Rating: 
Summary: Wow. What a ride!
Review: First time I've felt inspired enough to write a review here. I came across Erica Jong's novel, Fear of Flying, a couple of weeks ago in a dusty pile of second hand books at my son's school Christmas Bazaar. Two days ago I picked it up again to keep me company during a nasty cold, and yesterday I closed the last page, wishing there were more - not because I needed "closure" (is it only me, or does that word make other people itch, too?), but because I found far more of myself on those yellowing pages than I ever expected, and I wanted to see how it would all turn out. Though I wasn't blessed with Isadora's wealth, I certainly enjoyed the fantasy of having it, while at the same time experiencing a vicarious roller coaster ride of oh-so-familiar emotions. Agreed, the book is anything but politically correct, but neither was it hostile. Come on, Grown Ups. I think we're old enough to deal with a sterotype, (perhaps) see its humour (remember Cheech and Chong - or have they also been blacklisted?), and on occasion, the grain of truth behind it. Have we become so precious that we can no longer laugh at ourselves, and is it forbidden to chuckle at those around us? Sorry, PC's not for me. In Been There, Done That 2002, Fear of Flying may no longer be shocking, but its reflections remain relevant. A fun way to experience on the page what so many women have experienced in life.
Rating: 
Summary: Close, but not quite...
Review: When I was a college freshman I wrote a paper critiquing Adrienne Rich's essay "When We Dead Awaken." Rich argued that women writers had it harder than men because there was no tradition of writing done in a genuinely female voice; women who wanted to be heard had to write like men. I argued against that reading, saying that all writers, regardless of sex, had to struggle with how to adapt their voices to the accepted canon. But now, four years later, I'm starting to see Rich's point. I realized while reading Fear of Flying that I haven't read a single book written by a woman in the past hundred years that sounds like something I could have written (in terms of voice -- questions of technique and craft and all that aside.) When I started Fear of Flying I thought that maybe I'd finally found one. I read it because a week or so earlier I'd read Jong's book on Henry Miller, The Devil at Large, and learned that Miller apparently saw Fear of Flying as the female-authored version of Tropic of Cancer. Maybe the reason why I was so frustrated by Fear of Flying is that it came so close to getting it right, to being the sort of book that I've wanted to find: something written by a woman who is as honest and funny and brave as the male writers I admire. But in the final analysis, Fear of Flying wasn't quite it. It was a combination of factors. Fear of Flying felt too self-conscious, just a little too infatuated by its own cleverness. (I suppose feminist critics would tell me that I've been brainwashed by the male literary establishment, that if the same self-conscious "cleverness" came in a novel written by a man I'd find it admirable.) And the symbolism was just a bit too heavy-handed -- the book's protagonist has the last name of Wing, but it's her married name -- "fear of flying," her "wing" borrowed from someone else, from a man... yeah, yeah, we get it. And the dashing yet terminally flawed man who tempts her away from her husband bears the last name of Goodlove. Didn't Dickens beat this whole "foreshadowing via surname" thing to death in the 1800s? But my problems with the book run deeper than that. The whole novel focuses on the protagonist's struggle to overcome her fear of being alone -- but where are the books written about women who AREN'T afraid of being alone? Why is the fear of being alone not even an issue for most male protagonists? A moderately entertaining read though.
Rating:
Summary: A modern woman?
Review: I decided to read this book based on a conversation with a friend that had read it several times, mostly when first published. I had high expectations for the material and found myself disappointed. The characters are detached and unlikable in my view. The psyches of them are complex which was intriguing, but i would not read it again.
Rating:
Summary: HONESTY AT IT'S BEST!!!!!
Review: Erica Jong is still as relevant today as she was 21 years ago. She tells it as it was and still is. This is a must for all young ladies even in the 21st century. I enjoy her descriptive prowess and her point-blank in your face attitude to life...you may not agree with her, but you can't help but to admire her. I'll leave my copy for my daughters to read in the near future.
Rating: 
Summary: Passing the Torch
Review: I was actually shocked to discover my 32-year-old daughter had never read Fear of Flying. Did a whole generation miss this wonderful, funny, witty look at a woman's sexuality and it's place in our society? I hope not. Erica Jong was one of those important writers who showed an entire generation of woman it was OK to be who, deep down inside, we thought we were. Making us laugh along the way was just an extra added bonus. Personally, I'm taking care of my daughter's lack by buying FOF for her Valentine's Day present. It's time to re-read FOF and then pass it along to your daughter. This is one gift that won't be returned!
Rating:
Summary: Essential Feminist Literature!
Review: This is one of my favorite books so far. Isadora (the main character) does not whine, but pushes against a society in which male sexuality dominates. I found it funny, smart, and timeless. I would hope that anyone who reads this would come away feeling inspired and free. Jong is an excellent writer of the human condition and this book transcends genders. It is an adventure of the spirit and of one woman's sexual (r)evolution.
Rating:
Summary: Funny, witty, and all woman
Review: Erica Jong's novel "Fear of Flying" is a wonderful must-read for all women. It is a rich novel full of literary allusions that are sure to please even the most picky of readers. This was a perfect companion for me as I traveled around Europe and ended up spending a year in France. Her descriptions of places are dead-on right. A reviewer was right: this book is liable to scare men...and rightly so!
Rating: 
Summary: overwritten filth
Review: So Erica Jong puts in a few references to other things of lifeapart from obsessive erotic compulsion... does that validate her bookfrom being a slobbering mess of drool, semen, and menses? Perhaps her self-applied label "feminist" holds her less accountable (in her eyes only) for degrading women in the sordid boudoir gymnastics she depicts here, but I found it to be perversion... Erica, join Harold Robbins et al. in the pig sty. PS: Did I have to give this trash even ONE star?
Rating:
Summary: Funny, Brilliant and wildy entertaining
Review: This is a real classic of the 60's generation, marking the onset of the sexual revolution with an era of honesty about sex, and especially the carnal desire of women. Definetely one of our greatest living authors, Jong has the courage to shock people into the realization that women and men are more alike than we sometimes want to believe. Very funny, intelligent, and yes, perverted, this book raised eyebrows when it came out, but it's still a fast-paced, fascinating and brilliant read. Move over, Roth, Miller, Robbins. Perverse exhilaration is no longer the realm of men.
Rating:
Summary: Top Of My List
Review: A very witty, funny, insightful and honest book that had surely passed the test of time. With her brilliant writing, Erica Jong had candidly and courageously voiced the hope, the fear, the joy, the anxiety, the desire, and the frustration of being a woman. She did all this with a wonderful sense of humor. I've enjoyed this book very much and more than one time. It has a permanent place on my nightstand. Every time, I want something good to read, I just simply pull this book out, randomly open at any page and start reading. Works every time. Thank you Erica Jong!
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