This was a fun book, just as the cover and (extremely good) title promised. Butts: A Backstory is a cultural microhistory of the butt that pretty much covers every aspect of it that you would want or expect it to.
We start with the evolutionary purpose of the butt and then move on to such topics as: Sarah Baartman (“The Hottentot Venus”, and why everything about what happened to her and even that moniker is super racist and tragic); the impact of butts on fashion and the impact of fashion on butts (where did bustles come from? why can you never find a pair of jeans that fit? and why is everything so tragically linked to eugenics?); re-explorations of Josephine Baker, Jennifer Lopez, Sir Mix-A-Lot (“Baby Got Back”), Miley Cyrus (along with a history of twerking), and the Buns of Steel phenomenon.
It was entertaining, informative, and thought-provoking. I had a great time, and you should check this book out if you, too, want to be informed and thought-provoked while having a great time. I also recommend the audiobook. The introduction is read by the author (a veteran of RadioLab*), and then Emily Tremaine takes over, and she does such a great job I kept forgetting the author wasn’t reading the book herself.
*In fact, I first heard from this author about butts on her RadioLab episode, “Butt Stuff,” which covers the same material as the evolutionary chapter (but with more info on the man vs. horse race in AZ), though it has been reworked for this book. The podcast ep is fun, though, so check it out!
[4.5 stars]
