Mediocre: The Dangerous Legacy of White Male Power, Ijeoma Oluo
I had been looking forward to reading this book for quite some time, as its premise seemed altogether too interesting: that white men, who have for hundreds of years upheld the status quo, as well as the societal norms and standards that we are all supposed to strive toward, are nothing but mediocre, and that patriarchy has taught men to cling to this mediocrity at all costs, which has turned out to be more dangerous than we ever could have imagined. Oluo uses a wide range of examples, from the cowboys of the Midwest to Bernie bros to American football players and team owners, to make her point: that white men have upheld the status quo at the expense of all others, even those white men, like the Bernie bros, who are supposedly progressive. However, something is missing from her chapters. I kept waiting for lines to be drawn and points to be made, something to wrap everything together to explicitly show readers the “point” so to speak, but this never happened. Maybe that’s why I could only find this book in hardcover (lol, I hate hardcovers).
Come as You Are, Emily Nagoski
I had also been looking forward to reading this book for quite some time, as many people talked about it when it first came out a few years ago. We all know that historically, women’s orgasms have not been made a priority, and that in fact, women’s sexuality (and thus orgasm) has been controlled to the point of women being deprived of sexual pleasure due to lack of education or harmful medical practices. So I was expecting a mix of research and advice on how to have better sex, give that the book’s subtitle is literally, ‘The Surprising New Science that Will Transform Your Sex Life’. But once again, I was disappointed (I know I know, perhaps I just expect too much from nonfiction): while Nagoski does indeed mention many studies (her credentials are impeccable), the overall tone of peppy cheerleader – you got this, girl! – really turned me off, as I was expecting something a bit more serious. However, I do not want to downplay the importance of this book, because among other things, it does include anatomical drawings of vulvas and clitorises, and it is true that in order to have better sex, the first thing that is needed is information, pure and simple, which this book provides ample evidence of.