This paper reports the results of a factorial experiment investigating the reactions of male students to a hypothetical English course offered at the community college level. The participants (n=136) consisted of students enrolled in English 1010 courses at 4 community colleges in a Southeastern state. The independent variables were gender of student, gender of the author assigned, and the type of reading assigned (narrative/expository). The dependent variable was a composite rating of student attraction to the course. Males preferred male authors and revealed less interest in the course than females. Testing also detected an interaction effect between gender of the author and style of writing. Unlike previous studies, males preferred a narrative style to expository assignments. The findings have practical implications for educational programs, English instructors, and future research. (Contains 3 tables and 39 references.) (Author/SLD)