I'm reading two books right now, one written by a man and one by a woman.  There were times in my life where I found myself only reading books by women, and I can't account for that phase.  Maybe it was when I was deep in my marriage, submerged in children's activities and hidden longings.  All I may have wanted was a book by women that explored the same thing, needing to see my own life reflected back to me.  Or maybe I was sick of men, needing another Phillip Roth book like I would a hole in the head.  Maybe it was that I'd been taught English Literature from texts predominately written by men.  Sure, we can read Julian of Norwich and Jane Austen and George Eliot, but the work only goes back a few hundred years because women just really weren't allowed to write, and then, not under their own names.  Finally, thank god for the 19th and 20th centuries, but by that time, the school year was over.

I haven't been able to click on the Publisher's Weekly list that promotes the best books of 2009 because it is always accompanied by a diatribe that is earned and one that makes me just not want to look at the list. 

No women on the list! the email starts.  What is their problem?

But mostly, I shake my head, thinking, Duh.  Have you really looked at the The New York Times reviews or even those in the San Francisco Chronicle?  Yes, they certainly do review women's books, but if you counted them all up for the year--more men.  And then, not only more men, but likely, all the review pages are reviewing the same books by men, and by women, the subset of what is seen as "review worthy" a very small pool indeed.  On the outside of the circle are a lot of women and a few thousand romance writers, speculative fiction writers, and a few mystery writers who would all love to be reviewed, for better or worse.

The world is made up of circles of exclusion, the insiders, the outsiders.  The middle of the circle, and those who are are out.  Those who are in and those who are other.  women have long been on the outside of the circle, making stabs at the tender middle and sometimes getting there, triumphant.  But then another woman is pushed out and the stab and enter game starts up all over again.

It pisses me off, but it doesn't surprise me.  I suppose what is surprising is that the editors of PW didn't see this coming a mile a way.  Really, that's the most unbelievable part of it.  What were they thinking?

I'll tell you what.  They can go back and do some more reading.  Think a little.  Use their good brains to come up with a better list, one that includes those on the outside of the circle, the surprising choices, the ones who only a few months ago were other.

Jessica