The Reel Sisters and Their Men

[Alexandros92]

It is rare to exclude male characters but "rare" does not mean bad. It truly provides us with a unique perspective. It is as if the noise from your fridge that you had never noticed suddenly stops and you have absolute silence. And you start hearing the smaller sounds. The lack of male characters gives an over-representation of the female element that allows us to read their story without distractions.

[Teddyquam]

I agree with everyone, they had little impact at all! They were just a means to progress the story, and that's fine because the book is called the Reel Sisters, not the Reel Sisters and their men.

[Barbara Larkin]

The focus wasn't on men in the book. It was centered around an all-female relationship and their shared love for fly-fishing. The men were given supporting roles and each got a a brief intro, but giving them perspective would have detracted from 'The Reel Sisters.

[monserrat_21]

I liked that all the men had supportive roles while it was the women who were the protagonists, it was a nice change. I didn't mind them being around. I guess the book could've worked without them there, but it would have been a different book. They were important for the plot after all.

[gelli_baranda]

That's a very good insight, @Miriam Molina ! If you ask me, their appearance in the novel is just right because I think the author does not want to take away the focus from the five girls.

[Magnify3]

The story was really about the women, their friendship and sisterhood. I don't think the book would have changed much even without the men.

[zulfiyya]

I feel like the men were there to make the plot slightly more interesting. Each woman had a life outside of fly-fishing, and romance and love lives are a normal part of human life. It makes sense for them to be there. Yes, the book may not necessarily NEED the supporting male characters, but they surely add an element of suspense, and they make for a more dynamic story.

[Reader-247]

The book is explicitly gynocentric celebrating the female bonds and women as a natural nurturer. The male characters are all relegated to the periphery merely functioning as appendages to the central characters. In fact, in a very subtle way the author champions gender fluidity in the characters of Thatcher who dons the role of a chef and a homemaker to a globetrotting entrepreneur spouse and Mike who is now forced to don the role of a single parent. This is a conscious reversal of the traditional male gender roles. The negation of gender stereotyping in reiterated in a casual conversation between the characters to remove the suffix man from the word ‘fisherman’ and thereby neutralize the gender associations. The reference to Dame Julianna Berners who wrote a book on fish flying in the 1400 in the mans world and claiming that women have better listening, patience and observation to fly fish better than men all seem to allude or call for a change in the world around us from being too androcentric.

These are some deep and mind-blowing observations, my friend and if the author has done it conciously than kudos to her too for promoting gender neutrality.

[Janet Kimetto]

Leaving out the men completely would have made the story seem less real and believable. It was necessary for them to be featured, because what then would have been the women's lives outside fly fishing? Despite this book being about women fly fishers, their lives outside that made the book more interesting, without which the story would have become boring fast.

[Maris Charles M]

I wont be discussing which of the role needed to removed completely. Both gender where necessary to keep this book flowing. What ever the reason behind why women played the major characters remains Personal to the author.

[Moneybag]

I really enjoyed the way the women over powered the men. And would love if the men were completely left out of the book. Am proud to be a woman.

[Donald Trust]

I think men being part of the main characters will bore the reader. Most books are always about men this book was exquisite as women overpower the men.

[Hager Salem]

It made sense to me to focus on women's life since the book is telling their story.

[Charless Agbata]

I think the presence of those men were unnecessary and unwarranted

[Moo Reny]

I agree with you but I love how it was centred on women, this book couldn't have been written in any way better.