Happy Wednesday! Cheers to getting closer to the weekend and to, hopefully, some quality reading time.
Last month, Salon published a piece on how romances have changed since the 70s, and while I personally don’t agree with everything said, it’s worth a read:
When I put “The Flame and the Flower” next to a romance from 2016, the most striking difference is in the heroines themselves. Forty years ago a heroine was either an orphan nobody like Woodiwiss’ Heather or maybe a secretary. Today heroines are firefighters, travel agents, lawyers and doctors; deep-sea divers, police officers and captains of industry. Again, Skye O’Malley comes to mind here, leading her own fleet of ships in that 1980 book. Romance writers have long dreamed big.
I could honestly read a few thousand more words on this topic. If you readers know of any other awesome comparison articles, send ’em my way!
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If you’re in the Los Angeles/Culver City area this Friday, The Ripped Bodice is holding their grand opening!
You are cordially invited to the grand opening of The Ripped Bodice!! pic.twitter.com/dJMD41d8yt
— The Ripped Bodice (@TheRippedBodice) February 7, 2016
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Mallory Ortberg at The Toast is an art history goddess and this time, she’s captioning several pieces of art of Perseus rescuing Andromeda. It goes without saying probably that our favorite caption is:
“EXCUSE ME BUT YOU ARE GETTING WATER ALL OVER MY CLIT SASH”
I wonder if I could get Elyse to knit me a clit sash for my birthday. April is coming up pretty quickly.
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Publisher’s Weekly posted “The 7 Weirdest Sex Stories of the Ancient World” as an excerpt from The Joy of Sexus: Lust, Love, & Longing in the Ancient World. And of course, with a title like that, we couldn’t not look:
Erotic salads, pro and con: To maintain their manly wellbeing, males around the ancient Med had to watch what they ate. The Greeks believed that anti-aphrodisiac lettuce instantly withered an erection. In Egypt, men were equally certain that lascivious lettuce gave their organs vim and vigor, serving romaine at their orgiastic festivals for the fertility god Min. Romans and Greeks also put their aphrodisiac faith in other vegetables, from tubers to a remedy called “the deadly carrot.” When salad supplies ran low, olive oil (with or without herbal additives) was the everyday erotic helper–applied topically by female partners.
Also, this book seems like an awesomely awkward gift for a few friends of mine.
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And if you still need a little pick me up today, how about a puppy with braces? As someone currently with braces, I’m jealous he only has to wear them for a few weeks.
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Have you read or listened to anything awesome this week? Sharing is caring, y’all!
If people are interested in more info on Greco-Roman ideas about the body, food, sexuality, etc. compared with emerging Christian ideas, Peter Brown’s “The Body and Society” is very interesting. For instance, he will tell you everything you didn’t know you wanted to know about Roman eugenic sexual practices. To make a properly virile baby boy, the man must be excited but not TOO excited and the woman must have a properly tranquil state of mind. Otherwise, you get a wimpish baby boy or, worse, a baby girl. *the more you know*
Thank you … I snort-laughed on a conference call this afternoon while reading captions on The Toast. Need to make sure I’m on mute before I follow a link on SBTB ….
Ahhh, The Flame and the Flower. My very first romance novel, pulled off of my mom’s shelves back in the 80s. Suddenly feeling a bit old.
Can’t wait to go to the Ripped Bodice next time I’m on the west coast!
We’ve been enjoying the hell out of http://dontcallmeoscar.tumblr.com since the nice people at WGN morning news brought it to our attention. Maggie Storino and her children recreate scenes from Oscar nominated movies. The Mad Max picture alone is worth the price of admission. This is how you spend quality time with your kid.
hey, thanks for the tip on The Ripped Bodice! I have to check it out – it may be the perfect destination for my Patricia Veryan collection, which is soon going to be divested thanks to release on Kindle. It’s been a long time since I had a good place to browse for fine smut.
Wow, that Salon article is…not true. It talks about romance novels and decades as if they are cohesive, quantifiable things, which is nonsense -but if we’re playing that game, I’d say heroes with no notion of consent are still plentiful, and were more common than not well into the nineties.
I would love to see someone put together a study of trends in romance novels – one that is randomized and systematic and has meaningful sample size.
So excited to visit the Ripped Bodice later in March. Big smiles when google mapped it only 13 minutes from the Petersen Auto museum – perfect place to send teen boys while I peruse at leisure!
The Toast! Thank You for a wednesday laugh
Thumbs down to the Salon article, which cites Sandra Kitt’s “Rites of Spring” as an early example of African-American protagonists in romance. “Rites of Spring” was indeed Kitt’s first book for the Harlequin American Romance line…but the main characters were white. It was her second book for the line, “Adam and Eva,” that featured a black hero and heroine.
The degree to which I am excited for the Ripped Bodice’s opening weekend party is…. quite high. I will be there! Both days! With friends who are familiar with and new to romance! YAY.
Good to hear they’re opening!
For some reason I thought The Ripped Bodice was in downtown L.A. So glad to hear that it’s in Culver City…..safer and easier to visit.
The Ripped Bodice – yes safer and easier but NOT 13 minutes from the Petersen in this universe. LOL
Wow! Thanks for mentioning Patricia Veryan books are available as e-books! I didn’t know this- love her books!
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