Bad Girls Go Everywhere: The Life of Helen Gurley Brown
Helen Gurley Brown, best known for her 32 years as editor of Cosmopolitan magazine, gets the full feminist icon treatment in this lively, engaging biography from gender studies professor Scanlon (Inarticulate Longings: The Ladies' Home Journal, Gender, and the Promises of Consumer Culture). Brown invented the term "mouseburger" to describe herself-a "young woman of average looks, with some intelligence, more likely working in a job than pursuing a career"-but grew into a New York media diva after finding her niche penning women's articles and, later, best-selling books like Sex and the Single Girl. Combing girlish banter with a frank, no-nonsense attitude toward sex, Gurley's trademark voice gained her popularity and, eventually, the editorial gig at Cosmopolitan. There, she resuscitated the flailing publication with a sexy, transformative makeover. While contemporary 1960s society considered Brown the antithesis of feminist stars like Gloria Steinem and Betty Friedan, Brown's push for freedom in the office and the bedroom presaged feminism's approaching third wave. Scanlon skillfully avoids caricature, depicting instead an intelligent and complex woman who, for all her talk of wild sex and steamy affairs, remained happily (and monogamously) married, lived as frugally as possible, encouraged women's independence, and frequently educated readers on vital issues like contraception, queer culture, abortion and rape.Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.