From Publishers Weekly A bestseller in France， this feminist manifesto may stir controversy and some consternation here. Badinter maintains that， despite the wide popularity of a Mother Goddess cult， there is scant evidence for matriarchy in prehistoric societies; in her reading of that era， democracy and equality between the sexes prevailed， and women and men enjoyed complementary， reciprocal relationships. Declaring that patriarchy is now dead， she argues that the emerging mode of interaction between the sexes is one of "resemblance" and that bisexuality (psychological but also， perhaps， physical) is integral to this pattern. She touts cohabitation over marriage， citing debatable statistical evidence， and， with apparent nonchalance， observes， "The universal taboo against incest may well become a dead letter." Her autopsy of fascist regimes as "so many deliberate attempts to reinforce patriarchy" is simplistic. Badinter， who teaches in Paris， too often succumbs to glibness. Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information， Inc. From Library Journal Badinter states that since there is no longer any distinction between male and female work， and the emerging biotechnology has revolutionized childbearing， the war between the sexes is over. Someone should hand her the daily newspaper or Ms. magazine so that she can get in touch with reality. Her vision of full equality based on a blissful state of androgyny is premised on undocumented evidence of life in primitive societies， a lack of understanding of female anatomy (e.g.， she states the female glans is in the vagina)， and erroneous interpretation of Jewish law (she doesn't even mention that descent is matrilineal). Barbara R. Bergmann's The Economic Emergence of Women (LJ 2/1/87) and Women， A World Report (LJ 1/86) provide ample evidence that society has not yet arrived at this ideal state. Not recommended.- Barbara M. Bibel， Oakland P.L.， Cal.Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information， Inc. See all Editorial Reviews