318
ment-that
IS,
when the authors
are sufficiently modest in their
research goals and in their state–
ment of findings (Shorter and Tilly
are actually
amusing,
even self–
mocking-rare and charming
qualities in historians ofany persua–
sion). I've so far been able to read
only about one-third of Gregor 's
book-the section on Marxian
economics-but I find it so stun–
ningly lucid and persuasive that I
have no trouble recommending the
entire work. On the history of
sexual behavior , I want to call atten–
tion to four books . One of them,
Ann Oakley's
Sex, Gender
&
Soci–
ety
(Harper
&
Row .) has been out
for two years-and I' ve yet to see a
review of it. And this despite the
fact that I think it is far and away
the best available summary of the
anthropological and biological
literature. It makes no pretense to
original research or conceptualiza–
tion, but it is so gifted a presenta–
tion as to give " popularization" a
new dignity.
John S. Haller and Robin M.
Haller have written an important
monograph in
The Physician and
Sexuality in Victonrln Amen'ca
(University ofIllinois Press : 1974 .) .
!t's traditional in structure and
merely straight-forward in style ;
but in opening up new source
materials and in commenting ably
on them, the Hailers have demon–
strated (like Peter Wood) that we
can-indeed have already begun-
PARTISAN REVIEW
to recapture vital areas of our
national experience.
Laurence Veysey's
The Com–
munal Expen'ence
(Harper
&
Row)
has not been ignored (it was a
Nominee for the National Book
Award), but I think almost all the
reviews have lamentably under–
rated or misunderstood it. What
Veysey has done is to get us off the
dime. He has studied a group of
anarchist and mystical communes
(19th and 20th centuries) that have
been previously unknown or barely
known . And- almost uniquely–
he has included material on sexual
behavior. All presented , moreover,
with the skills of a first-class anthro–
pologist (he's a historian by train–
ing) and the insights of a good
novelist into human personality .
Finally , I want to recommend
Dolores Klaich' s new book
Woman
Plus Woman
(Simon
&
Schuster.)
The book impressed me on two
grounds: the sheer amount of new
information on lesbian history–
and especially on the fascinating
circle that gathered around Natha–
lie Barney in Paris- and also its
tone-scrupulous, direct , gentle ,
and with a total absence of polemics
or over-statement .
ISHMAEL REED:
Aiiieeeee! An
Anthology of Asian Amencan
Wn'ters ,
edited by Jeffery Paul
Chan , Frank Chin , Lawson Fusao
Inada , Shawn Hsu Wong . (Howard
