READ THIS: The Male Brain: A Breakthrough Understanding of How Men and Boys Think by Dr. Louann Brizendine

From the New York Times bestselling author of The Female Brain,

the eagerly awaited follow-up that demystifies the male brain 

“As a woman who has known complicated men her whole life, I can’t help but wish The Male Brain had been around when I was a girl. Dr. Louann Brizendine’s lucid, lively, and always fascinating discussion of how the male brain works (and why) has enlightened me in more ways than I can count. Now I can’t wait to give the book to all my women friends.”

—Jane Fonda, actress and author of My Life So Far 

As a rule, normally we do not include quotes from others in our book reviews, but we have met Jane Fonda, through Sing For Hope, and we really like her.  She told Peachy Deegan she is coming out with a book herself sometime and we'd like to review that too....We were intrigued to read The Male Brain primarily because normally Peachy Deegan is writing about things she knows, and she of course does not have a male brain!  We will be reviewing the original next, The Female Brain, which to us will be far clearer, but we think it is hilarious that The Male Brain is notably shorter in page length.  A tremendous amount of work went into this work, and you only need to flip to the notes that start on page 137 and the references that start on page 179- these account for half of the actual book!  This is one serious book - let us warn you - do not get this as a gag gift for someone.  You have to be in a focused mode to concentrate on terms discussed here, and you will come away all the wiser!  Basically, you don't need this book to know that the sexes do not understand each other, and if you were in Peachy Deegan's freshman year English class with Sister Carey at Boston College, you will remember in hilarity the term paper she did on this topic.  And we will divulge some of the Whom You Know panelists were included in that also anonymous social survey....

Sexes should understand each other!  That is simply why you should read this book.  It's either reinforcing what exists for you, so you understand yourself as a guy, or it elucidates quite a bit because you are not.  The Male Brain is something that you should read as soon as you are old enough to read, because perhaps you can save yourself a lot of time and effort!  Men are not difficult to understand in most cases, which is why this book is so much shorter than the book on women, who of course are more complex.  


With 25 years background in clinical psychology, Dr. Louann Brizendine is well-qualified to tell us all how we should interpret men, from their birth to their grumpy old men stage, when they are just peachy.  She tells us the male brain is a lean, mean, problem solving machine (wait!  Girls are good at math problems!) and that they track moving objects well.  Victory is critically important to boys, and on page 21 we will not repeat what they say exactly because we hope Whom You Know is a clean classy site, but if you know the underground Boston band Mudworm their antics are described to a T in the first full paragraph.  This book covers the Daddy's Girl Syndrome which we are familiar with, and has many quotes that are priceless.  One of the best is found on page 100:
"'Why do men respond to emotional issues with logic instead of feelings?'  He laughed and said, 'The real question is why women don't.'"

You don't need a background in medicine or biology to have a true appreciation for The Male Brain.  You also don't need to like psychology.  You only need to have a desire to understand life.  All in all, this is very useful information, and we think it is best digested with an overall understanding of whatever person you are talking about.  This in some ways is one-size-fits-all but you should also consider the person's personality...we love the Briggs Meyers test.  Can you guess which Peachy is? See http://www.humanmetrics.com/cgi-win/jtypes1.htm and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Myers-Briggs_Type_Indicator  Whom You Know highly recommends The Male Brain!  Go read it.

***

An article about Dr. Louann Brizendine and her research in her first book The Female Brain in a July 2006 issue of Newsweek started a media frenzy that led to appearances on ABC’S 20/20 and Good Morning America, NBC’s Today show, and Nightly News with Brian Williams, CNN’s American Morning, NPR’s Weekend All Things Considered and Wait, Wait Don’t Tell Me, along with national print reviews and features in USA Today, The New York Times, The New York Times Magazine, The Washington Post, San Francisco Chronicle, O, The Oprah Magazine, Glamour, Elle, More, Discover, and Health, and the coverage has not abated. In October ’08 Brizendine appeared on The Oprah Winfrey Show in a segment on gender differences hosted by Dr. Mehmet Oz, fueling new interest in her work by everyone from the Jonas Brothers to the Aspen Institute and Pop-Tech, two of the top speaking venues in the country.

Now, Brizendine, founder of the country’s first clinic to study gender differences in brain, behavior, and hormones, turns her attention to the male brain, showing how the “male reality” is fundamentally different from the female’s in every phase of life, from babyhood to old age. In The Male Brain: A Breakthrough Understanding of How Men and Boys Think (Broadway Books; On sale March 23, 2010; ISBN 978-0-7679-2753-6; hardcover; $24.99) Brizendine overturns the stereotypes about men and boys. Impeccably researched and at the cutting edge of scientific knowledge, this is a book that every man, and especially every woman bedeviled by a man, will need to own. Exploring the latest breakthroughs in male psychology and neurology with her trademark accessibility and candor, Brizendine reveals: 

• The male brain is a lean, mean, problem-solving machine. Faced with a personal problem, a man will use his analytical brain structures to find a solution.
• The male brain thrives under competition, instinctively plays rough, and is obsessed with rank and hierarchy.
• The male brain has an area for sexual pursuit 2.5 times larger than the female brain, consuming him with sexual fantasies about female body parts.

In the same compelling detail as she did for women in The Female Brain, Brizendine follows the male brain through every phase of life, from infancy to adulthood, to produce the ultimate handbook to understanding the male creature. 

#                 #     #

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Louann Brizendine, M.D., a diplomate of the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology and the National Board of Medical Examiners, is an endowed clinical professor of psychiatry at the University of California, San Francisco. She is founder and director of the Women’s Mood and Hormone Clinic. After receiving her degree in neurobiology at University of California, Berkeley, and her medical degree from Yale University School of Medicine, she completed an internship and residency in psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. She has served as faculty at both Harvard and UCSF. She sits on the boards of peer reviewed journals and is the recipient of numerous honors and awards. Visit: www.louannbrizendine.com. 

THE MALE BRAIN

A Breakthrough Understanding of How Men and Boys Think

By Louann Brizendine, M.D.

Published by Broadway Books, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, a division of Random House, Inc.

Hardcover; $24.99; 304 pages; ISBN 978-0-7679-2753-6

www.broadwaybooks.com