Monsters: Evil Beings, Mythical Beasts, And All Manner Of Imaginary Terrors by David D. Gilmore (Professor of Anthropology, State University of New York, Stony Brook), is a thoughtful, in-depth, scholarly study of the fantastic and hideous creatures abounding in myth, legend, and folklore around the world. Extensively researched, Monsters draws upon a body of lore and stories ranging from ancient times down to modern-day popular movies. A highly recommended addition to any personal or academic Mythology/Folklore Studies and/or Popular Culture Studies reference collection or supplemental reading list, Monsters is a simply fascinating study of human nature the cultural/societal issues and meanings reflected in the stories and images of malevolent, imaginary beasts.

This book explores the ways in which manhood is defined. It does so by investigating a series of fascinating case studies. To take but two of these, we see that the Truk of Micronesia have a pattern of adolescent drinking and brawling that can be seen as both a holdover of a more bellicose past and a stage through which to pass into marital and parental life; furthermore, we find that Tahitian manhood is subdued, probably reflecting the relative ease and cooperative nature of their subsistence basis (fishing and agriculture) as well as an absence of intergroup aggression. The ways by which males achieve status across cultural contexts vary with respect to the social and ecological conditions faced by a given society. Where warfare prevails, for example, a society's warriors earn high status, and are typically favored by women as mates. Common to many societies, men must "impregnate women, protect dependents from danger, and provision kith and kin (p. 223)." Such provocative conclusions, attention to ethnographic detail and clear writing make this a book difficult to put down. The main drawback rests with some of the interpretation of the cultural and universal patterns of manhood. The Freudian interpretations commonly make little sense and the group selection arguments need re-couching in terms of individual selection; otherwise, most interpretations seem sensible. Overall, this book does a great job of addressing manhood in the making.

Here, an anthropologist looks at the way masculinity is defined and created in various ways and various cultures around the globe. What we find is that just about every trait now vilified in America is highly valued around the world, in both "primitive" and "advanced" societies. This book seems to be about what our country has forgotten (or is in serious denial about), at its own peril -- that men are constructive, generous, sacrificing, loving, supportive of their families, hard working, etc... Why they are that way is what the book explains.

Unlike women, who automatically get to go from being girls to being women when they first menstruate, men face a much less definite transition in going from boys to men -- a state which has to be earned and is constantly tested. Femininity is a biological fact; masculinity is largely a cultural construct. This is why we have the term "real man", while it would be ludicrous to say someone was not a "real" woman or implore her to be one. Being a man is provisional, not permanent. It's something which is always in question.

This book is a definite tonic for anyone who thinks men's lives are some walk down a flower-strewn path. Also a good complement or counter-balance to all the deterministic evolutionary socio-biology out recently. The bibliography goes on for pages (thus satisfying the other experts in the field), yet the book is for the most part quite readable to the motivated layperson. Sure to provide one with new perspectives on familiar aspects of everyday life even if it's not an analysis of modern industrial life.

Though I agree with some points of Miss Berden's analysis, especially the catalog nature of Mr. Gilmore's book, I find his observations about male frailty and victimization to be quite adroit. These points were meant as entreaties to male readers, and not intended to deflect blame. Anyone with any sense of education knows who's getting the raw end of misogyny, and the male population would be served well by delving deep into the cultural roots of our abusive behavior, which are documented quite well (with an exception or two) in Mr. Gilmore's text.

The problem I have with the book is that the documentation of cultural practices weigh down the first two thirds of the read so as to almost overwhelm you before you approach his altruistic conclusions at the end. Other than that, I thought it was quite a refreshing look from a male approach.

After reading this book I was inspired to think about a work to complement it for all the feminists out there, entitled, "Misoandry," (a word which is probably a contraction of "me so angry").

As a budding misogynist myself who's recovering from a typical American upbringing in which I was taught to uncritically worship and indulge women who were probably completely undeserving of such adulation, I found this to be an invaluable guide to reforming my uxorious and adulatory ways with respect to the fairer sex.

Of course, women have their problems in life too. They have menarche, menopause, mental stress, and mendacious partners to deal with. Notice that all these words start with the word "men," which is no doubt where all their problems come from. I'm sure my book on misoandry will be a runaway bestseller and make me a cult millionaire with all those rabid, man-hating feminists.

This book was a remarkable eye-opener as I was originally searching for a copy of 'The Book of Miso : Savory, High-Protein Seasoning' by William Shurtleff and Akiko Aoyagi. However, although my culinary desires went unsatisfied, this work more than compensated me with its keen insights into an area heretofor unknown to me. Henry Raddick's comments are, of course, the definitive review; I am somewhat surprised, however, that he omitted to comment on this fascinating (and courageous) change of genre by Mr. Gilmore. I am pleased to correct the omission. From his (arguably humble) beginnings as groundbreaking prog-rock guitarist to professor of anthropology we can only laud this single-minded devotion in forsaking the pleasures of the music scene (clearly where one might derive considerable experience in misogyny) in order to dedicate oneself to a more studious discipline. May I therefore honour Gilmore's frankness. Come on, McCartney, Daltrey and Jagger - the academic gauntlet has been thrown down!