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A review by vivalibrarian
Fifty Shades of Grey by E.L. James
1.0
I'm trying to think of a way to be objective about this...
I've been reading a lot of erotic fiction lately in preparation for a presentation to librarians on it. With all the hype, I downloaded Fifty Shades of Grey as homework to read on the plane ride. In our presentation, it was mentioned that Fifty Shades was a game changer because it brings erotic fiction into the limelight.
Having started out as Twilight fan fiction, you know the basic make up of the characters. Anastasia is an inexperienced, clumsy, thinks she's ugly college student who meets Christian, a very wealthy, experienced and somewhat unstable guy. They. must. be. together. The kink factor is what makes it different-Christian likes it rough and in control. Anastasia doesn't but will do anything to be with him. blah, blah, blah.
I am glad I read it as I now understand why it is popular with a certain set of readers. For people who are not familiar with the BDSM world, it is an invitation to explore that arena from the perspective of someone who is a virgin and is fearful and uncertain. Seriously, there are contracts and lists written out *in the book*. I can see the appeal. However, to those that live the BDSM lifestyle, the portrayal of that world is completely wrong. I wish a better representation of erotic fiction and BDSM had become so popular.
Still, in today's climate, it is a good thing that people are talking about sex, women especially, so I put on my librarian hat and think that perhaps good things will come of this craziness. Mild character development, small semblance of a plot, language is terrifyingly repetitive and a good editor is desperately needed.
I've been reading a lot of erotic fiction lately in preparation for a presentation to librarians on it. With all the hype, I downloaded Fifty Shades of Grey as homework to read on the plane ride. In our presentation, it was mentioned that Fifty Shades was a game changer because it brings erotic fiction into the limelight.
Having started out as Twilight fan fiction, you know the basic make up of the characters. Anastasia is an inexperienced, clumsy, thinks she's ugly college student who meets Christian, a very wealthy, experienced and somewhat unstable guy. They. must. be. together. The kink factor is what makes it different-Christian likes it rough and in control. Anastasia doesn't but will do anything to be with him. blah, blah, blah.
I am glad I read it as I now understand why it is popular with a certain set of readers. For people who are not familiar with the BDSM world, it is an invitation to explore that arena from the perspective of someone who is a virgin and is fearful and uncertain. Seriously, there are contracts and lists written out *in the book*. I can see the appeal. However, to those that live the BDSM lifestyle, the portrayal of that world is completely wrong. I wish a better representation of erotic fiction and BDSM had become so popular.
Still, in today's climate, it is a good thing that people are talking about sex, women especially, so I put on my librarian hat and think that perhaps good things will come of this craziness. Mild character development, small semblance of a plot, language is terrifyingly repetitive and a good editor is desperately needed.