reindeerbandit 's review for:

The Secret History of Wonder Woman by Jill Lepore

4.0

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The title is a bit misleading—this is straight up a biography of the creator of Wonder Woman. There's plenty of information about the women in his life, and how he cribbed their stories to craft an incredible character, but basically I learned that WW, the greatest superhero of all time, was invented by a lying huckster who conned his way into jobs and women's pants. He was a loud and staunch feminist, but also suuuuuuper into bondage. I do not buy his arguments that WW always has to be in chains to symbolize her strength over toxic masculinity so she can choose to submit to loving masculinity. He wasn't great, guys. The women in his life seemed awesome, though I don't understand why they put up with him.

That said, wonderfully written. I flew through it. Lepore is an excellent biographer.