Customer Reviews

The Curse : A Cultural History of Menstruation

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Let's face it, it's not the type of book most
of us would just pick up and read. But, believe
it or not, it was incredibly fun, as well as invaluably informative.

Simply put, the Curse provides information I've
found nowhere else. It takes you through the
history of menstruation from culture to culture,
detailing the superstitions, myths and eventual
understanding of all phases of menstruation.

The latter part of the book dwells on our current
perceptions, as seen not only socially and
culturally, but through literature and film.

The authors also evaluate current feminine
products, from douches to pads and tampons,
providing an actual analysis of their usefulness
and dangers that is very rarely discussed in
other forums.

The overall tone is friendly; this is not your
typical "textbook." The only time I recall
a significant change in tone was, in the 2nd
edition, when they express their

Important work addressing the bloodmysteries that continue to shroud all women. An extremely helpful text for understanding how the role of menstruation and repoductive capability effects social structures and political equality movements. I highly recommend this read.

Since the first edition of this book came out, I have given it over and over to girls in my family or daughters of friends when they get their first period. They always love it. They most especially love the chapter on Menstrual humor. I think it's really neat that a university press publishes such a regular and useful book.

A friend gave me this book suggesting that I would enjoy it, and I dutifully read it. I wish I'd spent my time differently. There are some good jokes in it, but all in all, it's not very enlightening.

This book is a boring, humorless and extremely dated rant. It's painfully obvious that the authors are stuck in the groovy, bra-burning 70s. They've supposedly updated it, though you'd never know it. It's really time to take off the mood rings and the aviator frames, gals.