiograficky a na rok vydania 1973 aj celkom skandalozny pribeh o sexualnych a intelektualnych dobrodruzstvach mladej zeny vsak vychvalil John Updike ci Naomi Wolf a kto som ja, aby som s nimi polemizovala?
Jongova preskumala univerzalne temy ako laska verzus nezavislost, manzelstvo a vasen, deti ci kariera, vynasla legendarny pojem "zipless fuck" a v postave Adriana Goodlove-a stvorila prototyp prietrtnika na zabitie.
"Odmietam byt kategorizovany. Ked si nakoniec sadnes, aby si o mne napisala, nebudes vediet, ci som hrdina alebo antihrdina, sviniar alebo svatec. Nebudes schopna zaskatulkovat ma." A v tej chvili som sa donho sialene zalubila. Jeho ochabnuty penis prenikol tam, kam by vztyceny nikdy nebol dosiahol.
Zbierka eseji Co chcu zeny, s podtitulom Moc, sex, chlieb a ruze nie je az takymto legendarnym dielom, no stale je to solidny prehlad uvah na temy, ktore v 90. rokoch hybali spolocnostou (afera Billa Clintona, vynalez Viagry), tem, ktore absolutne nezostarli (mizogynia voci Hillary Clinton, odsudzovanie pracujucich matiek v krajine, ktora nijaku platenu rodicovsku dovolenku ani statne jasle nema), literarnych eseji (o Jane Eyrovej, Anaias Ninovej ci Henry Millerovi) a cestopisov, ci skor lubostnych listov jej milovanemu Taliansku. (Vzdy, ked stravim dovolenku inde ako v Taliansku, mam pocit isteho sklamania, akoby som urobila chybu.)
Z niektorych silno dycha duch druhej vlny feminizmu, predsa len, Erica ma dnes uz 79 rokov a hoci sa v spolocenskych otazkach uplynulych rokov ako #metoo, marriage equality ci BLM postavila na spravnu stranu historie, intersekcionalita jej vela nehovori. Skratka, o sucasnom feminizme pise lepsie taka Amia Srinivasan, ale poklebetit a na drink do baru by som vzala Ericu Jong.
Erica Jong is my spirit animal. Milujem jej Strach z lietania, ktory mnohi povazuju za brakovu literaturu. Ciastocne autobiograficky a na rok vydania 1973 aj celkom skandalozny pribeh o sexualnych a intelektualnych dobrodruzstvach mladej zeny vsak vychvalil John Updike ci Naomi Wolf a kto som ja, aby som s nimi polemizovala?
Jongova preskumala univerzalne temy ako laska verzus nezavislost, manzelstvo a vasen, deti ci kariera, vynasla legendarny pojem "zipless fuck" a v postave Adriana Goodlove-a stvorila prototyp prietrtnika na zabitie.
"Odmietam byt kategorizovany. Ked si nakoniec sadnes, aby si o mne napisala, nebudes vediet, ci som hrdina alebo antihrdina, sviniar alebo svatec. Nebudes schopna zaskatulkovat ma." A v tej chvili som sa donho sialene zalubila. Jeho ochabnuty penis prenikol tam, kam by vztyceny nikdy nebol dosiahol.
Zbierka eseji Co chcu zeny, s podtitulom Moc, sex, chlieb a ruze nie je az takymto legendarnym dielom, no stale je to solidny prehlad uvah na temy, ktore v 90. rokoch hybali spolocnostou (afera Billa Clintona, vynalez Viagry), tem, ktore absolutne nezostarli (mizogynia voci Hillary Clinton, odsudzovanie pracujucich matiek v krajine, ktora nijaku platenu rodicovsku dovolenku ani statne jasle nema), literarnych eseji (o Jane Eyrovej, Anaias Ninovej ci Henry Millerovi) a cestopisov, ci skor lubostnych listov jej milovanemu Taliansku. (Vzdy, ked stravim dovolenku inde ako v Taliansku, mam pocit isteho sklamania, akoby som urobila chybu.)
Z niektorych silno dycha duch druhej vlny feminizmu, predsa len, Erica ma dnes uz 79 rokov a hoci sa v spolocenskych otazkach uplynulych rokov ako #metoo, marriage equality ci BLM postavila na spravnu stranu historie, intersekcionalita jej vela nehovori. Skratka, o sucasnom feminizme pise lepsie taka Amia Srinivasan, ale poklebetit a na drink do baru by som vzala Ericu Jong.
April 13, 2022
Ho amato Erica con l'esordio Paura di volare, non potevo farmi sfuggire questo a metà prezzo in libreria. Certo, titoli simili generano una buona dose di irritazione che spinge a domandarsi cosa legittima la scrittrice a parlare a nome di tutto il genere, come può conoscere intimamente i desideri di esseri umani tanto diversi per esperienza e inclinazioni. L'irritazione va crescendo nell'apprendere che ci sono interi capitoli che non hanno nulla a che fare con il tema centrale del libro. Cosa vogliono le donne è una raccolta di saggi in larga parte autobiografici, suddivisa in quattro tematiche fondamentali. Il primo si occupa di potere ed è quello più genuiamente femminista e interessante: diventare madri e il rapporto con la figlia, il declino dell'interesse mediatico per la parità di genere, l'importanza culturale delle streghe, Jane Eyre e la principessa Diana. Poi Jong scrive di sesso (poche hanno la stessa sconsideratezza nel farlo), indagando l'immaginario erotico femminile e soffermandosi su alcune figure della letteratura che hanno fatto dell'atto amoroso il loro fulcro, come Anais Nin e Henry Miller. Essendo noi due persone dalle opinione decise, non mi sono trovata d'accordo con diversi punti di vista, come le sua durissime opinioni su femministe radicali che ammiro, l'esaltazione per uno scrittore capace di scrivere romanzi tanto sessisti come Tropico del cancro, le gioie di una maternità che non mi interessa conoscere. Ho avvertito quanto sia cambiata la prospettiva femminista in una ventina d'anni e quanto risulti oggi sorpassato difendere la pornografia dalla censura, senza interrogarsi sulla necessità di uno sguardo che riammetta i desideri femminili. Tuttavia, non posso negare quanto lo stile abile mi affascini, quanto piacere regalino le stilettate di cattiveria e le vette che raggiunge l'esaltazione poetica. Gli ultimi capitoli, invece, una divagazione senza posa su tutto ciò che la interessa: la politica, l'amore per l'Italia e le vacanze veneziane, la gestazione di un libro da scrivere, lunghe interviste a gente di dubbio gusto e moralità su cui si spendono parole poco sincere. Mi ha molto annoiata dovermi arrendere a rimanere digiuna di critica femminista per dedicarmi a impressioni personali sulla fatica di scrivere, fasi della creatività letteraria o amici con cui trascorre giornate oziose in Toscana: non me ne importava abbastanza. Più coinvolgente la sua capacità di suscitare in me una curiosità vivace per una miriade di personaggi letterari che snocciola per grandi elenchi distratti e che hanno rinforzato la mia caccia alle biblioteche locali.
Insomma, ne ricavo sensazioni contrastanti, ma Erica è troppo intelligente e appassionata per riuscire a convincermi a farla finita: leggerò altro, molto altro di suo.
Insomma, ne ricavo sensazioni contrastanti, ma Erica è troppo intelligente e appassionata per riuscire a convincermi a farla finita: leggerò altro, molto altro di suo.
March 3, 2011
First, "What do Women Want?" by Erica Jong. Jenni borrowed this from me ages ago and said it wasn't much good. She'd be right. I thought it was going to be quite feminist, but rather wasn't. The title page maybe should have had me guessing that-four pics, bread, roses, sex, power. Now, I suspect I'm in a minority of people who even get the bread and roses references, cause none of the people I pointed it out to had heard of it. You can learn more on Wikipedia. Then, the sex is illustrated by a condom. Something that men use. Hmmmmm. And power by a high-heeled shoe. Uh huh.
So, I wasn't loving it. The best bit for me was the end where she writes about trips to Italy, cause I love Italy and want to retire there to a villa and drink too much red wine. There were some chapters about literature and porn and she wrote a lot about Lolita, which I really should get around to reading.
"Every life decision I have made - from changing jobs to changing partners to changing homes - has been taken with trepidation. I have not ceased being fearful, but I have ceased to let fear control me. I have accepted fear as a part of life, specifically the fear of change, of the unknown."
This is my life! I changed all three back in April and it was certainly very scary. It has totally paid off, though. I have a tendancy to think that if something scares me, it is probably the thing I should go and do. Generally this line of thinking has paid off, with that one big, messy notable exception. But then, life is messy. If it isn't, you probably aren't living it.
"We love people, ultimately, for their humanity; not because of their perfection but in spite of their imperfections."
Something to remember when dealing with the ex. His imperfections were once why I loved him, not the annoyances I find them today. Breathe. Forgive. Understand.
"I forget how she died. I'm sure I deliberately blank out her story because I loathe stories about young women who die at tender ages. I would rather see monuments to women who survived their first loves and went on to have several more."
I like this idea very, very much.
"What I require of a book is that it kidnap me into its world. Its world must make the so-called real world seem flimsy. Its world must trigger the nostalgia to return. When I close the book, I should feel bereft.
How rare this is, and how grateful I am to find it. The utter trust that exists between reader and author is like the trust between lovers. If I feel betrayed by the author, I will never surrender again. I must believe in the author's honesty in order to be swept away."
I love it!
So, I wasn't loving it. The best bit for me was the end where she writes about trips to Italy, cause I love Italy and want to retire there to a villa and drink too much red wine. There were some chapters about literature and porn and she wrote a lot about Lolita, which I really should get around to reading.
"Every life decision I have made - from changing jobs to changing partners to changing homes - has been taken with trepidation. I have not ceased being fearful, but I have ceased to let fear control me. I have accepted fear as a part of life, specifically the fear of change, of the unknown."
This is my life! I changed all three back in April and it was certainly very scary. It has totally paid off, though. I have a tendancy to think that if something scares me, it is probably the thing I should go and do. Generally this line of thinking has paid off, with that one big, messy notable exception. But then, life is messy. If it isn't, you probably aren't living it.
"We love people, ultimately, for their humanity; not because of their perfection but in spite of their imperfections."
Something to remember when dealing with the ex. His imperfections were once why I loved him, not the annoyances I find them today. Breathe. Forgive. Understand.
"I forget how she died. I'm sure I deliberately blank out her story because I loathe stories about young women who die at tender ages. I would rather see monuments to women who survived their first loves and went on to have several more."
I like this idea very, very much.
"What I require of a book is that it kidnap me into its world. Its world must make the so-called real world seem flimsy. Its world must trigger the nostalgia to return. When I close the book, I should feel bereft.
How rare this is, and how grateful I am to find it. The utter trust that exists between reader and author is like the trust between lovers. If I feel betrayed by the author, I will never surrender again. I must believe in the author's honesty in order to be swept away."
I love it!
June 25, 2008
She's the sassiest of my favorite sassy girl writers. I'm reading the old edition from the library (subtitled power, sex, bread and roses), but it's fairly timeless. She talks about love and motherhood, politics, porn, feminism, and literature.
April 30, 2009
I enjoyed this book. I need to read more Erica Jong.
June 20, 2014
I found this book very interesting, with a lot of ideas for further contemplation. It also gives an interesting look into the psyche of writers of both sexes.
August 8, 2024
I didn't find this book helpful for understanding what women want. It's just a critic to modern society and hypocrisy of male writers.
January 23, 2023
Yeah, the title… it's not a “How to pick up girls” primer. In case you are curious, the answer is... the same things men want. But you should know that already.
There is a lot to learn in this collection of essays written in the 90s. But first…
In 1973 Erica Jong wrote a huge and sexy bestseller, THE FEAR OF FLYING. In terms of popularity, it was the FIFTY SHADES OF GREY of its day. It may have shared the cultural impact of LOLITA or LADY CHATTERLEY'S LOVER of even earlier generations. Culturally sanctioned sexual fantasies do hit the mainstream from time to time, and they are liberating.
Owing to my own ignorance, I hadn’t heard anything of Erica Jong since 1973. I bought and read WHAT DO WOMEN WANT in 2016 because; it contained an essay about Hillary Clinton, I recognized Jong’s name, and two essays featured the provocative titles; THE PRESIDENT'S PENIS and INCEST & ANAÏS NIN. I found Erica Jong a lighter version of the academic, Camille Paglia. That is not a slight. Jong is simply more comprehensible. Both are intellectuals and feminists. I am a feminist, though I hate feminists who hate me(n).
Picking up my copy to refresh my memory before writing this, I found I’d marked many passages. I started rereading essays. They are so good. I had to stop. There are too many other books waiting for me. Many of her essays are about literature and being a writer. Jong includes a valuable list of 100 great novels by 20th century female writers.
Here are a few quotes;
“She writes her stories with a light, ironic hand. She is able to tell tales on herself---the sign of a real writer. And, blessedly, she doesn’t take herself too seriously.”
“Words are our antidote to mortality.”
“The truth was, Di had gone as far as she could go alive. Virgins can’t stay virgins and they mayn’t be public whores, so they have to die. From Juliet to Sleeping Beauty, consider the fate of virgins. The kiss kills as often as it cures.”
There is a lot to learn in this collection of essays written in the 90s. But first…
In 1973 Erica Jong wrote a huge and sexy bestseller, THE FEAR OF FLYING. In terms of popularity, it was the FIFTY SHADES OF GREY of its day. It may have shared the cultural impact of LOLITA or LADY CHATTERLEY'S LOVER of even earlier generations. Culturally sanctioned sexual fantasies do hit the mainstream from time to time, and they are liberating.
Owing to my own ignorance, I hadn’t heard anything of Erica Jong since 1973. I bought and read WHAT DO WOMEN WANT in 2016 because; it contained an essay about Hillary Clinton, I recognized Jong’s name, and two essays featured the provocative titles; THE PRESIDENT'S PENIS and INCEST & ANAÏS NIN. I found Erica Jong a lighter version of the academic, Camille Paglia. That is not a slight. Jong is simply more comprehensible. Both are intellectuals and feminists. I am a feminist, though I hate feminists who hate me(n).
Picking up my copy to refresh my memory before writing this, I found I’d marked many passages. I started rereading essays. They are so good. I had to stop. There are too many other books waiting for me. Many of her essays are about literature and being a writer. Jong includes a valuable list of 100 great novels by 20th century female writers.
Here are a few quotes;
“She writes her stories with a light, ironic hand. She is able to tell tales on herself---the sign of a real writer. And, blessedly, she doesn’t take herself too seriously.”
“Words are our antidote to mortality.”
“The truth was, Di had gone as far as she could go alive. Virgins can’t stay virgins and they mayn’t be public whores, so they have to die. From Juliet to Sleeping Beauty, consider the fate of virgins. The kiss kills as often as it cures.”
February 2, 2020
Quanto amo questa donna! Quanto ho amato questo libro!
July 30, 2011
A collection of essays -both funny and serious and always stimulating- about the female universe.
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews