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snaillydia's review against another edition
I was having a lot of fun listening to this audiobook when, about 14 hours in, the platform I was listening to it on decided to forget the spot where I left off. I don't have the energy to go back and find it.
Overall, this is a very thorough look into everything to do with regulations around sex in the history of the U.S. and I recommend it to anyone interested in the topic.
Overall, this is a very thorough look into everything to do with regulations around sex in the history of the U.S. and I recommend it to anyone interested in the topic.
bupdaddy's review against another edition
4.0
Man, Mr. Stone, what an important tome. Stone comes at it with a decided slant (hello, it's Geoffrey Stone), but justifies it all very well. This book filled in a lot of gaps in my knowledge.
Great book. Loved the ending in 2017; too bad it didn't foresee overturning Roe v. Wade. I guess more importantly it saw that Garland's lack of even-consideration for SCOTUS was just Republican party-over-country writ large, but still. Wow.
Great book. Loved the ending in 2017; too bad it didn't foresee overturning Roe v. Wade. I guess more importantly it saw that Garland's lack of even-consideration for SCOTUS was just Republican party-over-country writ large, but still. Wow.
mikecross's review against another edition
5.0
Excellent book. Very enjoyable read that was detailed enough to really understand the points, but did not get bogged down in unnecessary details. Thoroughly enjoyable and informative with great arguments fairly presented from start to finish. One of the best books I've read!
icgerrard's review against another edition
5.0
Really excellent overview of the topic. Starts with ancient mores, even goes into Pelegianism and Augustine (as it should) and continues all the way to modern times. Unfortunately, I learned basically nothing new due to my particular background. So if you have a background in the classics, patristic theology, an intermediate knowledge of the history of Protestantism and Catholicism, and you’ve also finished a law school level con law class, you’ll probably learn nothing from this text. However, I definitely recommend it to everyone else. Good overview of the rise of the culture wars especially. I did learn that Phyllis Schlafly was at least suggested to the president as a Supreme Court appointment. The horror.
Also I don’t know if it’s just the edition I listened to but it needs an afterward or update to include Bostock.
Also I don’t know if it’s just the edition I listened to but it needs an afterward or update to include Bostock.
iamazoo's review against another edition
5.0
a fascinating and timely read, even (or especially?) for someone like me who is not a constitutional law aficionado. (enjoyed this so much that i might actually buy my own copy.)
shhhelb's review against another edition
4.0
VERY dense book with tons of political and legal information. I enjoyed learning about the origins/ history of laws in United States related to “sex”. It’s insane how much power and success major religious institutions have had/ do have in influencing our laws. I am disappointed in the lack of an intersectional lens, particularity regarding race & reproductive rights and trans rights.
izzyec's review against another edition
5.0
I bought this purely because Dakota Johnson talked about it in her Architectural Digest house tour and I love her and her kitchen. But also so so interesting !!
socraticgadfly's review against another edition
5.0
Great overview of how sexuality issues, religious beliefs and law (primarily federal law discussed in the book) have intersected over the decades and centuries, with the focus being on how the intersection of the first and second have shaped the third. The obvious cases are here, like Roe and others on reproductive choice, as well as various gay rights ones, but the book goes well beyond that.
And, starts well before that. Stone notes that before the Second Great Awakening, many sexual matters were considered private and not subject to legal purview. That includes women getting reproductive counseling, including for abortion, from midwives. (American Medical Association bluenoses seeking to expand professionalism went hand in hand with the likes of Anthony Comstock on one hand, and early Progressive-type reformers on the other, to undercut this and to criminalize abortion.)
And, starts well before that. Stone notes that before the Second Great Awakening, many sexual matters were considered private and not subject to legal purview. That includes women getting reproductive counseling, including for abortion, from midwives. (American Medical Association bluenoses seeking to expand professionalism went hand in hand with the likes of Anthony Comstock on one hand, and early Progressive-type reformers on the other, to undercut this and to criminalize abortion.)