Reviews for Roots of Desire: The Myth, Meaning, and Sexual Power of Red Hair

The average rating for Roots of Desire: The Myth, Meaning, and Sexual Power of Red Hair based on 2 reviews is 2 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2012-03-25 00:00:00 Angel Hernandez I worked at a bookstore shortly after this book was published, and it caught my eye whenever I walked past for months. I only recently remembered it and decided to pick it up from the library. And I have to say, I'm so glad I didn't buy it back in the day. This is one of those books that I had to force myself to finish even though I wasn't really enjoying it. For me, the problem wasn't how much of it was memoir -- for the most part, I found that interesting, if a bit irritating when she assumed her experiences were the same as all redheads. No, the problem was... she's just not a very good writer. There is very little structure to the book, and she continually bounces back and forth between subjects. It is very difficult to follow sometimes. She also has an annoying habit of making a claim or stating a fact or sharing an observation and then just... moving on, without bothering to go into more detail. Sometimes that extra detail would just be interesting, but often the missing details leave her argument unsubstantiated. She expects her readers to accept a lot of things at face value without critically examining them first. I thought the most interesting part was the second section, about the science of red hair (such as there is). Her explanation of it was not the clearest, but I feel like I have a decent idea of it, for not being a scientist. The first section was my least favourite, and I think the worst about unsubstantiated claims and unstructured writing. The third section was OK, and probably something many redheads can relate to, but it was a bit too long -- some of its tangents could have been cut. I really like the idea of this book -- part memoir, part science, part history, part sociology -- but I just wish it had been executed better.

Review # 2 was written on 2012-08-16 00:00:00 Geir A Moa As a redhead, the concept of this book, at least the concept suggested by its cover, was exciting. I looked forward to tracing the history of red hair and learning about ancient perceptions, folklore, and redheads of yesteryear. While the book presents some of this, I perceived the bulk of its narrative as a writer's desire to reaffirm her self-worth for being a redhead. I believe the vast majority of people who'd be interested in reading this book are redheads and, personally, as a redhead, you don't need to describe how awesome being a redhead is, I know! This is more a memoir about a redhead exploring her redheadness than a cultural, sociological, or historical adventure into the bigger picture of redheads as a group. As I mentioned, the book did explore some ancient perceptions, folklore, and redheads of yesteryear. These jaunts were the most interesting part of the book, and I walked away with a few trivia tidbits I had been hoping for. For example, I had never before heard of Boudica, who has quite the violent history. However, even these breaks from personal narrative, were often dry, humorless, and disjunctive. At first, I wanted to love this book. After the first section, I wanted to give it up and move on, but I wouldn't allow myself. Now, I am glad I read, but pleased it is over.