Monday's Reviews Today: Bram Stoker Reexamined & The Neuroscience of Love
-- Publishers Weekly, 8/21/2008 1:19:00 PM
In Leslie Klinger's The New Annotated Dracula, a "definitive examination" of Bram Stoker's classic, the author offers plot insights on the horror tale while placing it in historical context; an introduction by Neil Gaiman and various illustrations also add to the text. Exploring sexual territory of another kind, Jena Pincott ponders the role hormones play in the mating game in Do Gentlemen Really Prefer Blondes? The book, as per our critic, stands as a collection of "playfully written scientific anecdotes."
The New Annotated Dracula
Bram Stoker, edited with a foreword and notes by Leslie S. Klinger. Norton, $39.95 (624p) ISBN 978-0-393-06450-6
Klinger brings the same impressive breadth of knowledge that distinguished The New Annotated Sherlock Holmes to this definitive examination of one of the classic horror novels of all time. Adopting the conceit that Stoker’s narrative is based on fact, Klinger elucidates the plot and historical context for both Stoker devotees and those more familiar with Count Dracula from countless popular culture versions. Because he had privileged access to the typescript Stoker delivered to his publisher, Klinger is able to note changes between it and the first edition and comment on the reasons for them. Through close reading, Klinger raises questions about such matters as the role of lead vampire-hunter Van Helsing and whether the villainous count is actually dispatched at book’s end. An introduction by Neil Gaiman, numerous illustrations, essays on topics ranging from Dracula in the movies to the academic response, and much more enhance the package. 8-city author tour. (Oct.)
Do Gentlemen Really Prefer Blondes? Bodies, Behavior, and Brains—the Science Behind Sex, Love, and Attraction
Jena Pincott. Delacorte, $20 (384p) ISBN 978-0-385-34215-5
In these playfully written scientific anecdotes, Pincott (Success) argues that desire is strongly rooted in evolutionary biases and consults a variety of studies—some familiar, others cutting-edge—to reveal the extent to which hormones dictate human behavior. Even idle ogling is a serious endeavor: humans constantly rate each other for levels of attractiveness, a signifier of male and female hormones. When women are ovulating, estrogen rebuilds the female face, making lips fuller and skin smoother; Pincott cites studies showing that strippers earned twice as much during the fertile phase of their cycles as when they had their periods, while those taking birth control earned significantly less money throughout. The book also has the scoop about whether penis size matters (it does), how the post-orgasm rush of oxytocin promotes bonding and why women are tempted to cheat during certain times of the month. It ends with a look at the neuroscience of love, which despite all the jostling and jousting of dating and mating, appears to be very much alive when measured by MRI studies of passionate couples. (Oct.)
