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W E D N E S D A Y

The “anger is an energy” mantra has made the transition from pop punk to pop psychology. Mary Valentis and Anne Devane’s Female Rage: Unlocking Its Secrets, Claiming Its Power asserts that by politely suppressing their annoyances, women fail to find outlets for negativity. References to a woman who “first experienced her own rage…at an anger retreat,” and to “Lizzie Borden, whose initials match [Lorena Bobbitt’s]” place Valentis and Devane’s work in the realm of mainstream self-help, but their deconstruction of the Medusa myth is nicely done. There’s even a quiz titled “How Enraged Are You?”; several colleagues who took this test landed, astonishingly, in the “healthy outrage” range rather than the expected “filled with rage and unresolved anger.” The authors read at 6:30 p.m. at Lammas Women’s Books, 1426 21st St. NW. FREE. (202) 775-8218. (Nathalie op de Beeck)