Bones: Discovering the First Americans by Elaine Dewar rounded down to 1 star

[Karin]

On the one hand, there was some interesting information in this book. I did like seeing the many different scientists and views on the history of people in the Americas. It doesn't dispute any first people's claims about being here first, but it also clearly shows the insane ways people will go to to cling to theories that were made before many things were studied, how politics and rivalry between scientists can cause problems and how seldom--at least at that time--people in the States or even Canada read the work of archaeologists and anthropologists from South America--I mean all of it.

I wanted to like this--my dad really liked it, the author is Canadian and from my dad's home province, I am interested in the topic--but it was sometimes boring as dust, other times interesting and often gossipy and even a bit catty a few times. Overall it was a bit disjointed when taken as a whole as well. It's not the author's fault for the state of this field, but how she put this together is bothering me more. Here's a note I made part way through because the comment she made just had no business in a book like this that gives an eg of catty and also completely inappropriate information and comment in a book like this.

I'm still reading this, but wanted to make a note at how disappointed I was that Dewar--a woman to boot--made such a thoughtless, pointless and inane remark about a woman's body! As if her breast size has anything at all with who she is as a woman, and in this instance that's exactly what she implies (view spoiler)[ page 354 hardcover Elayne Dick is a tiny woman in her twenties, her skin tanned to the shade of expensive Italian shoe leather, her body as slim and flat as a thirteen-year-old's. What did she know of sex scenes? the context is about sex scenes on an ancient piece of pottery. So a woman with small breasts doesn't/can't get sex or enough of it to know about sex scenes? (hide spoiler)]