Booklist Reviews
What do women want? Based on a simple premise—write about desire—this essay collection is focused on unique, complex desires. Over 30 authors answered the call, setting aside fear of scrutiny in order to write authentically. And they leave it all on the floor, with admissions that threaten marriages, families, and friendships. This collection is juicy, start to finish, and ranges widely in topic: a mediation on yard work, a personal history of strap-ons, and everything in between. A single mother tries molly for the first time with a hot chef 10 years her junior. A polyamorous relationship is comprehensively recounted. An Indigenous author meditates on the pain inflicted upon the land under colonialism and capitalism and the desire to return the land to its pre-colonial richness. Another writer revisits the memory of a childhood abuser and the complicated desire she experienced during the time of the abuse. The book is impossible to put down. With abundant candor and grace, every piece is a courageous gift. Copyright 2023 Booklist Reviews.
Publishers Weekly Reviews
Essayists Kahn and McMasters reunite after editing This Is the Place to deliver an impassioned anthology of women's perspectives on desire. "Our desires—and speaking them aloud—make us powerful," contend Kahn and McMasters in their introduction, compiling the perspectives of women "parents and pilots, PhDs and porn connoisseurs" on what it means to want. Explaining the excitement of trying new foods, creative writing teacher Michelle Wildgen relates that "I wanted to eat, yes, but more than anything I was hungry to know" about unfamiliar dishes and the locales they come from. Poet Rena Priest contemplates her Native American ancestry and culture, discussing her wish for the decolonization of Native American land and for her to not have to "overcome stereotypes" to be treated with respect. "Can a dyke wear a dick and just have some damn fun?" asks essayist Amy Gall as she unpacks the complex gender dynamics of women wanting to have sex using strap-ons that resemble penises. The wide-ranging essays reflect the diversity of their authors while sharing a captivating rawness and sincerity. The result is a striking and powerful compendium on the multifaceted nature of longing. (Feb.)
Copyright 2022 Publishers Weekly.