The female brain - Brizendine, Louanne
Summary: The founder of the first clinic in the country to study and treat women's brain functions provides a comprehensive look at the way women's minds work, combining two decades of research and real-life stories.
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Brizendine (Univ. of California at San Francisco) uses the neuroanatomical and physiological development of the female brain from the prenatal period through adulthood as a framework for her thesis that women's unique brain structures, functions, and chemistry create a biological imperative. The author employs anecdotes from her practice as a neuropsychiatrist and concepts such as the "mommy brain," "high-octane estrogen," and "neurological love circuits" to illustrate her theory that female-typical responses and behaviors originate in uniquely female brain structures and brain wiring. Such a singular focus on biological inevitability contrasts with the approach of scholars of gender, such as Ann Fausto Sterling, who acknowledge the developmental effects upon behavior that might result from human interaction and environmental influences. Brizendine's writing style is lively and accessible. She simplifies complex biological and neurological concepts, and her material is unencumbered by in-text citations, although extensive references are included in a separate section. Readers predisposed to views about innate differences between women and men will find much to support their beliefs in this book. Summing Up: Recommended. General readers. Copyright 2006 American Library Association.
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