Everybody Do the Bonk!

Bonk: The Curious Coupling of Science and Sex - Mary Roach

Mary Roach is the kind of science writer who really gets into her research, although for Bonk: The Curious Coupling of Science and Sex one might more accurately state that her research gets into her. Literally (and I mean that in the true sense of the word) "into" her: in her latest book, an improbable glimpse into the laboratories and lives of sex researchers, Ms Roach volunteered herself as a test subject in not one but two studies. All of which takes participation to new heights (or lows, I suppose, depending on one's viewpoint). Bonk follows on the heels of Stiff, Roach's investigation into the post-mortem "careers" of cadavers willed to science; and Spook, in which Roach pokes into scientific studies of the afterlife. As in her earlier books, Roach brings to the subject insatiable curiosity, in-depth research, and a willingness to do anything - and I do mean anything - to get the story.

1960s Noir or an Extended Male Sexual Fantasy? Much More the Latter...

Dark Blonde: A Mike Angel Mystery - David H. Fears

In the old days if a publisher wanted to sell a book by a new or unknown author, the company would send galley proofs to a newspaper’s book reviewer and lift complimentary lines from ensuing reviews for the dust jacket. They’d hope for a rave from the New York Times or the San Francisco Chronicle, but would settle for a positive mention from the Fort Wayne News-Sentinel or the Sacramento Bee, if that’s what they could get. Too few newspapers have their own reviewers now, so publishers began to prevail on established authors to pen a blurb for the cover, most of which turned out so generic as to be curiously uninformative. Now, they simply cite the number of five-star reviews at amazon.com. That’s how Dark Blonde (David H. Fears) came across my desk – that, and it was free.

Now I happen to think that Amazon’s reviewers have little or no taste, and it’s rather hard to trust reviewers like the infamous Harriet K, whose daily review output was often in double digits (one reason I have my own collection of reviews that pan books…). And, as usual, I was right: no matter how many five-star reviews (38) or the average star count (3.6 of 5), this book is definitely a stinker.