A part from the flaming scarlet with which the word 'Incest' is picked out on the covers of both these books, they do not have much in common, but the theme has a perennial fascination and they will doubtless both sell well. I am personally more attracted by Susan Forward's modestly presented case-histories than by Robin Fox's pretentious fantasies, but there is more meat for discussion in the latter's argument, so let us start there.

LRB 19 February 1981 | PDF Download