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A review by julestx
Love Without Sex: Stories on the Spectrum of Modern Relationships by Sophie Lucido Johnson
3.0
I would recommend Love Without Sex to anyone who is new to polyamory, who wants to understand more about asexuality, or who is interested in challenging the idea that love include sex. Johnson provides a pathway for how to separate the concepts of sexual attraction, sexual desire, love, affectional attraction, romance, and more.
Love Without Sex shines when Johnson features other voices and stories. Hearing from people of various genders, sexual orientations, backgrounds, and relationship experiences gives readers a sense of how people can break away from mononormativity to create the relationships that work for them. The section on Chosen Family was especially powerful by challenging traditional ideas of family structure and pointing to how sex and gender minorities have been crafting space for family when their families of origin do not welcome them.
Johnson’s choice to feature stories of asexual individuals and their experiences is much needed when so often media and stories neglect to include people who identify as asexual. However, the way in which Johnson presents these stories could potentially be dismissive to that population. Rather than giving space for these voices as a way to learn more about asexual individuals and their relationships, Johnson presents them as a way to learn more about love and relationships can mean for others. These people and their stories deserve to be heard without the qualifier of what others can learn through them.
Love Without Sex shines when Johnson features other voices and stories. Hearing from people of various genders, sexual orientations, backgrounds, and relationship experiences gives readers a sense of how people can break away from mononormativity to create the relationships that work for them. The section on Chosen Family was especially powerful by challenging traditional ideas of family structure and pointing to how sex and gender minorities have been crafting space for family when their families of origin do not welcome them.
Johnson’s choice to feature stories of asexual individuals and their experiences is much needed when so often media and stories neglect to include people who identify as asexual. However, the way in which Johnson presents these stories could potentially be dismissive to that population. Rather than giving space for these voices as a way to learn more about asexual individuals and their relationships, Johnson presents them as a way to learn more about love and relationships can mean for others. These people and their stories deserve to be heard without the qualifier of what others can learn through them.