Women in Power was an unusual choice for the book club, it came out of nowhere yet was eagerly accepted when put forward.
I had read Beard before in the very detailed SPQR so it was a surprise when I realised how thin the hardback was. I must admit I was wary about reading it given the #TimesUp/#MeToo movements and the amount of publicity women's issues are getting at the moment, was this just a jump on the bandwagon hastily put together book?
Well the cover certainly wasn't a rushed job as I found it quite a strong choice, not history like at all and am I the only one thinking it's almost James Bond esque in the tunnel like pattern?
My surprise at how thin the book was was mirrored when I realised how little word content there was. The wide margins, large font and spacing, coupled with pictures and total page breaks really felt like there was no real substance to the book right from the off.
This was disappointing as it gave the impression there was nothing much to say about woman and power.
I read it in an hour which must be one of the quickest books I have read ever. It starts off as expected by Beard drawing on the Romans and Greeks and illustrating how they framed society's view of women. It then skips forward to modern day focusing on politics as a way of showing how women have never really recovered.
It doesn't celebrate women's successes, or show that we have made any sort of progress and whilst I'm not saying we don't still have a long way to go, we definitely have moved forward from the days of being turned into a cow. I think my main issue with the book was despite it being classed as a manifesto there was no call to arms or suggestions as to how we move forward. The focus on politics made some of the group feel like it was not relatable and I wish other areas such as medicine, literature, law and even sport had been touched upon.
The book almost felt like a first draft rather than a fully formed thesis that we know Beard is more than capable of. It was based on a series of lectures she had previously given which went some way to explaining the briefness but I still felt it needed more fleshing out.
The subject matter was obviously a very emotive topic for the group and the discussion was varied. I, perhaps unjustly, wrote it off as a coffee table book that looks good and allows people to say 'look at what I am reading, I'm current'. The point was used against me when someone argued that as a coffee table book it will reach a far wider audience, some of whom will use it as a starter for ten and consult the further reading section or for forming more of an opinion on Women and Power.
There was a full range of scores (1-10) and the possibility of a future blind scoring was mooted so as to not be influenced by other group members, watch this space. It averaged 5.4 but was certainly a good book for a book club.
Next book is The One by John Marrs
I had read Beard before in the very detailed SPQR so it was a surprise when I realised how thin the hardback was. I must admit I was wary about reading it given the #TimesUp/#MeToo movements and the amount of publicity women's issues are getting at the moment, was this just a jump on the bandwagon hastily put together book?
Well the cover certainly wasn't a rushed job as I found it quite a strong choice, not history like at all and am I the only one thinking it's almost James Bond esque in the tunnel like pattern?
My surprise at how thin the book was was mirrored when I realised how little word content there was. The wide margins, large font and spacing, coupled with pictures and total page breaks really felt like there was no real substance to the book right from the off.
This was disappointing as it gave the impression there was nothing much to say about woman and power.
I read it in an hour which must be one of the quickest books I have read ever. It starts off as expected by Beard drawing on the Romans and Greeks and illustrating how they framed society's view of women. It then skips forward to modern day focusing on politics as a way of showing how women have never really recovered.
It doesn't celebrate women's successes, or show that we have made any sort of progress and whilst I'm not saying we don't still have a long way to go, we definitely have moved forward from the days of being turned into a cow. I think my main issue with the book was despite it being classed as a manifesto there was no call to arms or suggestions as to how we move forward. The focus on politics made some of the group feel like it was not relatable and I wish other areas such as medicine, literature, law and even sport had been touched upon.
The book almost felt like a first draft rather than a fully formed thesis that we know Beard is more than capable of. It was based on a series of lectures she had previously given which went some way to explaining the briefness but I still felt it needed more fleshing out.
The subject matter was obviously a very emotive topic for the group and the discussion was varied. I, perhaps unjustly, wrote it off as a coffee table book that looks good and allows people to say 'look at what I am reading, I'm current'. The point was used against me when someone argued that as a coffee table book it will reach a far wider audience, some of whom will use it as a starter for ten and consult the further reading section or for forming more of an opinion on Women and Power.
There was a full range of scores (1-10) and the possibility of a future blind scoring was mooted so as to not be influenced by other group members, watch this space. It averaged 5.4 but was certainly a good book for a book club.
Next book is The One by John Marrs
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