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3.0 AVERAGE
3.0 AVERAGE
I decided to revisit this book because I recently watched the 1975 film adaptation. I had strong feelings about the movie (extreme distaste) and complained about it pretty extensively on letterboxd, but my overall sentiment was that the movie turned a deeply sensual and thoughtful work into something purely superficial and aesthetic. I was not at all surprised when I learned the director was a man.
This book is a giant in the history of sexuality and sexual liberation, especially because it is one of the first examples of a woman achieving widespread recognition for S&M erotica. This alone makes it worth a read to anyone who is interested in sexual liberation and feminism (this book has been criticized for having anti-feminist themes; these criticisms are dishonest and reflect a faction of the "feminist" movement that still wants to control women, just in a different manner).
My interest runs deeper than that, because this book is a core part of the culture of BDSM in several ways. I know many kinksters (usually on the older side) who were first introduced to the idea of S&M through this boom. Many contemporary elements of BDSM are present in this book as well, including leather restraints and the use of horse-whips for sadomasochist scenes. This book isn't an instruction in how to wield these tools, but it has clearly influenced the people who do.
I can't personally comment on the quality of this book as erotica because it is written from the perspective of a submissive woman in a high protocol setting, which is a completely different perspective than anything I'm interested in. That being said, many of my friends for whom that perspective is enticing speak highly of Réage's execution in this book.
BDSM has clearly evolved a lot, and we as a culture are a lot more prominent in the world than we were decades ago. This means that there have been all sorts of other influences on the culture (Japanese Shibari being the most obvious example), but this book is an old and persistent influence on BDSM, and I would recommend it (and have done so!) to anyone who participates in any sort of play.
This book is a giant in the history of sexuality and sexual liberation, especially because it is one of the first examples of a woman achieving widespread recognition for S&M erotica. This alone makes it worth a read to anyone who is interested in sexual liberation and feminism (this book has been criticized for having anti-feminist themes; these criticisms are dishonest and reflect a faction of the "feminist" movement that still wants to control women, just in a different manner).
My interest runs deeper than that, because this book is a core part of the culture of BDSM in several ways. I know many kinksters (usually on the older side) who were first introduced to the idea of S&M through this boom. Many contemporary elements of BDSM are present in this book as well, including leather restraints and the use of horse-whips for sadomasochist scenes. This book isn't an instruction in how to wield these tools, but it has clearly influenced the people who do.
I can't personally comment on the quality of this book as erotica because it is written from the perspective of a submissive woman in a high protocol setting, which is a completely different perspective than anything I'm interested in. That being said, many of my friends for whom that perspective is enticing speak highly of Réage's execution in this book.
BDSM has clearly evolved a lot, and we as a culture are a lot more prominent in the world than we were decades ago. This means that there have been all sorts of other influences on the culture (Japanese Shibari being the most obvious example), but this book is an old and persistent influence on BDSM, and I would recommend it (and have done so!) to anyone who participates in any sort of play.
dark
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
dark
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Sometimes I feel odd rating classic books - ratings are sort of my personal reaction mixed with a distinct question of "would I recommend this" and then also "is the book doing a thing effectively" - anyway I'm hardly sure, but it is a classic (in BDSM erotic literature) for a reason.
I didn't read O and I didn't read O because I had read something warning me off of it, but it's been years and I couldn't remember why, and Kathy Acker's feminist work "Pussy, King of the Pirates" takes O as a main character, so I thought I'd go see her actual story.
Perfectly good kinky erotica! Put me in mind of Anne Rice's Sleeping Beauty quartet, but with stricter hetero gender politics. There's some interesting writing in there with O's personality identification as a lover of/to women that is fairly unlike any kind of usual modern queer identity.
But the ending of the book (summed up in 2 lines by the translator, mentioned as an alternate ending- but the book itself just ends on a perfectly usual sex scene that doesn't feel much like an ending at all) is abominable, and the only kind thing to be said about it is it isn't really in the book at all.
I didn't read O and I didn't read O because I had read something warning me off of it, but it's been years and I couldn't remember why, and Kathy Acker's feminist work "Pussy, King of the Pirates" takes O as a main character, so I thought I'd go see her actual story.
Perfectly good kinky erotica! Put me in mind of Anne Rice's Sleeping Beauty quartet, but with stricter hetero gender politics. There's some interesting writing in there with O's personality identification as a lover of/to women that is fairly unlike any kind of usual modern queer identity.
But the ending of the book (summed up in 2 lines by the translator, mentioned as an alternate ending- but the book itself just ends on a perfectly usual sex scene that doesn't feel much like an ending at all) is abominable, and the only kind thing to be said about it is it isn't really in the book at all.
this book is slightly disturbing.....and not everyone will like it......it's all about baby steps. I would say read "Haunted" by Chuck Pahluhniuk first, if you liked that, then read this book......otherwise I wouldn't do it.
But I really enjoyed it!
<3
But I really enjoyed it!
<3
This is a personal opinion honestly, I found this book very boring. I came across this book while listening to Rotten Mango and it was said it's the textbook of the BDSM world so I was intrigued. I guess it's not for me. I can't comment on its validity since I know so little about that world.
I understand why its a classic but it had some startling and upsetting elements that kept it from being perfect
challenging
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes