Porn in a Pretty Package - a Rant

I just got though posting a comment on Romancing the Blog, on a thread that had to do with so- called romantica, and especially the novels of Emma Holly. I am fully prepared to get my ass whipped (ha!) because I called so-called romantica cited in the article as nothing but porn wrapped up in a pretty package.

This post is really breaking my own cardinal rule, because I have never read the book "Menage," which was being so highly praised by the author of the blog. "Menage" deals with a three-way that was still extant when the book ended, hence the title. According to the blogger Ms Holly's books deal with such subjects as anal sex, bondage, sex toys, mutual masterbation, and that's the tame stuff! I am sure that if anyone replies to my post consternation will reign when a spade is called a spade. In fact, the statement has already been made that because the book contains a love story, this is not porn. Not porn my Great Aunt Fanny!

The fact that some people find that type of book of interest doesn't shock me. Many people have sex lives (of either the real or fantasy type) that would surprise their neighbors. But call it what it is, for God's sake, and stop trying to hide behind an artificial construct that because it contains a "relationship" that it isn't at least erotica, let alone borderline porn, or outright porn. And stop whining that the public doesn't take romance seriously -- hell, I wouldn't take it seriously either if that was all there was to the genre, or my only exposure was a book such as the one attributed to Ms Holly!

Decided to Do a Sort Out of My TBR Pile!

I realized my TBR pile was getting totally out of hand again....I broke my promise to not buy any more books this month in a big way! I cancelled the three home reader services book clubs that I had set up with Harlequin Historicals and two other publishers and then forged ahead to reduce the TBR monster.

How did I make the decision as to what got cut to be taken to Goodwill? Nothing scientific, I assure you. If it had been sitting in the pile for months with hardly a glance being given, or if I gave a guilty cringe whenever I looked at the cover, out it went. There were quite a few Zebra Regencies that bit the dust unread! I also gave away books I had read, but which did not meet my own standard of keeper quality. There are eight plastic grocery bags of books waiting to go to the car when it cools off this evening.

Do I feel better? Yes, actually. I have decided to keep my vow for the next month, as I have pre-ordered the long-awaited "A Breath of Snow and Ashes," so naturally that doesn't count!

Working My Way Through the Classics

I was reading on another blog about the man who decided to read the entire Booker Prize long list in, I believe, 30 days. The Booker is a literary prize awardered in England every year and there is much prestige associated with being nominated, let alone winning. Amanda, on her bookwormmom blog, is trying to decide how she wants to emulate the British reader, whether to read the Booker short list or the Newberry winners for the past few years.

I decided a few weeks ago that I was going to work my way through the Barnes & Noble classics series, and have already read several from their list, plus have several waiting in the wings.....no, no, a new TBR pile...the horror, the horror!!! I have never had a problem reading more than one book in a given time frame -- I usually have one book for the bus and one for the house going at all times, so I will still be able to do my regular reading.

Why did I pick the Barnes & Noble Classics series? For one thing it is a comprehensive selection of the world's great literature in an inexpensive but attractive format: $5.95 - 7.95 for a trade size paperback with nice cover art. Second, each book has a introduction by a scholar in the field, who includes comprehensive footnotes, background material, a list of movie versions of the book, contemporary criticism, and a list of questions suitable for a book club discussion.

Do I expect to finish all the classics on the Barnes & Noble website? The answer is no, for several reasons: first, the list is quite long, well over a hundred titles; second, new books are added all the time; third, I may run into a book that I just can't finish, or one in which I have such minimal interest that I may just decide to skip it. For me, this is something that I have always wanted to do, as even though I consider myself fairly well-read, I am always coming across a classic that I have never read ("The Mill on the Floss" comes to mind, and, frankly, that is one that I probably will put off for a while longer).

My progress so far (all are Barnes & Noble Classics available at B&N stores and through the web site):

"Jane Eyre," by Charlotte Bronte.
"A Tale of Two Cities," by Charles Dickens
"David Copperfield, " by Charles Dickens
"A Room with a View," by E.M. Forster
"The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn," by Mark Twain

Current reading:

"Persuasion," by Jane Austen

Too Hot to Do Anything but Read!

I have lived in Virginia for 11 years now and have experienced some hot humid summers, but this summer stands with 1995 and 2002 as one I will gladly put behind me. Last summer was memorable because we never had a day above 93 degrees, which meant that one could garden, visit one of the tourist destinations (such as Colonial Williamsburg or Busch Gardens), or even just go to the local book store without danger of heat exhaustion. This year is memorable for hardly having a day below 93 degrees, with temperatures of 97, 98, 99 degrees not uncommon. Factor in the humidity and you have heat indices of up to 120 degrees!

This weekend I watched two movies ("The Upside of Anger," rented from netflix, and "Troy," purchased for half price from Target) and read. I finished an historical mystery ("A Plague on Both Your Houses") which I wanted to like more than I actually did -- the book received a big gold star for re-creating the world of 1348 and the appearance of the Black Death in England, but the plot was so convoluted with a large cast of characters that I was ready to finish it long before I reached the end. I then went to Candice Proctor's "The Bequest," which I highly recommend! Proctor reminds me of Marsha Canham: excellent writing style, believable plot, engaging characters, and much emotion. "The Bequest" is the story of a convent-raised young woman who inherits a bordello in post-Civil War Colorado from the mother she thought had died. A great read!

I am also reading "Jane Austen's Guide to Dating," a book I wish had been available when I actually was dating! If you are married, or single but out of the action, this is really a book to borrow from the library and enjoy more for the literary references (and the quiz at the back) then as an advice book. When I took this quiz I was "Elizabeth Bennet", while I showed up as "Eleanor" on the quiz T. Marie posted on her blog.

Well, it is now time for me to start getting ready for work. Being up at zero dark 30 is not my real style, and is not something I will miss when I retire next year. Y'all stay cool, you hear!?

"A Little Respect..."

Once again on the Romancing the Blog web site someone has written another venting article on the lack of respect that the public (including readers of the genre) and writers have for romance novels. My response was that the non-romance reading public is stuck about 25 years in the past regarding the genre: they still are thinking of the purple prose bodice ripper that revitalized the genre but also (IMO) gave it a reputation that is hard to live down to this day.

But to be totally frank, I think that the increased emphasis on more and more explicit sex (the erotica/romantica movement) is not helping the case. IMO it just reinforces the public view that we are nothing but "horney housewives of the desperate kind". I know all the justifications for the "romantica" genre: more women are demanding it; it's not about sex, it's about the relationships (huhuh..); those who object or don't read it are a bunch of dried-up prudes; it's mostly married women who read it, not singles, and on and on.

Do I think it should be discontinued? No! I don't believe in censorship. But I also think that in most cases perception is everything, so if the trend for more and more explicit sex and heretofore taboo variations (including three-ways and bondage) continues, no one should be surprised if the genre is still suffering from lack of respect ten years from now.