I admit it, I bought this book on a whim because the click bait title made me turn my head sideways. With that being said it’s actually so much better than the title!
I don’t frequently read nonfiction and when I do I usually find it hard to get through – not so with this book! It was a short easy read not bogged down with too many numbers or logistics, although it certainly had them in there.
The premise of this book is just an observation that for a short glimpse of time some women in certain socialist countries enjoyed a new sort of life and basically in one generation changed the entire structure of the society. Simply put when women are guaranteed a job, income, home, food, healthcare, and childcare, they upend the nuclear family dynamic. In these societies women became super independent, took on lovers instead of husbands, and created a whole generation of single mothers who couldn’t be bogged down or bothered to put up with dead beat dads. The argument is stunningly simple and totally mind blowing. Basically if women don’t need men as bread winners they find little use for them for anything except lovers and sperm donors! (And of course there’s the odd complaint from the men who feel their lives have significantly become shittier without women to take care of them and their home – surprise surprise!)
I grew up with a single mother who I am sure felt much the same way and in return I wonder about this way of living. It was a fascinating read that really put a lot into perspective. The research behind it seemed sane and grounded. I actually would recommend this book to any feminist or anyone into gender politics.