WHAT FRENCH WOMEN KNOW About Love, Sex, and other Matters of the Heart and Mind

Ollivier compares stereotypes of American women (whom she does not appear to care for or respect) with stereotypes of French women, with emphasis on how each relates to and interacts with men. She liberally relies on quotes from French writers, intellectuals, and philosophers in her description of French women but looks primarily to Hollywood movies and television, as well as other aspects of pop culture, to describe American women. As narrator, she gives an adequate reading but would be well served by varying her pace and using pauses judiciously as she falls into a singsong cadence at times. A snippet of a stereotypical French music is used to separate chapters but seems contrary to the serious intent of Ollivier’s cultural observations. J.E.M. © AudioFile 2009, Portland, Maine [Published: NOVEMBER 2009]