Interesting. I sometimes wish that I were able to find more writing by men, but I find that this is more of an issue in blogs and fannish circles (especially disability circles, my favorite aspect of real life and biggest beef with the kyriarchy). I am not at all certain that this is the cause of literacy problems among boys (though it may be a result of it), especially in light of what some female authors have written. For example, Harry Potter does not seem as if it should be unappealing to boys at all, and the author is female. I question whether encouraging boys to read books by female authors is the best solution; I suspect that problems with education and socialization that run far deeper than "girl authors have cooties" are to blame.

It does seem to contradict the established rules to have crossover between the lists. I find that action suspect. I doubt the entire thing was merely orchestrated as an attempt to discredit female writers, but I also suspect I may be arguing with a straw man here. Am I?