I came across a scathing review of my book ‘Sex and The Signposts’ on the net other day just by chance. It was on some random book reading website and the guy (yes it was a man) was so aghast, shocked and horrified that he felt the need to be as nasty as possible.
He insulted everything about it from the writing to the content and was especially infuriated and disgusted by my antics. It would seem that sexual inequality is alive and well and living somewhere in America (At least I think that’s from whence he came). He said and I quote “That I allowed younger men to use my body like a blow up doll” Really ? and there was me thinking I was enjoying mutually satisfying consensual and very hot sex on equal terms with my partners of choice. In fact it didn’t seem to have occurred to this person that there was even the remote chance that I was using their bodies me being a female and all that!. HEAVEN FORBID.
It would seem that in his mind sex is for men to enjoy and woman to suffer, Pleeease!! I really must remember that the next time I am taken to heaven and back during my next session of ‘suffering’ I certainly never ever felt used, after all I’m a grown up. I am quite capable of of saying no and have on many occasions. But if the magic is working between us then pardon me if I don’t say a breathless YES! Oh no! I forgot I’m an older woman and should really be in the kitchen baking cakes for the W.I. and knitting for Oxfam NOT having the most amazing sex of my life.
I make no apologies for my actions. Anyone who knows my story will know that I tried hard to make both my marriages work and got rewarded with infidelity and violence. He seemed to have completely ignored those parts of the book focussing on the sexual references. What a surprise!!. He obviously didn’t feel the need to throw it in the bin before the end as from something he said I gather he read it all. He made a derogatory reference to the fact I talk about STD’s in the book, mainly serving as a warning about practising ‘Safe Sex’ Unfortunately these things exist like it or not and having saint like qualities will not protect you but a condom will.
Getting a bad review is par for the course and to be expected. I think my book is in any event predominantly a ‘Woman’s holiday read’. It’s not supposed to be ‘War and Peace’ for fuck’s sake. I don’t take myself THAT seriously.
Most women that have read it have empathized with my single plight later in life. It’s never easy and everyone deals with things in their own way, but I have no regrets. What I do regret is the years I wasted being faithful and loyal to husbands who could not keep their trousers zipped!! (according to this tosser the only thing good about my story was that my husband got away) He seems clearly to have forgotten that said husband was shagging my ‘friend’ and neighbour for nearly six years whilst I worked tirelessly on his behalf in total oblivion. Is it any surprise that I decided to act more like a man this time around.
I was then heartened to read another new review on Amazon where the reader said that she couldn’t put the book down and that’s all an author can ask isn’t it ?. I know its not going to be every ones cup of tea.
I’m just going to dig out my old DVD of ‘Only Fools and Horses’ the one where Del-Boy and Rodney are wrestling with Blow- Up dolls, just to see if there is any resemblance.
Do they make Blow-Up dolls of men ? maybe I should invest in one…Luvverly Jubberly!
And finally I quote from my book “For those that have experienced the joy no explanation is necessary for those that haven’t no explanation is possible”
