Sexual Revolution

I've read a few books by Laurie Penny before, and this one does not disappoint.

Armed with a razor-sharp critique of our current political situation, and its roots in the past, Penny focuses on how issues of consent, exploitation and security are complicated and problematised by the political and economic structures we are in. For example, Penny details how abuse and assault often goes unreported or un(der)-punished because of certain double standards, i.e. how we are led to wonder what will happen to a man's career if he commits assault, and to see it as a mere 'mistake', but how their victims' actions are presented as evidence of their guilt and/or complicity.

This is a powerful and vital book, and Penny argues powerfully against the 'accepted' notions of how we as a society let certain people get away with certain actions.

I received an advanced copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

A well written and very readable book. If you read a lot of feminist non fiction you'll love this but it's also not too heavy for those just starting out with non fiction. Fascinating and thought provoking.

This is a difficult and unrelenting book.

If you're already tapped-in to the modern feminist movement, there's little here that's new. But, if this is all new to you (welcome!), it's an excellent starting point. Although sprinkled with footnotes, it isn't a dense academic tome. As with many modern books, it blends together the author's personal experiences with more a more objective history.

I found some of the themes it discussed deeply uncomfortable. That's, in part, by design. There's no easy way to talk about sexual and emotional assault. But it also reflects my obliviousness to some of the things that feminism is fighting.

Sadly, I don't think it quite hits the mark on tying the fight for feminism as the fight against fascism. It makes several large logical leaps which I found difficult to follow. Yes, there is a pervasive strand of sexism within the far right. And the book touches on why some women are attracted to that. But it doesn't quite make the case for embracing feminism to vanquish fascism.

There's an excellent chapter focussing on men, and how we're often socialised into sexism as a default. But, weirdly, the chapter ends by exonerating men as individuals and blaming the culture we're raised in. I found that an unhelpful and (dare I say it) slightly patronising viewpoint. Yes, we all live in a patriarchy and suffer the consequences. But there has to be some level of personal responsibility - both to change ourselves and the wider society.

I doubt you'll agree with all of it. It may even make you angry. But this is important. It is a rallying cry for the profound - and sometimes scary - freedom that feminism promises. It is clear that the hyper-machismo world-view we're stuck in isn't working for the majority of people. I hope this book convinces you that change is coming. It is inevitable, slightly messy, sometimes confusing, and utterly liberating.

An impactful read that doesn't shy away from the hard stuff, Sexual Revolution is a great read for those just starting works in this field, or a seasoned reader. Topics were tackled head on though with care, and I very much recommend this book. Laurie Penny is an excellent writer and thinker, and I will be recommending this to all my friends.

This was a very interesting and informative read. I learnt lots and lots. A very timely read that I would recommend for all.

Sexual Revolution is a book about the current state of sex and power, particularly in politics, culture, and heterosexual relationships, and where feminism can question this and fight back. It looks particularly at women's experiences and treatment relating to a variety of themes, including bodily autonomy, work, consent, and sex, and later looks at some of the rise of right-wing ideas about sex and women.

I found the book had some good broad points, though mostly points I had heard or read about before, in relation to areas like abortion, but in general I felt the way a lot of the book was phrased and sometimes explained didn't work for me. I also felt like despite selling itself as a book about modern masculinity, there wasn't actually much exploration of masculinity, especially when it exists outside of a white, cis, straight viewpoint. As the book was almost entirely focused on heterosexual relationships and cis straight women, it would've been interesting to bring in more models for relationships, sex, consent, and power that differ from the norm, as a counterpoint and to explore possible alternatives and futures. It felt a lot of the time that terms like "queer" were thrown in occasionally to include people in a list, but actual queer people weren't really part of what was being discussed.

Seeing as labour and work and consent were important in the book, I also felt like the content around sex work was quite weirdly phrased, often trying to tread a line between feminists (and others) who are anti-sex work and people who are more supportive of sex workers and their own varied discussions of their own experiences. This didn't quite work and I think people who don't know much about issues around sex work might come away confused. I also, as I have been in other books, was distracted from the text when it cited Naomi Wolf, considering her current position as a conspiracy theorist, and I think books do need to start being a bit more critical about how they cite The Beauty Myth.

This book is probably best an introduction for people very new to learning about ideas of sex and power in modern society, and I'd say much more aimed at straight cis women than men as it is quite unrelentingly angry at men, often with good reason. There's plenty of good points in the book, but I felt like the nods towards experiences of non-white, non-straight, and non-cis people weren't enough to really explore the topics of sex and masculinity.

3-4****
This is a great and broad-writing book on the system of the patriarchy and how the past few years have been a challenge to that. How women, and especially women of colour, the LGBT+ community, have rallied and marched against the unfairness imposed on them in this system.

The author explores how sex and gender roles and their changes overtime affect this system and why the white male patriarchy feels angry/under threat.

While I enjoyed reading the authors deserved anger and explanations of theory/events/societal changes, it is probably more perfect for those who do not have much access to this information, or little knowledge. For anyone wanting to start to understand these factors and how they interact, as well as commentary on ‘recent’ big changes/demonstrations, this book is a recommend!

Thanks to Netgalley and Bloomsbury for the advance copy.

Laurie covers a range of topics, including #MeToo, feminism, sexism, racism, beauty and body image, misogyny, relationships. It gives a lot to think about; however some of how the book has been edited made somewhat difficult to read in parts - a fair bit of repetition, and quite a few grammatical and punctuation errors.