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booknerd85's reviews
1419 reviews
The Sins of the Cities of the Plain by Jack Saul
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
I bought this book because it was on a list of LGBTQ+ classics. I should have read the description better.
I saw this book compared to works by De Sade in other reviews, and I agree that there are a lot of similarities. Taboo subjects, a lot of sex with adults, minors, siblings, and animals. What we do have to keep in mind though is that this author was a sex worker from a (far too) young age, and De Sade was a nobleman. Saul was abused for money, De Sade probably paid money to abuse others. Did I enjoy reading this book? Not really. The prose was good, the puns were funny (Lady Furbelow, Mr Inslip, Mr Comeagain), but the social commentary was confusing at best, and sex is not something I really enjoy reading about. I did like learning new words though, and I did not know that an old word for lesbianism was tribadism. Still not entirely sure what gamahuching is, and I'm scared to google it.
I saw this book compared to works by De Sade in other reviews, and I agree that there are a lot of similarities. Taboo subjects, a lot of sex with adults, minors, siblings, and animals. What we do have to keep in mind though is that this author was a sex worker from a (far too) young age, and De Sade was a nobleman. Saul was abused for money, De Sade probably paid money to abuse others. Did I enjoy reading this book? Not really. The prose was good, the puns were funny (Lady Furbelow, Mr Inslip, Mr Comeagain), but the social commentary was confusing at best, and sex is not something I really enjoy reading about. I did like learning new words though, and I did not know that an old word for lesbianism was tribadism. Still not entirely sure what gamahuching is, and I'm scared to google it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Child abuse, Incest, Infidelity, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, Antisemitism, Trafficking, Sexual harassment, and Classism
Gender Trouble: Feminism and the Subversion of Identity by Judith Butler
Did not finish book. Stopped at 3%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 3%.
I need to retrain my brain to read academic text before I tackle this book.
Different for Boys by Patrick Ness
Did not finish book. Stopped at 26%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 26%.
Just not vibing with the story
On Anarchism by Noam Chomsky
Did not finish book. Stopped at 11%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 11%.
I don't enjoy Chomsky's writing style. I don't know why I picked this book up.