Comments on: Slammerkin, by Emma Donohue

By: Julia

Julia — Sun, 16 Jun 2013 00:43:13 +0000

So I just realized that we read this book during almost the same time frame and managed to never mention it to each other. (Or did we, and I just forgot?) I thought it was a tightly written tragedy– unlikeable Mary and all. I liked it for the craft of it a bit more than the story. But I didn’t love it the way I loved Astray. Have you read her new short stories yet?

By: Bookgazing

Bookgazing — Fri, 17 May 2013 22:48:58 +0000

Oh, I don’t have a problem with girls who have the event filled lives or the proto-feminist thoughts, they existed after all (ladies doing things, succeeding in public forums and respecting themselves despite the patriachy, totally a deal in history as you know). I like those stories. But maybe those girls could not be the only girls getting the wonderful lives and more importantly maybe they could not hate on all the other girls around them for being different than superspecial old them/typically feminine/kept down by the patriachy? That’s what drives me to drink over Exceptogirls, all the ‘I am going to be a famous aviatrix and not like those.other.girls who giggle and want childrens and are probably uneducated too!’ lady hatred. I know those women existed as well, but must they so commonly be the heroines of our modern books?:)

By: Andi (@estellasrevenge)

Andi (@estellasrevenge) — Mon, 13 May 2013 15:10:08 +0000

I’ve never really had any interest in reading this one until I picked up So Many Books, So Little Time by Sara Nelson recently. She basically says this book is all about fashion. Clothes, clothes, clothes…which she didn’t expect. I was kinda into the idea after that.

By: The Literary Omnivore

The Literary Omnivore — Sun, 12 May 2013 23:12:32 +0000

In reply to Jenny. I think it leaps out to me because, as a little femmephobic kid, I thought I was ExceptoGirl. I must live down this shame.

By: Jenny

Jenny — Sat, 11 May 2013 14:05:25 +0000

In reply to Charleen. I tend to be about the escape as well. And another thing is that this period isn't a period that interests me. I think I'd have been more interested in the social challenges etc. if the period had been, say, colonial India. But 18th-century England bores me very very much.

By: Jenny

Jenny — Sat, 11 May 2013 14:04:24 +0000

In reply to Charlie. I've probably totally exaggerated how mean the reader's guide was. It seemed mean at the time because I was sorry that Mary had had such a shitty hand of cards. It was probably more neutral than I perceived it.

By: Jenny

Jenny — Sat, 11 May 2013 14:03:31 +0000

In reply to The Literary Omnivore. Ooo, that is an amazing point. I feel exactly the same but hadn't articulated it in quite that way to myself.

By: Jenny

Jenny — Sat, 11 May 2013 14:02:58 +0000

In reply to Sharon.

I shall avoid The Owl Killers like the plague.

(I love the phrase “emotional anachronism”.)

By: Jenny

Jenny — Sat, 11 May 2013 13:01:59 +0000

In reply to Amy @ My Friend Amy. It's nice when one turns out to be exactly my thing though! I'm slowly reading my way through Karen Armstrong's A History of God and finding it really interesting. But it's the first (I think) of the TBR reading project that I'm going to end up keeping.

By: Jenny

Jenny — Sat, 11 May 2013 13:01:11 +0000

In reply to Jeane. Hahaha, I'm late responding to this comment, but if you saw my post about the first of those books you'll know that I don't feel I'm missing much by skipping out on the latter two.