Fifty Shades of Grey
Has any one read this book? It seems to be getting mentioned more and more over the internet and I'm just wondering what it'sall about! It's girl porn!Not that well written, but it has touched a generation of frustrated housewives. Lots of hanky panky and a little bit of spanky as well.
All the girls in the office have now read all 3 books, some of them not just skipping to the dirty bits data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7 Men puzzled by porn that you read Hi,
It should be pointed out that these three books, were originally published online, for free, as fan-fiction, with slightly different character names, and a few changes of location.
They can still be found, legally, online, if you don't want to pay to buy them, or just want to see why everyone is suddenly so interested in these works.
Just as a sidenote: I love the fact that when women read adult materials, it's called "erotica", and it's acceptable to be seen reading it. When men read such stuff, it's called "porn", and men are labelled "perv's" or "deviants" for reading them.
Pooch I've read several reviews but most say it isn't very well written, quite repetitive and has a thin plot.But there does seem to be lot of fuss surrounding it so perhaps it can't be that bad.
@PoochJD I agree with you completely.But then sexual equality is all about double standards it seems. Hi,
Well, a lot has been written about Hitler, but I wouldn't want to be seen reading his "Mein Kampf" book in public! data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7 data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7
Getting slightly back on track: "Fifty Shades Of Grey" (or "Pompous faux-BDSM fluff" as it's also known) is probably as rotten as it sounds. It's popular, presumably because the cover is dull, so only people in the know would see that you were reading porn (unlike actual porn novels aimed at men, where the covers are full of pictures of ladies in the buff). data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7
The fact it's been written by a woman, rather than a man, also seems to help its popularity with women. (I'm pretty certain if the author had written the exact same book, word-for-word, but just happened to be a man, the book would have been classified as yet another load of sexist, pornographic tripe, by the very same women who are currently reading it and praising it to high heaven.)
Here's a few sample bits of text from the book - as found in this online article here:
“Anticipation hangs heavy and portentous over my head…”
“‘So I brought you here,” he said phlegmatically.
“The ceremony takes another hour to conclude. It's interminable.”
“Another mercurial mood swing; it's so hard to keep up.”
“I'm lost in a quagmire of sensation.”
“I revel in his possession, his lust slaking mine.”
“Trepidation lances through me.”
“He's got right under my skin, literally.”
“I turn into my pillow and the sluice gates open.”
And this is the very first paragraph of the book...
This is what women are reading, and claiming is great literature in 2012! data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7 data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7 I've read Ladybird books with more gravitas than this pile of data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7 !
Ironically, most book shops are selling this work in the "Romance" section or under the mainstream fiction, rather than having it placed with the "Adult" or "Erotica" section. Again, it smacks of double-standards.
Now try looking for "The Story Of O", "Emmanuelle", "Salo, or The 120 Days Of Sodom", and I can assure you, they aren't in the mainstream novels section of your local branch of Waterstones, if they're even in-stock at all! Likewise, branches up-and-down the country are promoting this book for all that it is worth, in window-displays, with in-store posters and advertising. They wouldn't be doing the same for the three books I previously mentioned, nor if the book had been written by a bloke.
Likewise, I can guarantee any man caught reading "The Story Of O", "Salo...",or "Emmanuelle" on the bus or train, would likely get hundreds of disapproving looks. Catch a woman reading "Fifty Shades..." under the same circumstances, and the worst thing that'll happen is other women will grin or smile.
I don't have anything personal against E.L. James (author of the "Fifty Shades..." trilogy), nor do I have anything against anyone reading it - in private or in public. But please call it what it is - it's just porn (albeit trendy soft porn) for women!
Pooch Not just any fan fiction, but Twilight fan fiction! Love it data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7 Damn it Pooch,I don't like to agree with you on things, data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7 but your post says very eloquently and clearly exactly what I think about these books!I think you've hit the nail right on the head there mate!data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7 .....and I am sure loads of women would look at a sample of Gemmell and dismiss it in the same way. Each to their own I say!