I received an Advanced Reader Copy (ARC) of this book from Netgalley and Avid Reader Press. This has not impacted my rating and this review is voluntary.
- Genre: Nonfiction
- Published by: Avid Reader Press / Simon & Schuster
- Publish date: Nov. 29, 2023
- Number of pages: 320 pages
- Author’s website: http://www.heatherradke.com/
- Support local! Buy the book on BookShop!
Whether we love them or hate them, think they’re sexy, think they’re strange, consider them too big, too small, or anywhere in between, humans have a complicated relationship with butts. It is a body part unique to humans, critical to our evolution and survival, and yet it has come to signify so much more: sex, desire, comedy, shame. A woman’s butt, in particular, is forever being assessed, criticized, and objectified, from anxious self-examinations trying on jeans in department store dressing rooms to enduring crass remarks while walking down a street or high school hallways. But why? In Butts: A Backstory, reporter, essayist, and RadioLab contributing editor Heather Radke is determined to find out.
Rating: 3.5/5
I felt the author did a great job at giving us an overview of butts throughout history and the societal pressures on having the ideal butt at a certain point in history.
There were many things that I already knew but I see this as someone who both reads about pop culture in her spare time and minored in African American history. Unsurprisingly, you can’t talk about butts without acknowledging Black history.
Given the space that Heather Radke has this book isn’t a comprehensive history by any means and can serve as a starting point for those who might be interested in learning about each era in depth by doing more research. This is definitely a pop-science book and very accessible, especially for those who don’t typically reach non-fiction.
Have you read this book? What are your thoughts? I’d love to know!
Musings by Michelle 