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3.74 AVERAGE
3.74 AVERAGE
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
I've never been a huge wonder woman fan or really known much about her. This book was an intriguing story of her history and how it's tied to the early suffragettes, and what an interesting life the creator lead. Now I actually think that I need to read some old wonder woman comics, haha.
The title The Secret History of Wonder Woman, together with the vivid cover art, were clearly chosen with an eye more to drawing in the reader than giving an actual sense of the book's content. This is less a general history of the character or of her appearance in comic books than it is about lives of the people who created her and the social and cultural contexts which shaped them.
William Moulton Marston, a failed professor of psychology, his wife Elizabeth Holloway, Marston's former student Olive Byrne (niece of Margaret Sanger, the founder of what is now Planned Parenthood), and another woman called Marjorie Wilkes Huntley lived together for many years in a polyamorous relationship. Marston's idea about gender and sexuality, coupled with an apparent bondage and domination fetish, together with the avowed feminist principles of all the members of the relationship, shaped the origins of the Wonder Woman character—and I have to say, many of the panels from the 1940s-era run of the comics are truly eyebrow-raising. That they slipped past the censor at all is mind-boggling.
Lepore tells a fascinating tale, but there were times when the prose was a little clunky and repetitious, and I would have enjoyed knowing more about the cultural impact and legacy of Wonder Woman—that seemed largely confined to the epilogue. A keener editorial eye would have made this a stronger book, but still a good read.
William Moulton Marston, a failed professor of psychology, his wife Elizabeth Holloway, Marston's former student Olive Byrne (niece of Margaret Sanger, the founder of what is now Planned Parenthood), and another woman called Marjorie Wilkes Huntley lived together for many years in a polyamorous relationship. Marston's idea about gender and sexuality, coupled with an apparent bondage and domination fetish, together with the avowed feminist principles of all the members of the relationship, shaped the origins of the Wonder Woman character—and I have to say, many of the panels from the 1940s-era run of the comics are truly eyebrow-raising. That they slipped past the censor at all is mind-boggling.
Lepore tells a fascinating tale, but there were times when the prose was a little clunky and repetitious, and I would have enjoyed knowing more about the cultural impact and legacy of Wonder Woman—that seemed largely confined to the epilogue. A keener editorial eye would have made this a stronger book, but still a good read.
hopeful
informative
slow-paced
I knew some of this story from my own interest in classic-era comics and from having read a history of the lie detector. (It’s always fun to find a book you’ve read cited in another book. Gives you a sense of… completeness.)
The book is somewhat coffee-table-ish despite its diminutive size, with lots of great illustrations and chapters that are very stand-alone, with facts often repeated when they come up under another topic. Despite this, I thoroughly enjoyed the book and felt the author treated her subjects with delicacy and fairness.
The book is somewhat coffee-table-ish despite its diminutive size, with lots of great illustrations and chapters that are very stand-alone, with facts often repeated when they come up under another topic. Despite this, I thoroughly enjoyed the book and felt the author treated her subjects with delicacy and fairness.
informative
slow-paced
An almost too exhaustive history of the origins of Wonder Woman (in comic book form). While all of the information was interesting and managed to be somewhat relevant I do believe that a lot of it could have either been cut or condensed. Jill Lepore has a wordy writing style that is easy to read but also leans toward being long-winded. However, I learned a ton of information about the original creator of WW and all the Wonder Women in his life that allowed him to create her. I'm also a little creeped out by how much kink managed to make its way into children's lit because Marston wanted to have his cake and eat it, too. Worth reading, but make sure you get the version with the updated afterword...the information Lepore discovered after the initial publishing of the book is equally as interesting as the entire book itself.
informative
informative
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced