Laziness Does Not Exist

author: Devon Price

This is the type of book that does the hefty, difficult work of reframing a fundamental concept that I don’t think about too much, and does such a deft, nuanced, foundation-blasting good job that I now think about this idea All. The. Time.

Much like Off the Clock, another book that might seem to be about productivity but really taught me to rethink how I look at time, Laziness Does Not Exist is about the pernicious lies and manipulation hidden behind accusations of laziness. Reading it has also revealed the the damaging and destructive methods through which those accusations are deployed.

Dr. Price introduces their concept of The Laziness Lie, which has three parts:

• Your worth is your productivity.
• You cannot trust your own feelings and limits.
• There is always more you could be doing.

Sound familiar?

Sounds a LOT like what I’ve told myself constantly – and the ways in which this book examines the personal undoing of this myth and the social undoing of it in communities around us is downright inspiring.

This excerpt will tell you right away if this is a book for you:

The Laziness Lie is deeply embedded in the very foundation of this country. The value of hard work and the evils of sloth are baked into our national myths and our shared value system. Thanks to the legacies of imperialism and slavery, as well as the ongoing influence that the United States exerts on its trade partners, the Laziness Lie has managed to spread its tendrils into almost every country and culture on the planet.

This is a book with something for everyone: it addresses the historical roots of the Laziness Lie in colonialism and capitalism, then looks at pretty much everything: productivity myths, diet culture, gender and sexuality, activism fatigue, parenting, relationship management, and self-abuse.

So, TL;DR: pick this book up for lessons on how to be kinder, gentler, and more welcoming to your authentic, awesome self and stay for the advice and support on how you can give yourself rest and restoration while also eradicating the shitful legacy that is the Laziness Lie in your immediate community.

p.s. You’re not lazy. Ever.

– SB Sarah

Nonfiction

Virginia and the Wolf

author: Lynne Connolly

Virginia, Lady Dulverton is widowed and happy to be so. After an abusive childhood and an unsatisfactory marriage, she prefers to give her attention to the orphanages that were her husband’s passion. She has no intention of marrying again, which is a good thing, too, because the terms of her husband’s will are…complicated, and make remarriage difficult. Unfortunately, she is finding Francis, Lord Wolverstone hard to resist, and he is not particularly inclined to let her resist him.

I picked up Virginia and the Wolf for its title, and to be honest, I initially regretted doing so. I found the early parts of the book to be a bit clunky, and I didn’t really warm to the protagonists; I found Virginia depressing and Francis insufferable. It didn’t help that there were hints very early on that the widowed Virginia was a virgin, a trope that I find rather irritating.

And then – surprise! We got plot! Lots of plot! And, I have to say, it was very good plot – there were conspiracies and murders and smugglers and fake amnesia and a secret will and Only One Bed, and I couldn’t put it down. The romance took off, too, and became tender and sweet. I think it helped that once the plot got going, Virginia and Francis had more pressing things to talk about about their Mutual And Yet Impossibly Doomed attraction for each other, and so conversations that had previously been circular gained direction and momentum, and intimacy was able to grow.

There were some things that still didn’t work for me, though. In particular, Francis lies to Virginia ‘for her own good’ fairly early on in the piece, and his lie is never uncovered. The reason for his lie is to gain the opportunity to re-do a conversation in which he had said things that he regretted, but regardless of his reasoning, I felt that this was manipulative. Given how Virginia had been manipulated by her previous husband and emotionally abused by her family, I was particularly uncomfortable with the way that this just sort of happened and was never addressed. There were also some sections which were repetitive, even once the plot got going.

Overall, this book felt a little old-fashioned, both in its gender dynamics and its plot, but I did have fun reading it, and I was impressed by how cleverly all the threads were tied together at the end of the story. For me, the romance itself was relatively weak, and I think the story would almost have worked better as an adventure novel, with the romance as a secondary thread. But if you like a fast-paced, event-filled, adventure story, and don’t mind a slightly alpha, I-know-what’s-best-for-you hero, I think you’ll enjoy this one.

– Catherine Heloise

Historical: European, Romance