This rather unique addition to men and masculinity studies examines how the penis has been culturally defined and historically interpreted. The editors have compiled more than 150 contributions from scholars, researchers, activists, and clinicians from all over the world that pay particular attention to the socially constructed meanings attached to this organ across time and space. Taken as a whole, the work addresses what the editors describe as the 'many facets of the penis'—analyzed from artistic, medical, musical, literary, psychological, sexual, historical, religious, and sociological perspectives. Each entry offers a useful selection of sources for further reading, thereby enabling readers to poke around further and fill any gaps in their understanding. The encyclopedia also includes many photos, drawings, and other images—illustrations that provide greater clarification, given that some bibliographic references may seem obscure to some lay readers. Overall, an educational and (more important) enjoyable read, suitable for most library collections. Summing Up: Recommended. All general, academic, and professional audiences.

Choice Reviews

Adding these books to your library collection may bring a blush to the cataloger’s face, but, all joking aside, here are two volumes that place the two most formidable of body parts, the breast and the penis, in a cultural context. Neither book looks to exhaust its subject but to consider each organ’s role in art, history, medicine, literature, and society.Entries run the gamut of physiology to fashion, fetish to film, La Leche League to locker rooms. The majority of entries in each book are thoughtful, well-researched articles on a specific topic and the significance of the breast or penis to the topic. All are signed and come with see also references and a list of additional resources for further reading. Both books have browsable tables of contents instead of indexes. The volume on the penis contains more medical articles and includes entries on the vagina. Sample entries include Bris, Circle jerk, Plaster casters, and Spanish fly. Some entries in the breast volume feel like filler articles that don’t advance or relate to the subject at all (see Barbie dolls or Red light districts—the latter references breasts only very briefly). There are a few black-and-white photographs and illustrations in each volume—it’s useful to note that the graphic for Penis piercing is a line drawing, not a photograph. Both books treat their subjects seriously and with respect and are suitable reference works for most high-school and public libraries.

Booklist

Readers of [Playboy] magazine may be forgiven for thinking they know a thing or two about body parts. But with [this] new volume . . . [The] publisher shows there's always more to discover. . . .[W]e're not ashamed to admit we learned quite a bit.

Playboy

The book begins with a wonderful introduction by the editors that purports the encyclopedia to be presented in a Saussurean spirit of signifier/signified structuralism. The cover says it all: a clever trick that presents a penis-and-testicles motif that can also be seen as a torso and thighs. Indeed, this volume is replete with examples of the penis in the visual arts, literature, science, technology, medicine, archaeology, behavior, psychology, and more. The introduction is perhaps one of the most valuable readings in the book, as it reviews the multitudinous ways in which the penis can be imagined, manifested, symbolized, used, empowered, effeminized, and exploited. It is here that the reader is introduced to the many versions of the 'cultural penis,' as a primer for what is in store in the pages that follow. . . .I [found] a great deal of value in [the] topics.

Savage Minds

The book covers every conceivable area in which the penis plays a role, including myths (see Herm/Herma and Old Norse religion) legends (see papal testicles), religious texts (the Bible, the Kama Sutra), and cult practices (see Shunga, the Japanese word for art, and chi kung, an advanced form of qi gong 'that is focused on strengthening the internal organs and increasing sexual energy'). . . .[M]ost readers are sure to learn something new, and do so quickly, as no entry is longer than a couple of pages. And because it’s an encyclopedia, you can cherry-pick to your heart’s content.

Gay and Lesbian Review

Cultural Encyclopedia of the Penis (CEP) should be an intriguing read for both the general public and scholars dedicated to the study of men and men’s issues. . . .For the lay reader, the sheer entertainment value...will be worth the time spent. . . .For those less interested in entertainment...the Cultural Encyclopedia of the Penis (CEP) can be a valuable resource. . . .The greatest strength of the CEP lies in its breadth. A reader unfamiliar with the surge in literature relating to men’s issues and masculinity in recent decades may be surprised by the many relevant references to the penis across disciplines. . . .All told, I found the CEP a largely interesting, informative, and at times provocative resource. I am pleased to have read it and...would encourage others interested in gender studies to do the same.

New Male Studies