Today I took the kids swimming at my mom's neighborhood pool. While my mom supervised the little ones in the kiddie pool, Rylan and I went in the big pool. As we were swimming, I noticed three different moms, on three different sides of the pool, all reading the exact same book.
I read that same book last month. The whole trilogy, actually. In four days.
I didn't really intend to read the series. We had briefly discussed it as a pick for bookclub, and then we all ultimately decided against it because the subject matter had potential to be disturbing. Then, several weeks later, as the kids and I entered the library, there was Fifty Shades - sitting in the Here and Now section. (A special section of top book picks that are in high demand.) I guiltily slipped it into our library bag. It was back on the shelf within 24 hours. I managed to sit with the dilemma of how to get a hold of book 2 for about 8 hours before I succumbed to curiosity and downloaded it on Kindle. The next day I ordered book 3. I have no idea what the kids did that week, or what they ate, or what they wore... but the good news is that they survived my mental vacation with minimal emotional scarring.
I will not discuss the obvious, but I will address the critics who say that E L James cannot write, that she stole ideas and ripped Stephenie Meyer off (???), or that she glamorizes the male in a dominant role. While it is true that this series may not be for everyone, there is no glorification here. I also know the kerfluffle over where this storyline orginated from, but this rewrite has absolutely nothing to do with Twilight...
James can write, and she used the narrative tool of describing the main character's inner thoughts to elevate the task of character development to a whole different level - heck, that IS the crux of the story - the transformation of both Anastasia and Christian. If you read beyond the rather annoyingly constant ...um...er...'events' that advance the plot, you get to read a fascinating stream of inner dialogue as Anastasia comes to terms with discovering her desires, limits, strengths and weaknesses. It really is good stuff. I also admire the way James changed up her writing style within the story when it came to the snippets of emails scattered throughout the chapters. There were some truly witty and hilarious volleys back and forth.
Two things annoyed me though:
1. The constant use of 'Holy crap'. I think it was used at least 263 times throughout all three books. (just a guess).
2. "He is so hot". Really? Is E L James BFFs with Paris Hilton? That phrase is just...so... 'icky'.
I totally did not intend to write about reading this series. Number one, because my mother reads this blog. (ewww). Number two - I so wanted to totally avoid the obvious.
BUT
Seeing those moms, all engrossed in their books and ignoring their children actually made me chuckle - I would have died from embarrassment to read those books in public like that.
"Don't mind me, I'm just sitting in my lounge chair.....reading mommy porn!"
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