Gender About Town: Women’s History Month

For Women’s History Month this year, our topical book display focuses on gender in society. How do people of different genders move through the world? What social rules are they expected to follow, and how do those rules differ throughout history? What happens when people break rules, intentionally or unintentionally?

“Who’s Afraid of Gender?” by Judith Butler (305.3 Butler) reflects on the importance given to the upholding of gender norms in our society, and the broader ideas inherent to the emphasis on such a social order. “Adam and Eve After the Pill, Revisited” (205.6 Ebe) by Mary Eberstadt addresses changes to how people relate following the sexual revolution in the 1960s.

What does it mean to be a woman? Lillian Faderman’s “Woman: the American History of an Idea” (305.40973 Fad) discusses the variations on the social concept of womanhood over the past 400 years. “The Making of Biblical Womanhood” by Beth Allison Barr (220.8 Bar) examines the historical context of Christianity’s expectations for women, uncovering the human influence on divine law. Tama Starr collects quotes reflecting the beliefs that shaped society in “The ‘Natural Inferiority’ of Women” (305.42 Nat).

What does it mean to be a man? “The New Masculinity” by Alex Manley (305.31 Man) offers a compassionate approach to the pressures and uncertainties men face today. Alexandra Robbins’ “Fraternity: an Inside Look at a Year of College Boys Becoming Men” (371.855 Rob) explores the good and bad of the Greek system’s path to manhood. George M. Johnson, author of “All Boys Aren’t Blue”, remembers their Black boyhood growing up queer in “We Are Not Broken” (306.76 Joh).

The gendered division of sports has been a popular topic in the news over the past few years. Sports journalist Katie Barnes’ “Fair Play: How Sports Shape the Gender Debates” (796.082 Barnes) gives an overview of women’s sports, its benefits and drawbacks, and the interplay between the treatment of gender in sports and society as a whole. Going back in time, “The Other Olympians” by Michael Waters (921 Koubek, Z.) investigates the inception of gender testing in professional sports with the 1936 Berlin Olympic Games.

The library is a welcoming and reliable space to find materials that educate and entertain our community. We strive to provide a wide range of resources to our users on a wide range of topics.

Check out what’s happening at the library on our website at crawfordsvillelibrary.in.gov or call us at (765) 362-2242. The library is open 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 1-5 p.m. Sunday.

Susanna Howard is a library assistant in the Adult Services Department at the Crawfordsville District Public Library.