Review: Asking For It: The Alarming Rise of Rape Culture and What We Can Do About It by Kate Harding

Asking For It: The Alarming Rise of Rape Culture and What We Can Do About It by Kate Harding (proof) - Dominique Strauss-Kahn’s arrest. Congressman Todd Akin’s "legitimate" gaffe. The alleged rape crew of Steubenville, Ohio. Sexual violence has been so prominent in recent years that the feminist term "rape culture" has finally entered the mainstream. But what, exactly, is it? And how do we change it?

In Asking for It, Kate Harding answers those questions in the same blunt, bullshit-free voice that’s made her a powerhouse feminist blogger. Combining in-depth research with practical knowledge, Asking for It makes the case that twenty-first century America—where it’s estimated that out of every 100 rapes only 5 result in felony convictions—supports rapists more effectively than victims. Harding offers ideas and suggestions for addressing how we as a culture can take rape much more seriously without compromising the rights of the accused. From Goodreads.

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Sex in Teen Lit Month II - Interview with Robin York

Today, I am so excited to have author Robin York dropping by the blog to talk about her debut NA novel Deeper and revenge porn.

What inspired you to write Deeper?

The idea actually came from my publisher, Random House, who asked me to consider writing a New Adult romance (a romance whose protagonists are in the 18-25 age range) for the Bantam imprint. I’d been following the rise of New Adult and was interested in trying my hand in it, but I didn't have a story in mind immediately. I did know that I wanted to write a New Adult romance set at a small liberal arts college. It wasn't until I read an article online about revenge porn — and then stumbled into reading the comments, which were appalling — that I found the story I wanted to tell.

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Review: Forbidden by Tabitha Suzuma

Forbidden by Tabitha Suzuma (review copy) - She is pretty and talented - sweet sixteen and never been kissed. He is seventeen; gorgeous and on the brink of a bright future. And now they have fallen in love. But... they are brother and sister.

Seventeen-year-old Lochan and sixteen-year-old Maya have always felt more like friends than siblings. Together they have stepped in for their alcoholic, wayward mother to take care of their three younger siblings. As defacto parents to the little ones, Lochan and Maya have had to grow up fast. And the stress of their lives—and the way they understand each other so completely—has also also brought them closer than two siblings would ordinarily be. So close, in fact, that they have fallen in love. Their clandestine romance quickly blooms into deep, desperate love. They know their relationship is wrong and cannot possibly continue. And yet, they cannot stop what feels so incredibly right. As the novel careens toward an explosive and shocking finale, only one thing is certain: a love this devastating has no happy ending. From Goodreads.

WARNING! To review this book the way I want to, I need to include some slight spoilers. Please read no further if you're planning on reading this book and don't want it spoilt for you.

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Sex in Teen Lit Month II: Interview with Louise O'Neill

Today, we are extremely lucky to have the completely brilliant Louise O'Neill stopping by, who has been incredibly busy lately (she's been at events in Ireland, the UK, the US, and Canada, all in a matter of months!) due to the success of her two novels. She's here to discuss her latest novel Asking For It and to talk about rape culture.

Asking For It is such a deeply affecting and eye-opening novel. What prompted you to write it?

There were a few different reasons. I was finishing Only Ever Yours in 2012 when Todd Aiken, a politician who was running for senate in the US, made a comment about how the female body had ways of ‘shutting down’ a pregnancy if it was a ‘legitimate rape.’ I wanted to include that idea of ‘legitimate rape’ or ‘rape rape’ in Only Ever Yours but it seemed too important an issue to shoe-horn in to the narrative.

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Sex in Teen Lit Month II - Discussion: YA on Rape, Sexual Assault and Sexual/Child Abuse: Different Narrators, Different Circumstances

So far, the books on rape and sexual assault that have been covered have been narrated by the victim, an acquaintance of both the victim and those accused, and someone falsely accused of rape, but there are other books that focus on rape and sexual assault narrated by other characters, as well as books on sexual/child abuse. I thought I would highlight a few of them here. All links go to Goodreads unless otherwise stated.

Narrated by sister of accused and brother of victim:
You Against Me by Jenny Downham - If someone hurts your sister and you're any kind of man, you seek revenge, right?

If your brother's accused of a terrible crime but says he didn't do it, you defend him, don't you?

When Mikey's sister claims a boy assaulted her, his world begins to fall apart.

When Ellie's brother is charged with the offence, her world begins to unravel.

When Mikey and Ellie meet, two worlds collide.

This is a brave and unflinching novel from the bestselling author of Before I Die. It's a book about loyalty and the choices that come with it. But above all it's a book about love. From Goodreads.

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Review: Modern Monsters by Kelley York

Modern Monsters by Kelley York - Vic Howard never wanted to go to the party. He’s the Invisible Guy at school, a special kind of hell for quiet, nice guys. But because his best friend is as popular as Vic is ignored, he went...

And wished he hadn’t.

Because something happened to a girl that night. Something terrible, unimaginable, and Callie Wheeler’s life will never be the same. Plus, now Callie has told the police that Vic is responsible. Suddenly, Invisible Vic is painfully visible, on trial both literally, with the police, and figuratively, with the angry kids at school. As the whispers and violence escalate, he becomes determined to clear his name, even if it means an uneasy alliance with Callie's best friend, the beautiful but aloof Autumn Dixon.

But as Autumn and Vic slowly peel back the layers of what happened at the party, they realize that while the truth can set Vic free, it can also shatter everything he thought he knew about his life... From Goodreads.

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Review: What We Saw by Aaron Hartzler

What We Saw by Aaron Hartzler - Kate Weston can piece together most of the bash at John Doone’s house: shots with Stacey Stallard, Ben Cody taking her keys and getting her home early—the feeling that maybe he’s becoming more than just the guy she’s known since they were kids.

But when a picture of Stacey passed out over Deacon Mills’s shoulder appears online the next morning, Kate suspects she doesn’t have all the details. When Stacey levels charges against four of Kate’s classmates, the whole town erupts into controversy. Facts that can’t be ignored begin to surface, and every answer Kate finds leads back to the same question: Where was Ben when a terrible crime was committed?

This story—inspired by real events—from debut novelist Aaron Hartzler takes an unflinching look at silence as a form of complicity. It’s a book about the high stakes of speaking up, and the razor thin line between guilt and innocence that so often gets blurred, one hundred and forty characters at a time. From Goodreads.

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Bookish Spinsters: Rape & Sexual Assault

Bookish Spinsters is a weekly link-up where we discuss feminism based on a topic/question/prompt, and other feminist book bloggers and book tubers join in with their response. Feel free to join in at any time, I just ask that you link back to Bookish Spinsters. For more info and the list of future Bookish Spinsters topics, go to the Bookish Spinsters page.

This week's topic is Rape & Sexual Assault.

I had written a really long post for this, and then it all disappeared on me and I couldn't get it back. So this is the shorter version, with the hopes that I can share my thoughts of what I originally wrote in the comments, if we can get a discussion going.

I talk about rape, sexual assault and rape culture for the next week or so as part of Sex in Teen Lit Month II, so today, instead of giving my thoughts generally on this topic, I want to talk about something in particular. On 2nd November, BBC aired Is this Rape? Sex on Trial (from the date this post went live, there are 18 days left to watch the programme on BBC iPlayer). In the programme, 24 male and female 16 - 18-year-olds are shown a three part drama of a party, a sexual encounter at the party, and the aftermath, and are asked to discuss, at the end of each part, what they saw, and answer a specific question. I knew this programme would annoy and anger me, but I also found it really interesting. The teens were so confused over what constituted rape, and what constituted consent, and various opinions on what they saw. What was interesting to me was how they were given the opportunity to explain why they thought the way they did, and it was so eye-opening as to how little understanding there is about rape and consent. It's a hugely important programme, one I hope you watch by clicking the link above, and discuss with me in the comments.

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Sex in Teen Lit Month II Part 2: Sex Crimes

Part 2: Sex Crimes


Today and for the rest of the month, Sex in Teen Lit II will shift it's focus from sex in YA in general, and look at sex crimes and crimes of a sexual nature.

In this part of the month, the books featured will cover:

• Rape and rape culture:
• From the victim's perspective
• From the perspective of someone who knows both those accused and the victim
• From the perspective of someone who has been falsely accused of rape
• Revenge porn
• Incest

Continue reading Sex in Teen Lit Month II Part 2: Sex Crimes