Post honen idazlea: Slawka Grabowska
Bloomsbury Publishing, 2020
399 or.
ISBN 978-1-5266-1164-2
Post hau ingelesez dago.
On June, 13th Donostia Book Club will move a little away from its usual readings and will delve into the genre of non-fiction reading “Three women” by Lisa Taddeo.
The author researched for 8 years on the desires and life (especially sexual) of different women in the United States. Finally in the book she has included three of them (one, Maggie, decided to appear under her real name).
It is the first book by journalist Lisa Taddeo and to write it she not only dedicated years to interviews and trips throughout the United States, but also felt a true connection with its protagonists. This essay does not aspire to be a feminist discourse, nor to present us with any hypotheses. It simply describes the lives of three women and the role of desire in them. None of the stories are happy, they are all shocking and leave us with a sense of desolation. The author does not give us a ready interpretation, she only describes reality. We are the ones who have to decide what to think, what to believe and if all this has any more generalized meaning. I think it does.
It is a bleak reading, full of suffering and incomprehension. Why are men’s desires treated as normal (and mostly fulfilled) and women’s are often ignored? There is no answer, but we see how three real people evolve, how they face their day to day and how, in the end, they have hope for a better future. Despite being real stories, the author’s style often makes us forget it and we read it almost as if it were a novel.
For all of you who decide to read the book, I leave you some questions to deepen your reading:
- In the author’s note, Lisa Taddeo explains the mechanics of her process of reporting and writing the book. Did this knowledge affect the way you read and perceive the book?
- Why is there so little talk about female desire? Do you think it’s still a taboo?
- Do you think the way we look at women, their bodies and their sexuality in the general culture is a male look?
- Most of the narrative is in the third person. Why do you think the author didn’t decide to write it in the first person?
- The three protagonists, Lina, Sloane and Maggie, adapt their behaviors to the expectations of others, especially their partners. How does this influence their lives?
- How did it make you feel to know these three stories? Did you feel sympathy or antipathy for any of the women? Why?