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Question: How does our gender effect the novels we read!?
I know I'm guilty of it, I know plenty of men and women who are as well, and I see the same trend on this site when people ask about favorites!. The gals say Bronte, Rand, Eyre, Meyer, and Rowling and the guys say Hemingway, Dostoevsky, Faulkner, Patterson, and Brown!. It doesn't matter if it's classic literature or pop trash it seems like there is a strong gender bias!.

So why do you think this is!? Is it simply that reading is a way to see the world through the author's eyes and as such we can better identify with an author of the same gender!? Or is there an underlying bias!?

Of course I'm talking about a general trend!. There are female authors I like and I see the opposite is true, but there are more men on my bookshelf than women!.Www@QuestionHome@Com


Best Answer - Chosen by Asker:
I hope you are keeping in mind the fact that the book lists you read on this site are usually written by young people!.
That fact alone limits the kinds of books they have read!.

If you really want to explore this question, suggest
http://www!.info!.com to, maybe
http://mingo!.info-science!.uiowa!.edu/~nie!.!.!.
!.!.!. once you get past the 'blah blah' there, you'll see specific questions relating to gender and choices of reading, with easy to see charts, and actually the entire article regarding even how librarians work with the genders is of interest as well!.
Many links follow this article, and you may want to follow one or two of those too!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

The way I see it, men usually write about things that will appeal to them and in extension other men!. It is the same for women!. So its just natural!. Women like books about love, romance, motherhood and issues that affect their lives!. Males are more rugged and therefor will read books that coincide with this nature!.

Of course, there are always exceptions to the rules!. you will find that there are men who like books that are considered feminine and vice versa!. Www@QuestionHome@Com

I dare you to check my recommendation lists, or my bookcases for that matter, and determine from them what my gender is!. I think that both your premise and your observational skills are flawed!. In other words, I think you are seeing what you have decided to see!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

Yes, but not always!. That is why many authors changed their name!. Example: Johanna Kathleen Rowling, author of the Harry Potter books calls herself J!.K!. Rowling!. Www@QuestionHome@Com

My opinion is that men tend to be more gender based than women are!. Men seem prone to rejecting novels by women and those written from the POV of a female character more than women do in the reverse!.

Obviously romance is a genre with a greater fan base among women but even in other areas of fiction, men seem to favor male authors and male protagonists over all!. This is true even with mysteries, which is a genre dominated by women authors!. Men want a male protagonist!.

Women readers, bless 'em, aren't nearly so confined in their choices!.

Of course this is a brief and simple generalization!. Makes me wonder, though, if the level of education plays a role or if it's strictly a testosterone thing!?Www@QuestionHome@Com