Shelf Life.(Liberty for Women: Freedom and Feminism in the Twenty-First Century ; Art's Prospect: The Challenge of Tradition in an Age of Celebrity; Heaven on Earth: The Rise and Fall of Socialism; Invisible Giants: Fifty Americans Who Shaped the Nation But Missed the History Books)(Brief Article)

Women are human beings, and should therefore have the same rights and freedoms as all other human beings: This was the fundamental insight of the early generations of feminist pioneers. In recent years, feminism has taken a disastrously wrong turn away from this freedom philosophy, toward the espousal of a cramped, cosseted, and immature victim culture that infantilizes women instead of liberating them. But all is not lost for feminism, because a few brave souls are keeping alive its original flame. Liberty for Women: Freedom and Feminism in the Twenty-First Century (Ivan R. Dee, 353 pp., $18.95), edited by Wendy McElroy, is a thought-provoking anthology of freedom-feminist writings.

In her foreword, Wendy Kaminer defines the problem succinctly: "The prevailing feminist analysis of American society as systematically unfair to women inevitably leads some to regard liberty as a male prerogative, even a tool of male oppression." The rest of the book is devoted to sketching out an alternative, viewing freedom as the solution to, rather than the cause of, women's problems. Many conservatives will object to particular essays -- for example, Nadine Strossen's delightful debunking of the anti-pornography feminist nannies, and Alexander Tabarrok's defense of abortion rights -- but overall, this book is a valuable contribution to the cause of freedom, and of feminism properly understood.

-- Lovers of Roger Kimball's art criticism have a treat in store for ththem in his new anthology, Art's Prospect: The Challenge of Tradition in an Age of Celebrity (Cybereditions, 222 pp., $12.95 e-book, $17.95 paperback); those who are not already admirers of his work in this field will almost certainly be converted by the essays in this book. Kimball lights a candle of hope, and does so with memorable eloquence:

Most of the really invigorating action in the art world today is a quiet affair. It takes place not at Tate Modern or the Museum of Modern Art, not in the Chelsea or TriBeCa galleries, but off to one side, out of the limelight. It tends to involve not the latest thing, but the permanent things. Permanent things can be new; they can be old; but their relevance is measured not by the buzz they create but by the silences they inspire.

To which anyone who cares about the future of art can only respond, "Wow" -- and "Amen." Much of the fun in this book comes from Kimball's ridicule of artworks lionized by mainstream art critics, but it's passages like the above that remind the reader why we need good art critics -- and good art.

-- Is the former national ...