Review by Choice Review
The word Battleground, used as a series title by Greenwood, is essential to understanding the intent and content of this useful new reference work. The introduction states that the book aims to demonstrate "how women's bodies become battlegrounds--symbolically and materially." This set features short essays on contemporary issues concerning women, with titles such as "Sex versus Gender," "Terrorism and National Security," "Gender and Globalization," and "Postfeminism." The variety, brevity, and accessibility of the essays make this volume an excellent resource for undergraduate students searching for scholarly interpretations of current issues involving gender. Where applicable, the editors have included special informational boxes with added features such as time lines, biographical sketches, and more detailed explanations of topics. Although the book attempts to be international in scope, it is heavily skewed to an American viewpoint and written with a liberal feminist lens. Even with these weaknesses, this work is an excellent up-to-date supplement to the almost nine-year-old Routledge International Encyclopedia of Women, ed. by C. Kramarae and D. Spender (CH, Jul'01, 38-5889). Summing Up: Recommended. Lower- and upper-level undergraduates. S. E. Morris University of Kansas
Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.
Review by Booklist Review
Women's roles and rights continue to permeate social, economic, and political discussion and action. This work's editors state that their central focus is on how women's bodies become battlegrounds symbolically and materially. Their purpose is to provide an accessible reference to the most controversial issues and debates pertaining to women's lives, gender, and sexuality. Most article authors are women, many are involved in women's studies, and a few represent other countries. As such, the bias is a bit pro-feminist and American. Almost 100 signed articles, arranged alphabetically, make up the work. At the beginning of each volume, the article titles are also clustered into 13 headings, among them, Families and Parenting, Gender Identities and Expressions, and Violence against Women. Entries range from 3 to 12 pages (the latter for topics such as Medicine and medicalization: Views on women's bodies;Queer; and Religion), with most articles about 7 pages in length. Most entries begin with background or historical information, and many (for example, Fetal rights, Religious fundamentalism) give both pro and con arguments for the topic. A few sidebars provide legal time lines, significant laws, or interesting factoids. Cross-references and bibliographies conclude each entry. At the end of the second volume only are a general 3-page bibliography and an incomplete index (e.g., masturbation is mentioned in at least one article but omitted in the index). Writing is clear and accessible. Youth are underrepresented (rites of passage and circumcision practices are ignored). Although not exhaustive, this reference work provides a useful introduction to many issues about women's identities as reflected in societal contexts. Even though women's lib may seem old hat, the underlying issues remain and need to be addressed clearly. These volumes are a fine effort to that end and complement the more comprehensive Routledge International Encyclopedia of Women: Global Women's Issues and Knowledge (2000).--Farmer, Lesley Copyright 2008 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Choice Review
Review by Booklist Review
