THIS BOOK IS GAY

THIS BOOK IS GAY by James Dawson

 

Pages: 271

Date: 07/09/2014

Grade: 5+

Details: Non-Fiction

            Received from Hot Key Books

            Through Nudge

Own

The blurb:

Former PSHCE teacher and acclaimed YA author James Dawson gives an uncensored look at what it's like to grow up as LGBT*. Including testimonials from people 'across the spectrum', this inclusive book explores everything anyone who ever dared to wonder wants to know - from sex to politics, how to pull, stereotypes, how to come-out and more. Spike Gerrell's hilarious illustrations combined with funny and factual text make this a must-read.

My thoughts:

“LGBT people are strong. Because we have to be.”

The author’s note says:

“This book is Gay is a collection of facts, my ideas and my stories but also the testimonies of more than three hundred amazing LGBT people who shared their stories in July 2013. I conducted an international survey from which many of the quotes are taken, and also carried out more in-depth interviews with some selected participants.”

“Whether you think you might be LGBT or think you’re straight but have questions or you’re anywhere in between, this book is for you.”

Sometimes you read a book and find yourself wondering why it took so long before someone wrote it. Occasionally you come across a book and you’re grateful to have the opportunity to not only read it but also to be in a position where you can tell others about it. ‘This Book is Gay’ is such a book.  

This book was written for young people who may find themselves questioning their sexuality or afraid of what the conclusions they’ve come to are going to mean for them. And as such I think it is brilliant. The author tackles every aspects of the LGBT spectrum, doesn’t shy away from uncomfortable truths but doesn’t turn this into a sob story or a scary tale.

In fact, what I liked most about this book was the fact that while the message was serious, the tone in which it was shared was light-hearted and comforting. The message was loud and clear; while your life may become more complicated when you come out it will result in you being true to yourself, and ultimately, that is the one thing all of us want.

The drawings in this book, combined with the author’s voice keep the tone light and the message loud and clear. The personal testimonies shared throughout give this book an intimate feeling while showing that there are no one-size-fits-all answers or solutions. What is true or works for one person may not be the best solution for another, and that too is fine.

This book should have pride of place in every (school) library, should be given to all kids once they reach the age where sex and sexuality come into play. In fact, I would advocate putting this book on the curriculum of secondary schools. After all, as it says in this book, while kids are given all sorts of information about heterosexual relationships, other options are rarely mentioned. Imagine how it must feel if you are a teenager who is not attracted to the opposite sex, or a teenager who is not sure about their gender identity. I’ll go one further and say this book would probably make things a lot clearer for the average adult too.  

I would like to think ‘This Book is Gay’ could be another step towards that world in which sexuality and gender stop being an issue and all of us can be free to be who and what we are, without fear and discomfort. It is in that spirit that I applaud this author on a job very well done, and thank him for writing a well conceived and brilliantly executed book.

I don't usually show the same cover twice in one review but today I will, just to show how many quotable passages I came across. In the end I had to limit myself to the quotes I started and ended this review with. For all the other good bits (and really, this book is one huge good bit) you'll have to read the book.

“Who do you want to be? There’s only one rule; always be true to yourself.”

INVENTING THE ENEMY

TITLE: INVENTING THE ENEMY

AUTHOR: UMBERTO ECO

Pages: 222

Date: 18/09/2013

Grade: 4

Details: Essays on Everything

           Received from Vintage Books

           Through Nudge

Own

According to the introduction this book was originally going to be titled “Occasional Writings”. Which leads us to the question what “occasional writings” actually are. To quote the author:

“They are generally on topics about which the author had no specific interest. He was, instead, encouraged to write each one after being invited to contribute to a series of discussions or essays on a particular theme. It captured the author’s interest and encouraged him to reflect on something he might otherwise have ignored (…).”

As for the reason why the publisher decided to use the title of the first essay for this book instead of the author’s original idea, well those reasons should be obvious. “Inventing the Enemy” sounds a lot more intriguing than “Occasional Writings” ever could.

What we have here is a collection of 14 essays. The problem, when reviewing a collection of essays, is that there are always going to be pieces on subjects the reviewer knows little or nothing about and/or has no real interest in. That problem gets even bigger when the essays are written by a brilliant mind like Eco’s. While I can honestly say that every single word in this book was fascinating to me, I also have to be honest enough to admit that quite a few of those words went straight over my head.

I have been in awe of Umberto Eco ever since I read “The Name of the Rose” and “Foucault’s Pendulum”, years ago. Here we have a man with what appears to be endless knowledge about numerous subjects. A thinker able to share his thoughts, both serious and absurd, in a way that intrigues his audience, even if the audience is not always capable of following his reasoning or establishing the accuracy of his ideas and assertions.

This book contains essays on a wide variety of subjects varying from light-hearted to serious, from historical to contemporary and from philosophical to factual. Below I will share thoughts on and quotes from some of these essays. That selection is however rather arbitrary since it is very personal and limited to those pieces that struck a cord with me.

Inventing the Enemy

“Having an enemy is important not only to define our identity but also to provide us with an obstacle against which to measure our system of values and, in seeking to overcome it, to demonstrate our own worth.”

Examples ranging from Cicero to Ian Fleming, illustrate how the enemy has always been described using similar, if not identical, characteristics, regardless of who the portrayed enemy is. It seems that we cannot manage without an enemy and will create one when we find ourselves without an opponent.

Absolute and Relative

And the question whether or not there is such a thing as an absolute or relative truth.

Treasure Hunting

“The cult of the relic is to be found in every religion and culture.

Not so much philosophical as a listing of where to find which relics, which immediately makes the reader realise that certain relics can be found in more places than should logically be possible. But, of course:

“It is not the relic that makes faith, but faith that makes the relic.”

Censorship and Silence

Two forms of censorship: censorship through silence and censorship through noise.

“To avoid causing behaviour considered to be deviant, don’t talk about it, (…) To avoid talking about deviant behaviour, talk a great deal about other things.”

“Nothing is more difficult to dispose of than an irrelevant but true story.”

“In losing the condition of silence, we lost the possibility of hearing what other people are saying, which is the only basic and reliable means of communication.”

Imaginary Astronomies

From the way we saw the world and the skies in the past to the emergence of science fiction. Including the fascinating question whether, if science fiction is influenced by science, the opposite is also true?

Living by Proverbs

The idea is fascinating; creating a society in which people live their lives based on the wisdom contained in proverbs as the way to happiness. That this is of course doomed to fail is obvious, but it makes for a very interesting idea.

Ulysses: That’s All We Need

A denouement of Joyce’s Ulysses that I can’t help feeling shouldn’t be taken seriously, although I’m completely lost as to what the purpose of this essay might be if that assumption is right.

Thoughts on WikiLeaks

WikiLeaks is of course, a false scandal since everybody knew, although nobody acknowledged, that embassies had turned from representatives of their countries into information gathering operations. Furthermore, the information sent to America was not actually secret.

While modern technology makes the Big Brother scenario all too realistic – it is next to impossible to go through life unobserved – WikiLeaks has shown that this is actually a two-way street. Those in power may be able to observe us, but we, at least those of us proficient at computer hacking – can discover the secrets of that Power. 

Like most, if not all, collections of essays this is a book that is best read in bits and pieces. Reading this book from cover to cover would in all likelihood be quite exhausting. Moreover, the essays in this book are all of a rather high intellectual quality and require the reader to think along with the author, which is really only possible if they give themselves the time to absorb the information provided and the luxury of pondering it at their leisure.

What intrigued me most about this book is that while some of these essays appear to deal with subjects we completely take for granted and rarely give a second thought, Umberto Eco reflects on them from angles I had never considered and would never have considered if I hadn’t read about them here.

Overall this book provided me with a fascinating, thought-provoking and at times eye-opening reading experience. While I can’t say that every essay grabbed me to the same extent I can honestly state that they all interested me, even when – or maybe especially when – I wasn’t quite sure exactly what it was I was reading.

WICKED GAMES

TITLE: WICKED GAMES

           My Year of Submission

AUTHOR: KELLY LAWRENCE

Pages: 244

Date: 08/07/2013

Grade: 4.5

Details: Non-Fiction

            Received from Black Lace

Own

When Kelly, a twenty-six year old adult literacy teacher, meets Alex the attraction between them is instant. But even on their very first date it becomes clear that Alex isn’t like the men Kelly has dated before. He tells her to wear something red – a request (or is it an order?) she ignores - orders her drink for her without asking what she wants and shows her what happens to girls who don’t do as they’re told as soon as they get back to her house. A spanking isn’t what Kelly was expecting at the end of her first date and she knows she should put a stop to it, but:

“…and as much as part of me wanted to jump out of his grasp and demand he leave, my body was a purring kitten under his touch, she wasn’t going anywhere. My inner slut was well and truly taking over.”

It is on subsequent date that Alex explains to Kelly that his passions are far from what is considered regular. He is into BDSM, wants to dominate the woman he is with and needs her to submit to him. Kelly is confused about what he has told her and doesn’t really know what any of it means but:

“I couldn’t lie to myself: I was intrigued. I wanted to know exactly what he had in mind, to experience the secrets his words hinted at.”

A visit to a local fetish club and talk with the professional Dominatrix she meets there, clarify some aspects of this lifestyle for her but no amount of watching or talking can prepare her for the things she will experience once she decides that she does want to explore this world. Her attraction to Alex is too strong and her curiosity has been aroused by the way she reacted to that first spanking. And after her first full play session with Alex she has to admit that:

“Even if I never saw Alex again, I knew I wouldn’t be the same person, at least sexually, as I had been before I stepped into that bedroom.”

It isn’t long before both Kelly and Alex have to admit that what they are experiencing is more than just sexual attraction and compatibility. Kelly falls completely under Alex’ spell:

 “The way he could switch from being the perfect gentleman to looking at me like he could strip my clothes from my flesh with just the force of his gaze made my mouth go dry.”

But their relationship and growing feelings don’t leave the far more experienced Alex unaffected either:

“…I feel like I’m losing myself in you. I was planning on keeping the orgasm denial going until tomorrow but as soon as I was inside you, I lost all thought. It was remiss of me.”

But just as it seems that Alex and Kelly have found their way to happiness, a blast from Alex’ past emerges to throw a spanner in the works; a spanner of such magnitude that it may just put an end to Kelly’s happiness and newly discovered pleasures.

As you may have noticed, I’ve been reading a lot of erotic books lately. And quite a few of those books had stories about a character being somewhat sexually frustrated for reasons they couldn’t identify, meeting someone who turns out to be into BDSM, recognises their need/want and sets out to seduce them and introduce them to the pleasures of submission.

The story in this book runs along those lines as well. Except that it isn’t a story that sprung from someone’s imagination. No, according to the cover this is “a real-life erotic romance”. While reading this book I couldn’t get over how much fact – or real life if you will – imitates fiction. And then I had to give myself a good face-slap. Fact imitating fiction? Think again. It is far more likely that the people who wrote the erotic novels I have been reading and enjoying actually knew what they were writing about and got it so right that by the time I read a factual account of submission I had a hard time remembering that it wasn’t fiction.

This book reads as easy as a good work of fiction does. The story is as gripping as any work of fiction should be and the characters - well they aren’t really characters of course since this is a memoir - are fascinating. In fact it is because this book isn’t fiction that the story is so intriguing. While Kerry does resemble a lot of the newly submissive characters you find in novels, Alex is a bit more realistic than most Doms you find in erotic fiction. He’s no billionaire for starters and does make mistakes, can’t always keep his Dom persona up and is as vulnerable as Kerry when the relationship is under threat. And, more importantly, he’s not afraid to share those mistakes and doubts with Kerry.

This book fascinated me as did Kerry. I loved everything she discovered about herself and how she continued to explore her boundaries even while questioning herself.

“And so there was another line crossed, and yet more territory he had conquered.”

I smiled when Anna, the Dominatrix gives Kerry some literature to learn more about BDSM: “The Story of O” and “Exit to Eden”; two works of fiction I’m well familiar with and which do, indeed, provide a lot of insight into the lifestyle.

I think this is a wonderful book for anyone who has been reading erotic novels and, like me, has found themselves wondering how realistic they actually are. This book does prove that the line between fact and fiction, like the one between pain and pleasure, is indeed a very fine one.

MR. GIG

TITLE: MR GIG, One Man's Search for 

         the Soul of Live Music

AUTHOR: NIGE TASSELL

Pages: 270

Date: 26/05/2013

Grade: 5

Details: Non-Fiction

            Received from Short Books

            Through Nudge

Own

Ever since he started university in 1988 Nige Tassell had lived and breathed live music. He had been involved in the world of gigs in several different guises: student entertainments officer, roadie, dj support act, reviewer, and punter. Nige knows this world from almost every conceivable angle and his title of “Mr. Gig” was well deserved.

“And my relationship with live music was like a love affair – a steady, reliable one that occasionally bordered on the obsessive.”

But then fatherhood arrived and live music slipped away having fallen victim to the demands of parenthood.

Any music lover with a long history of going to live concerts will sympathise with the reasons Tassell gives for having lost the urge to continue going: “the astronomical ticket prices”, “the sea of mobile phones obscuring the view”, “the incessant chatter of those in the crowd who believe a gig is a social gathering and the live band is a mere accompaniment to that” and “having to stand in a muddy field several hundred yards away from the stage, only able to see your distant heroes on a big screen” are only a few of the, all too recognisable, examples listed in this book.

“Why is the success of a band measured by how small they look from the cheap seats?”

And so, with mid-life looming large, Tassell decides to have another look at live-gigs. He has a few questions he would like to answer for himself, the most crucial being:

“Is the mosh-pit an appropriate place for a tubby, bald man on the dark side of 40?”

Tassell’s quest begins with The Glastonbury Festival of Contemporary Performing Arts, to give the event its proper name, where he is immediately confronted by the dreaded sea of mobile phones trying to capture performances and ends up pondering:

“…how if you’re capturing the experience of watching a band by taking a few dozen photos or shooting some video’s you’re going to be seeing a large part of the gig through your phone screen.”

But, overall, his first outing back on the gig circuit can be called a success; Mr. Tassell enjoyed himself and even found a few examples of how the modern day version is an improvement on the Glastonbury of his (very wet and muddy) memories.

But this book is more than a commentary on gigs and the differences between live performances in the past and the present. This book is about the whole music industry and the huge transformation it has undergone. For (a rather stark) example:

“Previously bands toured (…) to promote and flog their new record. Now, increasingly, the role of a new release – whether physical or digital – seems to be to indicate that a bunch of live dates are imminent.”

Furthermore, this book shatters a few illusions many people may have about those who make it in the music industry. A hit single is not a get-rich-quick-scheme. It can take bands years, if not decades, to pay off the production and promotion costs associated with bringing out an album. A lot of albums never sold enough copies to bring the artists who created them any royalties at all. Maybe this is a bit of advice that should be shared with all those hopefuls applying for shows like The X-Factor, hoping for fame and fortune. While the fame may come, the fortune may prove more elusive. Heck, maybe this book should be compulsory reading for everybody auditioning.

With Nige Tassell the reader takes a look at, among others, an eighties revival festival, bands that have reformed despite splitting up most acrimoniously in the past, a tribute band (shock-horror?), arena concerts, big festivals, small festivals, exclusive festivals, posh festivals… Who knew there were so many different sorts of festivals and concerts, just in Britain? And it is not just the performances themselves that are put under the microscope. Through talks with organisers, performers and background staff the reader gets a really good insight into what goes into organising an event and what it is that motivates people to stay on the circuit despite the mad schedules and, at times, obscure locations.

And Tassell discovers that his cynicism may have been misplaced, his reluctance unnecessary. The music industry may have changed, and he may not like some of the modern day aspects of it, but that doesn’t necessarily mean things are worse now; they’re just different. But then again, so is he. But that doesn’t mean that Mr. Gig can’t follow the example of so many artists and make a come-back.

As I hope the description above makes clear, this is a charming and engaging look at live music in our time. It is an at times laugh-out-loud funny analysis of the differences between the music scene in the eighties and the early 21^st century. If anything shines through this book is Nige Tassell’s love and devotion for music and those who perform it. This is a book for anybody who loves their music, enjoys live performances and cherishes their memories of times gone by because they will recognise the sentiments so eloquently described by our Mr. Gig.

NEW WAYS TO KILL YOUR MOTHER

TITLE: NEW WAYS TO KILL YOUR MOTHER

           Writers and Their Families

AUTHOR: COLM TÓIBÍN

Pages: 346

Date: 26/03/2013

Grade: 4+

Details: Non-Fiction/Essays

             Received from Penguin

             Through Nudge

Own

In this fascinating book, Colm Tóibín sets out to show how their families influenced the work of various authors. Divided into two sections he first concentrates on Irish authors: W.B. Yeats, J.M. Synge, Samuel Beckett, Brian Moore, Sebastian Barry, Roddy Doyle and Hugo Hamilton. The second part of the book, called ‘Elsewhere’ gives us glimpses of the lives and families of Thomas Mann, Jorge Luis Borges, Hart Crane, Tennessee Williams, John Cheever, James Baldwin and finally Barack Obama, a man we don’t think of as an author first and foremost. And there is one other author who returns in chapter after chapter although he isn’t given one of his own: Henry James.

Of course Henry James is a favourite subject for Tóibín. His book ‘The Master’ provides a wonderful description of James’ life and work. And having recently had the opportunity to hear him talk about the James family and their connection to Bailieborough, a town close to where I live, I fully appreciate the depth of his knowledge and his affection for his subject.

With skill and clarity Tóibín shows us how authors made use of their relationships – or lack thereof – with their families. For example, in the preface he reflects on the absent mother who, in the novels of Jane Austen and Henry James, is a vehicle to allow the main character to develop on their own, without maternal influences.

But the observations in this book are not limited to how the family influenced the work of the authors mentioned, they also reflect on their actual relationships in real life:

“Thus the two successful authors, William (Butler Yeats) and Henry James, each in his prime, had managed to kill their father rather fatally, as it were, by letting his work be published in book form.”

But the reader is given much more than the title of this book seems to promise. While connections between authors, their relationships with their families and their work are frequent, those works are discussed in detail that goes above and beyond the family relationship. So, with regard to W.B. Yeats and his (much younger) wife George we are shown:

 “…a symbol of the way writers use houses for their magic properties rather than their domestic space.”

And Sebastian Barry in his play Hinterland deals with the Father, as did a lot of plays in the early years of the twenty-first century. More specifically, he deals with the father and his short-comings, both as the head (and thus father-figure) of a nation and in his home life.

“If Ireland needed a public figure to become its disgraced father, then Charles Haughey auditioned perfectly for the role and played it with tragic dignity in a lonely exile in his Georgian mansion in North County Dublin.”

The chapter on Roddy Doyle and Hugo Hamilton provides the reader with a contrast in fathers. While father Doyle came from a republican family he had no real interest in the concept of Ireland and its language. Hamilton’s father on the other hand took such pride in his Irishness that he refused to speak English and forbade the use of that language in his house and thus managed to cruelly curtail his children’s’ childhood in the process.

In part two of this book, ‘Elsewhere’ we start with a look at Thomas Mann and his family. To say that the relationships within this family were unconventional would be putting it mildly. Covering among other things homosexuality and incest this chapter is rather gossipy in appearance and rather fascinating as a result.

With Borges however we are back in line with the title, be it that the parent being ‘killed’ is the father rather than the mother:

“It is as though an artist such as Picasso, whose father was a failed painter, or William James, whose father was a failed essayist, or V.S. Naipaul, sought to compensate for his father’s failure while at the same time using his talent as a way of killing the father off, showing his mother who was the real man in the household.”

I could give more examples of how authors deal with their families in their published work, but this book covers so much more than what is implied in the title. This book also discusses the authors’ work; sometimes staying on topic and discussing how their families and their relationship with them influenced it, but, at other times, giving a much more general description of their writings. In fact, there are some chapters in this book in which the author’s family is barely mentioned at all. Brian Moore’s story seems to be more about his absence from his native Belfast than about his relationship with his relatives for example. So I think it is fair to say that while for some of the authors mentioned their relationships with their families were hugely influential on their work, for others that was less or not at all the case. In fact, the first piece about James Baldwin doesn’t appear to be about his family at all but about his ‘relationship’ with America and the changes it was going through. The chapter James Baldwin shares with Barack Obama on the other hand is very much about their families or, more specifically, their absent fathers.

Tóibín may be writing about other authors and quoting from their work, letters and diaries – giving the reader a taste of the magnificence of those authors – his own writing is equally impressive in its thoughtfulness and fluency. It is clear that he is an expert when it comes to authors, their work and the connections between the various authors. At times this book reads as if he personally knows all these people he is writing about and is generously sharing this personal knowledge with his readers.

This is neither a quick nor an easy read. It is a fascinating book though. Ideally, I feel, it should be read in bits and pieces, a chapter started and finished when you are reading a book by or about the author in question. Especially since I found that I was far more interested in the chapters on authors and books I am familiar with than in those whose subject I had barely heard of. I know I will be revisiting certain chapters when I’m preparing for book discussions with my reading group.

Colm Tóibín provides his readers with fascinating and knowledgeable insights into authors as well as their work and in doing so also gives his readers a better understanding of those works and of what motivated the authors to write them.

FIFTY WRITERS ON FIFTY SHADES OF GREY

TITLE: FIFTY WRITERS ON FIFTY SHADES OF GREY

Editor: Lori Perkins

Pages: 305

Date: 21/11/2012

Grade: 4+

Details: Non Fiction

               Received from Smart Pop Books

              Through NetGalley

Own/Kindle

Divided into six sections this book analyses the Fifty Shades of Grey books and phenomena from every conceivable angle. The literary merits and quality of the writing are discussed; the book is compared to and given its place in a long history of romantic and erotic literature; publishers comment on the randomness of the success this book achieved. Lawyers evaluate the content and the value of the contract Christian Grey wants Ana to sign and people who live the lifestyle comment on the way their BDSM relationship is described and Christian’s mastery. Feminists tell us why these books are bad for the cause while other women tell us how and why these books empower us. I know I’m forgetting angles here, but I’m fairly sure that this book didn’t leave a single one out.

To be honest, I was more interested in the factual analysis of the book than I was in the literary one. As far as the pro’s and cons of the story, the way it is told, originality and literary merit are concerned, the authors in this book didn’t say a lot, if anything, that I haven’t said, thought or written myself (although it is of course always gratifying to see “professionals” agreeing with what you thought was an “amateur’s” point of view).

I was far more fascinated with the things I learned about contracts, the thoughts and opinions of those involved in the BDSM life-style and discovering how fanfiction actually works.

Did I find a lot of new opinions in this book? Well no, I didn’t. I found all the pro and con arguments I have read many times before again in these pages. But, it was nice to have them all together if only because it felt like taking part in a balanced debate. Because every single contributor gets to have their say without anybody trying to shout them down it is easier to try and see all sides of the argument.

I find myself wondering if all this attention on what is, at its core, nothing more than a love story (tale) as old as time, isn’t out of all proportion. And I can’t help feeling that someone looking back on this year of "Fifty Shades of Grey" isn’t going to smile, if not laugh, at how exercised we became at this phenomena. On the other hand, I’m delighted that at last people feel safe reading, thinking and talking about sex. For a very long time now I have been amazed that while most adults, educators and parents are perfectly happy about their kids watching all sorts of horrific violence, they tend to panic as soon as a long kiss or, worse even, a naked body appears on a screen. How did we end up living in a society where brutal violence is acceptable but love scenes aren’t? I’ll stop this argument here since this is supposed to be a review of a book with views on FSoG, and just as I didn’t find many new or original opinions in this book I doubt that mine will shine any new light on the subject.

Reading all of this book in more or less one sitting is probably not a great idea. I did so because I got my copy for review and wanted to get my thoughts on “paper” as close to the publishing date as possible. In an ideal world though I’d be dipping in and out of this book; reading submissions from various sections as the mood strikes me before putting the book down again and getting back to it hours, days or even weeks later. I will probably end up doing that in the future anyway, especially the section at the end of the book where a long list of titles mentioned can be found.

As in the general media and in private conversations between friends, this book too has a lot of, at times very diverse, opinions on Fifty Shades of Grey, the story and the merits and or downfalls of it. This book does not give the reader the ultimate answer as to how to feel about Christian and Ana’s story. And let’s be grateful for that. I firmly believe that books while written by the author are told by the writer and reader in equal measure. Every reader brings their own background, believes, morals and emotions to a story. And as a result, every reader will take something different from that story. This is a good thing, a thing that should be applauded and embraced. I think it is safe to say that this book and I agree on at least one point: There is no right or wrong opinion about Fifty Shades of Grey, only every individual’s personal one.

My favourite quote (and I’ve got about ten pages of them) comes from Dr. Logan Levkoff and goes like this:

“Do you know what is really demeaning to women? Telling us who we are supposed to be and what we are supposed to turn on to.”

And for me that can be the final word on this subject.

In May, after reading all three books in the Fifty Shades trilogy, I posted my own thoughts on them in a post called Fifty Shades Completed. If you're interested in those thoughts or in the links to my reviews of the individual titles you can click the link.