Initially I thought this book would be very different. I gave the book 3 stars. It was interesting but in my opinion it sometimes went on for far too long on certain topics. But still, it was a nice read. I also learned quite some new things through this book.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for letting me read this book!

Science books aren’t usually my go to books but I thought I would try this one since it involved superwomen and while the science facts were interesting the book itself felt a little disjointed.

This one was a bit of an enigma for me. I went in expecting more feminism and analytics around the concept of the shifting form of the female superhero (be she in comics, movies, or TV). That was, after all, what the blurb promised. I found some of that, particularly in certain chapters (Wonder Woman, most notably, and the consideration of Ripley in Aliens), but I also found a lot of random stuff - astronomy and witches, weather and the Buffyverse, logos and capitalism, and even Barbie (who to me is not a superhero under any conventional definition, Margot Robbie awesomeness aside).

The chapter purporting to be about Shuri is mostly about the evolving role of male scientists in film and the popular imagination. The Barbie chapter is mostly about how great the movie was. Storm is chastised for acting within a world of climate change. It feels like Brake couldn't quite decide what he wanted the book to be, so he just wrote about stuff that interested him. That's fine, and absolutely his prerogative, but it doesn't translate into a cohesive whole - and it doesn't fit the bill presented in the blurb...

So go in prepared for an interesting (albeit a bit random in focus) read. Seriously. The storytelling is engaging and the information presented is engaging and appealing. But don't be surprised at the shifts in tone and focus or the slightly all-over-the-place nature of the whole.

(1.5 stars)

this was a mixed bag, to say the least.

to start, i'll mention some aspects of this book i enjoyed: the chapter about wonder woman was interesting and i learned a lot about her creation and how the political contexts of the times influenced the way she was portrayed in comics. i also liked that last chapter about female superheroes and profitability. there was a good line in there about how apolitical superhero films have become.

unfortunately, there was a lot about this book that simply did not work. based on the synopsis, i was expecting a feminist analysis around the portrayal of female superheroes. instead, i got a very generalistic discussion on female characters across media. half of them weren't even superheroes. the synopsis mentioned harley quinn, but as far as i can recall, she is not mentioned once in this book.

part of the problem is that this book spreads itself too thin. the book's definition of female "superheroes" is too broad, ranging from barbie to x-men's storm. for a more in-depth discussion, it may have been better to stick to comic book superheroines.

the lack of consistency felt frustrating, particularly when there was a detailed discussion about wonder woman's comic book history, but then wanda maximoff's discussion specifically sticks to her mcu origins. there is a good discussion that could have been had about wanda's romani background and the mcu's whitewashing of this. in general, this book didn't do too well with discussing how race factors into the portrayal of female characters, with shuri and storm's race being vaguely mentioned when they have entire chapters dedicated to them.

the book also tended to veer off topic a lot. there was a whole section discussing stars and the moon when it had little to do with the female characters in question. certain sections could have also been cut out, for example, a good chunk of the barbie chapter literally just recaps the whole movie. or the part in the last chapter where there's two tables showing the entire mcu chronology. something like that, i could've just googled myself.

and finally, for a book about WOMEN, there seems to be a lot more discussion about men than women. there was so much about both fictional men and real-life male creators, and i just don't think it was particularly appropriate or relevant here.

thank you to netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an arc in exchange for an honest review

Description
Celebrate the rise of superwomen and discover the science behind the abilities of Wonder Woman, Scarlet Witch, Black Widow, Catwoman, and more!

Superhero fiction has been with us for almost a century; high-octane tales crammed with concepts and contrasting themes, from superpowers and the post-human, to masked vigilantes and immortality. In that time, superwomen have evolved from comic book caricatures (created by men, for men) to stronger representations of female power.

The Science of Superwomen looks at this evolution, from its hypersexualized origins to today’s more nuanced diversity. Focusing on characters from Star Wars and X-Men, as well as the likes of Wonder Woman, Batgirl, Captain Marvel, Harley Quinn, Wednesday Addams, Doctor Who, and Buffy the Vampire Slayer, The Science of Superwomen explores the relationship between superhero film and fiction and the underlying science of our ever-evolving universe.

My Take:
My interest in this book stems from an intersection of many passions: comics, women and gender studies, pop culture, and American race studies. I hoped to deepen my understanding of the concept of "Superwomen" across the speculative spectrum, and while I did gain insights, they were quite basic. Upon completion, I questioned the intended audience of the book. It seems most suitable for high school students or individuals who are just beginning to explore this subject. The book doesn't provide an in-depth analysis; however, it does present essential information that can form the basis for one's own opinions or further investigation.

I liked it. This book felt similar to the 'Unlikeable Female Characters' book because of the way the author dissected specific female characters, their origins, and what they come to represent to later generations. A fun read for comic book fans, feminist theory readers, and avid movie watchers.

What an intriguing book about the evolution of Superwomen, from sexualized creatures created by men, to representatives of genuine female power. Recommended!

Well, I'm an equal opportunity commissioner at work and I'm totally interested in everything about women's rights, the history of women etc.
In this case we've got the history of superwomen! Really exciting subject because I looove Marvel & DC as well.
My favourite superwoman is Wonder Woman for sure! She's strong and self-confident and so inspiring! My personal role model. ❤️🙏

To read more about the development from hypersexualized female role models with really short to nothing clothes to more diversity and obviously more clothes, was really fascinating and interesting!
How the Superwomen changed in personality and so much more could make us more hopeful - although it's still a long journey for us women (IMO).

Really nice read for everyone who's interested in this special topic. 👍😁

Thanks to Mark Brake and Skyhorse Publishing for this ARC of The Science of Superwomen via NetGalley (Read Now category).
This is my honest review in my own words.

I read this courtesy Net Galley and Skyhorse Publishing. In this engaging book, a follow-up from Mark Brake’s Science of Superheroes, we are treated to an examination of women with power, ranging from Wonder Woman (of course) to Ripley (also of course) to Buffy the Vampire Slayer (naturally). Author Brake includes in his survey of female heroic characters Marvel Comics’ Shuri, a welcome woman of color and a scientist, an unusual combination (there are scientists mentioned in this book, but the others are all of Caucasian persuasion). Brake even mentions a female mad scientist in the bunch! On the downside, there is a section in this book, a book that’s supposed to be discussing superheroines and other women of power, that discusses males, but into every gem there is a flaw. Overall, this is a delightful, likable work that’s worth a read.

#ScienceOfSuperwomen #NetGalley #CampNetGalley

Quite an interesting book that explores superheroines, where they came from, how they changed throughout history, and how the audience's attitude towards them changed. There are several chapters, most of which are about one particular superwoman: Buffy, Wonder Woman, Shuri, Barbie, Storm, Wednesday, and Wanda. I personally liked the Barbie chapter the most (maybe because I'm still charmed by Barbenheimer).

In general, it's good, but I would like to read more information, for example, I'd love to read more chapters about:

- Captain Marvel: how this character was both a man and a woman; how she became the first woman in the MCU to get a solo film; how many viewers hated her and actress Brie Larson for all the things they love about Tony Stark just because Carol/Brie is a female;

- Natasha Romanoff: how she moved away from her sexualized image and outfits in the first films and became a completely different female-gazed character in Endgame and her own Black Widow movie;

- Kamala Khan / Kate Bishop / America Chavez / Riri Williams: finally little girls/teens can see superheroines of their age and race in movies.

I really enjoyed how this book explores how superwomen began as caricatures created by men for men, how they were seen through the hypersexualized male gaze, and how they have evolved into legitimate representations of powerful women.

This a short but very interesting and informative read. It covers a diverse range of epic women and I particularly enjoyed the chapters about Buffy, Wonder Woman, Barbie and Wednesday/Wanda Maximoff.

I also loved that the book covered very important points, such as:
• female superheroes being less profitable because capitalism is male dominated
• the statement that "people" don't react well to female superhero's is really "young, white males" don't react well to female superhero's who aren't hyper sexual
• if movies were made by women for women we wouldn't have to deal with so much tokenism

Overall I thoroughly enjoyed this book!