SOURCE: A review of Little Tales of Misogyny, in New York Times Book Review, Vol. 91, April 6, 1986, p. 22.

In the following review, Hegi criticizes Highsmith's portrayal of women in Little Tales of Misogyny.

Punishment is the central theme of this collection of stories about women that was first published in a German translation in the mid-70s. The titles of the stories give an indication of their content: "The Mobile Bed-Object," "The Middle-Class Housewife," "The Breeder," "The Fully-Licensed Whore, or, The Wife." Patricia Highsmith's women destroy men and, as a result, most of them are punished. Yvonne, "The Coquette," is killed by two of her suitors "with various blows about the head." Claudette, "The Dancer," is strangled by her partner for refusing to sleep with him. Mildred, the bed-object, is dumped into a canal and drowned. "She had been thrown away, as one might throw away a cricket lighter...