Enjoy it for what it is: Grayson’s thoughts and experiences. Most of it is presented as such. Other than that, he’s not an expert, therefore he doesn’t delve too deeply into his subject. It’s was a short book, so worth investing in if you’re not looking for a deep dive into masculinity and gender.

I wanted to like this book so badly: a criticism of masculinity and how it hurts men by an intelligent, eloquent, gender-challenging artist? Yes please!

Maybe it's just that enough hasn't be written on this topic outside of academic circles, but this book felt like a fluff essay. It introduced some interesting ideas, but failed to support them with adequate evidence. It described certain experiences as something most/all men would relate to, but as a woman I have no idea if that's true. Maybe this would be more impactful on men? That said, some of the language (usually humorous) was quite viscious against men-- far more than a feminist book written by a woman could get away with.

If you've never considered men's issues, sure, this might be a good introduction. It's a quick read, and maybe it will make you consider some new ideas and wet your appetite for more substantial research.

This book was recommended to me many times and I might have expected too much. I found it too descriptive and anecdotal and would have wished for more criticality.

The Descent of Man says absolutely nothing new. The illustrations are great, the style is accessible, and I broadly agree with what the author has to say, but the whole thing feels an awful lot like 'mansplaining' to me. Perhaps I'm not the intended audience.

Grayson Perry - a cross-dressing, white, middle-class heterosexual man (by his own frequent in-text admission) - essentially rehashes feminist arguments from the past half a century, making 'bold' statements that invariably begin with a cautionary and unnecessary 'I think'. He doesn't need to think; feminists have been saying this stuff for decades.

But isn't that the age-old problem of patriarchy? Women can scream until they're blue in the face and nobody hears them. Enter a cross-dressing, white, middle-class heterosexual man and suddenly other men stand up and take notice.

For that reason, I'm glad Grayson Perry wrote this book, even if he has 'borrowed' feminist analysis and presented it as his own. Perhaps a man or two might read and take note.

It read like a decent survey of current thought on masculinity. However, as the 'default' state, there isn't yet much serious thought on masculinity, perhaps reflected in the slimness of the book. While little was entirely original, the summary is useful.

In the current debate over gender identity (if you can call it a debate when women are being hounded out of their jobs for daring to stand up for their rights), it's good to see someone saying something a bit different from the standard dogmas. I can't really summarise it all here, and certainly don't feel like enumerating which bits I agree with and disagree with, but I like that here you have someone breaking from gender norms pretty strikingly, but still able to state pretty clearly that he doesn't claim to actually be a woman, and doesn't assert a right to - for example - pee in the women's toilet.
He is, in short, advocating for more elbow room in what it means to be a man, taking himself as perhaps an extreme case, but suggesting that what we've been doing up to now isn't really working.
He has a pretty good, fresh take on it, and while I don't necessarily want to subscribe to it all, I can see that he's thought more deeply about this stuff than most people have and I'm happy to go along with him and listen to what he has to say.