I am going to make a confession: I simply could not get through Fifty Shades of Grey.
I tried. I really tried. You see, I am not at all averse to erotic fiction. And, every once in a while, I need a mindless diversion.
It's not as if I was expecting FSG to be the next Lady Chatterley's Lover or even Histoire d'O. But--call me a snob--I have some standards when it comes to writing. FSG started off well below them and sank with every page I managed to read.
How bad is it? How can anyone, with a straight face, write or publish a novel that has both of these sentences: "Her curiosity oozes through the phone" and "My mom is oozing contrition"? Worse, those aren't the only passages containing some form of the verb "to ooze". The only time someone should use any form of that word more than once is when he or she is writing about the aftermath of a volcanic eruption.
That's not even the worst offense I saw in what I managed to read.
I don't think I have to tell you I won't be seeing the movie.
Apparently, a trailer for the flick, which is scheduled to be screened--when else?--next Valentine's Day, is on the web. Someone named "Christine B." who has a stronger stomach than mine or is getting paid for her troubles, posted the one and only scene that might even be mildly interesting. That's because it features the only credible character, if you will: a bicycle.
I tried. I really tried. You see, I am not at all averse to erotic fiction. And, every once in a while, I need a mindless diversion.
It's not as if I was expecting FSG to be the next Lady Chatterley's Lover or even Histoire d'O. But--call me a snob--I have some standards when it comes to writing. FSG started off well below them and sank with every page I managed to read.
How bad is it? How can anyone, with a straight face, write or publish a novel that has both of these sentences: "Her curiosity oozes through the phone" and "My mom is oozing contrition"? Worse, those aren't the only passages containing some form of the verb "to ooze". The only time someone should use any form of that word more than once is when he or she is writing about the aftermath of a volcanic eruption.
That's not even the worst offense I saw in what I managed to read.
I don't think I have to tell you I won't be seeing the movie.
Apparently, a trailer for the flick, which is scheduled to be screened--when else?--next Valentine's Day, is on the web. Someone named "Christine B." who has a stronger stomach than mine or is getting paid for her troubles, posted the one and only scene that might even be mildly interesting. That's because it features the only credible character, if you will: a bicycle.
I have to agree, it is horrible writing.
ReplyDeleteRusty--As a writer and sometime English instructor, it's actually painful for me to see such a book become so popular.
ReplyDelete