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Off with Her Head
Off with Her Head: Three Thousand Years of Demonizing Women in Power | Eleanor Herman
7 posts | 8 read | 13 to read
New York Times bestseller Eleanor Herman, author of Sex with Kings and Sex with Presidents, returns with another work of popular history, exploring the history of misogyny against women with power from Cleopatra to Kamala Harris. Imagine Donald Trump as a woman, called Donna. Would Donna Trump have been viewed as blunt, honest, and refreshing? Would she have won the election? Imagine Hillary Clinton as a man. Howard Clinton says and does the exact same things as Hillary. Would Howard Clinton have been portrayed in a thousand Pinterest images as a witch, stirring a cauldron or riding a broomstick? Would he have been called a bitch on countless T-shirts? Would his thoughtful, circumspect answers to media questions have been seen as inauthenticity, secretiveness, and untrustworthiness? There is a particular kind of ragelets call it unadulterated bloodlustusually reserved for women, especially women in power or vying for it. From the ancient world, through the European Renaissance, up to the most recent U.S. elections, the Misogynists Handbook, as Eleanor Herman calls it, has been wielded to put uppity women in their place. In a story that is shocking, eye-opening, and a powerful force for change, Eleanor Hermans signature wit and humor explores the patterns that have been operating for more than three thousand yearsand are still operating todayagainst powerful women across the globe, including Cleopatra, Anne Boleyn, Marie Antoinette, Catherine the Great, Hillary Clinton, Kamala Harris, and more. Each chapter analyzes a tried-and-true misogynistic method to keep women down, including: Her Overweening Ambition, Why Doesnt She Do Something About Her Hair?, The Dangers of Female Hormones, The Alarming Shrillness of Her Voice, The Mysterious Unlikability of Female Candidates, Shes a Bitch and Other Animals, Shes a Witch and Other Monsters, and Her Sexual Depravity. Herman ends the book by looking forward, examining ways to rip up the Misogynists Handbook once and for all.
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Brooke_H
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Pickpick

I would have done this as 3.5 stars if Goodreads would allow it.

This is a hard book to review. I found it interesting and compelling, but of course Herman is really preaching to the choir here. There are anecdotes that are jaw-dropping and infuriating. I was glad to "meet" women in power past and present I had never heard of before.

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tracy.anne8
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This one was rage inducing. I knew it would be bad going into it but I never realized just how bad. I'm still trying to process some of the examples the author used. #audiobook #scribd #nonfiction

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Addison_Reads
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Excellent read!

Eleanor Herman outlines the reasons, with facts, about why women have been demonized throughout history. I love the deep dive she does through history to give a different, more accurate portrayal of women who were typically seen as "difficult" simply because they dared to push pass their designated stations in life.

Lots of great information in this one.

EvieBee Sounds fascinating! Did she mention Cleopatra? 2y
Megabooks @EvieBee I believe she did. She delves out of modern history quite a bit. 2y
EvieBee @Megabooks Okay! That settles it! ☺️ 💕 2y
Addison_Reads @EvieBee Yes, she had a lot of information about Cleopatra that I found fascinating. 2y
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Addison_Reads
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I'm loving this book so far and I'm only in the first chapter.

Texreader Great quote! 2y
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Kangaj1
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This weekend's book haul from the Wisconsin Book Festival and my library book sale. I grabbed an extra copy of Nerd for my son.

NovelGirl82 Nerd is on my tbr! So looking forward to that one! 2y
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Megabooks
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Women and men are treated differently in leadership roles, and while it has been written about a lot recently, I enjoyed Herman‘s take on it. I especially appreciated her deep dive into historical texts about Elizabeth I, Catherine de Medici, and others. She also looked at modern politicians from Bhutto to Kim Campbell to May, but she circled back to Hillary often. Hillary was treated horribly & unfairly, but I enjoyed the historical aspects more.

Bookwormjillk You always find the most interesting books! 2y
squirrelbrain Sounds fascinating - stacked. 2y
Megabooks @Bookwormjillk thank my library! It has the best person picking nonfiction for audiobooks!! 2y
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Megabooks @squirrelbrain it really was! 2y
Librarybelle I have an ARC of this and am hoping I can get to it soon! 2y
Megabooks @Librarybelle fantastic! I hope you enjoy it too! 2y
mdemanatee I‘ve been casually interested in this so you may have just swayed me 2y
Megabooks @mdemanatee I hope you enjoy it!! 2y
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