Women are still a closed book to men (Research shows men mainly read works by other men)

The Guardian ^ | Sunday May 29, 2005 | David Smith

[familyop]

I read fiction when I was a teenager.

[Tuba-Dude]

Of course men will read books by men. It's a book, not a delicious turkey dinner.

(Yes, that's sarcasm, with a tip of the hat to Family Guy)

[Paleo Conservative]

I bet the editors of The Guardian avoid reading Ayn Rand!

[nickcarraway]

You haven't read a newspaper since you were a teenager?

[nickcarraway]

Why read Ayn Rand, when you can read Rigoberta Menchu?

[Hetty_Fauxvert]

There may be a difference in genre fiction, specifically science fiction. The Nebula awards are voted on by SFWA (Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America), which is a professional organization with a preponderance of men. I see that Lois McMaster Bujold just won what I think is her third Nebula for best SF/F novel (PALLADIN OF SOULS). Clearly there are *some* men who are reading her works!

[LibFreeOrDie]

The last thing I want to spend time reading is "important fiction".

These academic females instituted the women-only prize, and now they're b*tching that men aren't choosing to read "important fiction" written by women. Are they going to demand quotas on men's purchases at bookstores next?

[martin_fierro]

I only read the cerebral stuff.

[Larry Lucido]

With the advent of audio books, I've been listening to more detective and mystery novels. I've listened to books by male and female authors. The male authors stick to the plot - the female authors put in a lot of lefty-touchy-feely crap that takes away from the story. In Donna Leon's novels, for example, Inspector Guido Brunetti is pussy-whipped by his femnist wife, and often only carries his gun as an afterthought.

[SteveMcKing]

I had to google Rigoberta Menchu to get the joke, but it was worth it. Thanks.

[Red Sea Swimmer]

95% of the books I have ever read have been non-fiction. I find truth much stranger and more interesting than fiction.

Five good books that all men should read by women authors are :

Trauma and Recovery - By Judith Lewis Herman
Betrayal Trauma - By Jennifer Freyd
Too Scared to Cry - By Lenore Terr
Thou Shalt Not Be Aware - By Alice Miller
The Pentateuch - By Moses's secretary, Mrs.Moses

:)

[Red Sea Swimmer]

Is that part of the "Naked on Wheels" series, or am I just having a Benny Hill flashback ?

[SteveMcKing]

My two best physics professors were brilliant women. Fierce beasts, they were, but I think their abandonment of typical womanly concerns was what allowed them to become supereducated, thus earning my studious attention.

But if an author writes tripe, don't expect me to read it, and don't complain if it just so happens that the woman-to-tripe ratio is exactly 1-to-1. Whose fault is that?

I judge by content, not sex.

[chudogg]

How big of a sample size did they need to find people that read at all?

Then what percentage of those people were needed to find people that still read fiction?

[Smokin' Joe]

The last two or three works of fiction I attempted to read which were written by women had such glaring errors when referring to firearms or other technical subjects that I just put them down in disgust.

Most (most, not all) male authors take time to get the technical details and terminology right. Clavell screwed up 'Whirlwind' by having his oil rigs "tip" out of the hole to change a bit (The word is "trip".) Imagine trying to read that (I've been in the oil patch for 25 years, and put it down.)

Regardless of gender, I don't patronize writers who will write off the trip to watch the bulls run, but don't know the end with the pointy things from the end where the NY Times comes out.

[KellyAdmirer]

Some of my earliest sci-fi reading was by Andre Norton, who incidentally died recently. I spent the better part of a winter a long time ago reading Ayn Rand. When women write about things that *I* am interested in, I read them. Unfortunately, that happens pretty darn rarely. I'm not into Romance Novels or romancey-type novels. If a woman ever writes a classic history of the German retreat through Eastern Europe in 1944-45 or an authoritative guide to warplanes of the 20th century, I'll be right there.

[Diva Betsy Ross]

So the Orange prize remains sexist - writers and supporter\s of this agenda won't be happy till we have quotas.

It is a fascinating piece of data - but the analysis is totally wack - instead of assuming that men have some sort of bias, why not look for innate differences in topics and writing styles - and even motivations for writing etc.

I would like a special literary award for the best piece of fiction written from my address this year - that way I can be important too! And you should all read my book because I'm important!

Diva's Husband

[garandgal]

If a woman ever writes a classic history of the German retreat through Eastern Europe in 1944-45 or an authoritative guide to warplanes of the 20th century, I'll be right there.

Hmmm, good to know. Do you think I'd sell more than one copy? If so, I'll get right on it...would you read a book about the home front?

(Read my name...LOL).

[xenophiles]

This seems like a very equivocal set of measurements. The researchers should have done some tighter work. For instance:

"Here are the first chapters of two novels you haven't read. Certain character and place names may have been changed so as not to suggest the titles. Please read them and tell us which you prefer (with a short review of each if you wish)."

With that one question we can measure the difference (if any) between male and female tastes for male and female writing, cleanly separated from all of the murky influences of stereotype, sex loyalty and self-consciousness.

...of course, that's the right thing to do only if you want to find out the truth. If you already have an opinion and simply want evidence to support it, then murky is the way to go...