I've stumbled upon this book by accident today at the gallery. It's a critical discussion of Slovak folklore and traditions, through the lens of social issues in a patriarchal society. The text is in Slovak and English. It also has pretty pictures.

The ⭐⭐⭐⭐ rating here, of course reflects how well I think the book handles the discussion it presents, not whether or not I agree with their specific methods or conclusions.

I'm no expert in the topic; to me, the textual introduction of the chapters seemed adequate. The works showcased were really striking sometimes, and managed to hit the right spot: not only serving as commentary on the topics in question, but functioning as works of art in themselves. (Some didn't - see below.)

Some areas were less rosy, though. There was more than chapter with only 1 - 3 images in them; that seemed a bit weak. More importantly, however: some of the works sucked. If you want to make a point, and contrast it with someone else's work, at least make some effort. Putting a nice drawing from the 60s next to something that an eight-year-old would whip up in MS Paint in ten minutes seems disrespectful to the original author, regardless of your lame justifications in the accompanying text.

So all in all, it was an interesting look into how these women authors think about their (traditional?) role in our society.