Review by Choice Review
This short volume is an expanded version of the introduction to Reproducing Gender: Politics, Publics, and Everyday Life after Socialism, edited by Gal and Kligman (2000). The authors correctly point out that postsocialism in East Central Europe (ECE) is experienced differently by men and women, and that analyses that ignore gender differences are of little value. A strength of this work is its emphasis on the mutability and complexity of gendered pairs such as private/public, dependence/autonomy, state/market, femininity/masculinity, civil society/national politics. There is much of interest here: chapter 2, "Reproduction as Politics," makes an excellent case that debates over the legal status of abortion and control of female sexuality have been viewed as fundamental to postsocialist political discourse in ECE, though the particular form of the debate has varied among countries. Unfortunately, the volume lacks concrete examples, and some of the most novel and important points about the disjunctures between postsocialist discourses and practices are crammed into the last few pages. The authors should not have indulged in lengthy digressions into trendy realms such as fractals and semiotic theory. Ultimately, the essay is frustratingly vague and incomplete. One hopes that Gal and Kligman will continue their collaboration with a more substantial volume. Graduate level. A. H. Koblitz; Arizona State University
Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.
Review by Choice Review
