Scandalous Books by Susan Lyons
I’m delighted to be today’s guest blogger. I write sexy romances for Kensington Aphrodisia – and I owe it all to two women.
Let’s start with Grace Metalious who, back in 1956, wrote a book called Peyton Place. Is anyone old enough to remember that book? Or the movie (1957, starring Lana Turner, nominated for a ton of Academy Awards) or TV show (1964-69, with Ryan O’Neal and Mia Farrow – the first primetime soap opera)?
My book club just read Peyton Place and I learned all sorts of interesting things. It sold over 10 million copies and is the 4th biggest selling novel of all time. But, more relevant to my blog today, is the fact that when it was published it was considered to be utterly scandalous. It created a whole new – and shocking – image of small-town life, rife with sex and secrets. The women of Peyton Place were the original desperate housewives, and the town harboured illegitimacy, adultery, rape, abortion and murder.
Peyton Place was a “dirty book,” but it was also an exposé of the secrets small-town America had kept buried. Grace Metalious was America’s “naughty girl” but her book had a huge popular appeal. It opened the door for commercial fiction that wasn’t “nice” and “proper.” It said, basically, that sex is an intrinsic part of normal life, and that women as well as men are sexual beings.
And remember, this was the 1950s. The days of white picket fences and Leave it to Beaver, Father Knows Best and The Donna Reed Show. The days when, if a bedroom scene was shown at all, the man and woman were husband and wife, buttoned up to the neck in PJs, and sleeping in separate twin beds. All I can say is, hurray for Grace!
Now, fast forward to the mid 1990s when a woman named Candace Bushnell wrote a column called Sex And The City, which became a book and an amazingly successful TV show. As with Grace, Candace wrote about a community – this time not a small town (or is it, in its own way?) but Manhattan. And within that community she focused on four female friends who did what young women had never done quite so openly before: experimented with sex and love, and got together to laugh, cry and dish explicitly about it. Again, a writer shattered the conventions and notched up another triumph for the liberation of women – and of female characters in fiction.
Okay, I’m no groundbreaker like either of them, but I love writing about my own Awesome Foursome, four 20-somethings who live in my own wonderful community – Vancouver, BC. These girls are at that magical but stressful age when you try to figure out who you are as a woman. They’re discovering their sexuality, figuring out whether they want sex or long-term love, learning how to separate from their parents without completely disrespecting them, working out how to balance career with personal live. And they’re doing it all as best friends, the same way Carrie Bradshaw and her friends did in Sex And The City. The fourth and final book in my series was released last week. “She’s on Top” is the story of Rina Goldberg, a woman with body-image issues who reconnects with her first love and discovers he’s turned out to be a true hottie. I’m thrilled to bits that it’s an RT Top Pick and has garnered a lot of other fabulous reviews.
I’d love it if you checked out my books (complete with trailers, excerpts, review quotes, and notes on how each originated) at my website: http://www.susanlyons.ca. If you hop on over and enter my monthly contest and say you came from Naughty & Spice, you’ll be entered in a contest to win a copy of “She’s on Top”. I’ll pick the winner on Saturday, April 5.
What I’d like to chat about with you today is: what books, movies, TV shows really rocked your world when you were young? Which were the ones that were scandalous in some fashion – that opened your eyes and made you see the world around you in a different way?
April 4th, 2008 at 12:10 am
i watch mostly mtv and saw some great fashion
soap operas.
April 4th, 2008 at 12:16 am
Fashion soap operas, Kim? OK, what are those? I haven’t come across them yet. Soap operas set in the world of fashion? Soap operas that are more about the clothes than the story?
April 4th, 2008 at 12:45 am
Hi, Susan, and thanks for guest blogging!
I loved Sex and the City and can’t wait for the movie.
The movies that connected with me/shaped my writing are a handful of Meg Ryan movies. French Kiss is the biggest one that comes to mind. Then of course When Harry Met Sally, Sleepless in Seattle, Joe versus the Volcano. I grew up on those in my late teens/twenties. I loved them. They really helped shape how I write banter.
So overall my writing tends to be an influence of Sex and the City, old Meg Ryan movies, and Harlequin presents (anytime there’s some crazy drama in my book, that came from HQ presents! LOL. It’s all I read in my early teens).
I’m not sure I’ve heard of Peyton Place, but I’m certainly intrigued now!
April 4th, 2008 at 12:57 am
[…] Kensington author Susan Lyons has a fabulous post over at Naughty and Spice today. She’s even talking about her contest! So please come […]
April 4th, 2008 at 1:00 am
Oh Shelli, you make me feel old! I remember when “Pillow Talk” came out with Doris Day and Rock Hudson. I was 16 and my mother wouldn’t let me see it because it was too riske. If you ever saw that movie, you’d find that hilarious. It’s a kids movie compared to today’s movies. But standards were different. I remember Peyton Place, but I had to wait until I was over 18 before I could borrow it from the library!
Judy
April 4th, 2008 at 1:11 am
Ha! Judy, you’re not old! I do want to see Pillow Talk though. I used to watch these old black and white movies with the Glen Miller band…I think. I was a big jazz fan. They were my fave though. They’d be on the movie channel or something. Hmm.
April 4th, 2008 at 1:52 am
Hi Susan!
The books that most opened my eyes were Diana Gabaldon’s Outlander and Julie Garwood’s Castles, merely because I was 12 and there was sex in them :) I also had my eyes opened recently (for political/religious reasons, not sexual) when I read The Faith Club. It really challenged how I look at religious issues in today’s society.
April 4th, 2008 at 2:14 am
I come from a family of avid readers. When I was sixteen my mother handed me a book saying, “This is probably the best pornography you’ll ever read.” Talk about clueless. I didn’t know what pornography was! Anyway, it was called _Adios Sheharizad_, by Donald E. Westlake. I laughed my a** off, and I’m ever grateful to my mother for introducing me to pornography (it actually was!).
April 4th, 2008 at 8:02 am
Nice piece, Susan. Your Awesome Foursome does a great job of building a community. Congrats!
April 4th, 2008 at 10:13 am
Meg Ryan and banter… Well, that’s something the Doris Day movies were usually pretty good for too, weren’t they? Seems to me, Meg and her romantic comedies are very much like an updated version of Doris’s romantic comedies and musicals. Don’t think I ever saw her in Annie Get Your Gun but I had an old cassette tape (remember those?) of it and I could just envision her - she could be so sweet, and so sassy, with a real core of strength. Hmmm, talk about the kind of heroine one of us would write!
And Rock Hudson. The way women drooled over him - and then they found out he was gay. What a shocker! LOL. It proves a good actor can play any role. And of course, in those days, gay roles really weren’t around anyhow.
Pillow Talk - seems to me Doris used to wear those loose flannel PJs, didn’t she? Or did she ever make it into at least a sexy negligee? I really must watch one of those old movies again. A nice treat for a night at home alone with a glass of wine (make that 2 glasses).
As for Diana Gabaldon - yes, I remember reading Outlander. Claire and Jamie were utterly sexy. Before I read the book, I saw Diana at a conference and she read aloud, which made me run out and buy the book, then I heard Claire through Diana’s voice which added even more to the experience. If you ever get the chance to hear Diana talk, grab it!
I don’t know The Faith Club, but do know a number of books are shaking up the way people view religion. Like The Da Vinci Code. I’m just finishing Jodie Picoult’s Change of Heart, which has a priest and others questioning their faith. I highly recommend it - her books are always guaranteed to make me think as well as entertain me (and often make me cry too, so be warned). It’s really interesting - her heroine is a lot like my Rina in She’s on Top. A very curvy brunette with wild hair who thinks she’s fat and unattractive, who finds a very attractive man who thinks she’s gorgeous and wonderful. Like Rina, Maggie was raised by Jewish parents but no longer religious herself - both books even mention the Jewish concept of tikkum olam (essentially, repairing the world through your own good works). Isn’t that an interesting coincidence?
Terrel, I thought Donald Westlake wrote mysteries? Is it the same guy?
Lucinda, thanks for the great compliment.
And to all of you for dropping by. I got up and decided to check the blog and wow, here were a bunch of comments! OK, now I’m caught up and going to have breakfast.
April 4th, 2008 at 11:14 am
Hi Susan!
My mother turned me on to Peyton Place when I was a teenager. It was coming on TV and she told me, “Oh you HAVE to watch this.” So I did - and I loved it! So naughty and scandalous.
In fact I have a fond memory of waking up at 4 in the morning in labor with my third child. I knew I was a ways off so I went and watched TV. Lo and behold Peyton Place was on so I watched it for a bit until I finally woke up the hub and told him we had to go. LOL
April 4th, 2008 at 11:17 am
Karen, how great to have a mom who’d share a show like that with you, rather than tell you you couldn’t watch it! And now I’m curious whether the 3rd child was a boy or a girl. Thinking about moms sharing Peyton Place with their kids…even before they’re born!
April 4th, 2008 at 11:33 am
I have to pop out to a meeting (pesky old day job!) but will be back in a couple of hours to chat some more.
April 4th, 2008 at 11:36 am
Hi Susan. When I was a teen, we watched the prime time soaps,Dallas, Knots Landing, Falcon Crest, and Dynasty.
April 4th, 2008 at 1:06 pm
Hi Susan:
I well remember reading Peyton Place under my covers with a flashlight. I was eleven when it was first published. As much as certain scenes in this book embarrassed me I simply couldn’t put it down. Scandalous huh?
The next erotic book I read, if that is the correct term to use was Lady Chatterley’s lover by DH Lawrence. Whew! That particular work was privately published back in 1928 but published for the general public in 1960 after an obscenity trial in England. At 15 I no longer hid under my covers.
Oliver Mellors was the original hottie in my mind in those days and being a fan of the actor Sean Bean, when the book was filmed as a mini-series in 1993 and put on VHS, I purchased it. Now I have to keep my old VCR in order to view it from time to time.
April 4th, 2008 at 1:29 pm
I had a baby boy that day Susan. :)
But someday I’ll let my daughter watch Peyton Place. Considering everything else on TV nowadays, it’s pretty tame but when you realize the year the movie (and the book) came out, it’s shocking.
And yeah my mom is cool like that.
April 4th, 2008 at 1:44 pm
When your husband snores, there could be something to be said about completely separate bedrooms
April 4th, 2008 at 1:45 pm
Crystal, what interesting shows to grow up with!
Julie - oh yes, Lady Chatterly’s Lover. That seemed so erotic when I was a teenager. Really must read it again! Or see the movie. Yes, the older we get, the more old technology we have to keep around just so we can see (or listen to) some of our old favorites.
Karen, hurray for cool moms. I bet you’re one too.
April 4th, 2008 at 1:47 pm
Oooh I read Lady Chatterley’s lover! I was trying to remember the name. I remember thinking…hmm, that’s kind of hot for an old book.
April 4th, 2008 at 2:49 pm
How about something in the non-fiction arena? I remember _Our Bodies, Ourselves_ really rocked my world when I read it. It’s a great book written to help women discover what their bodies are all about. plus since it’s been updated periodically, they’ve continued to push the envelope of the discussion of women’s bodies in print.
Keep writing, Susan. I love your work.
April 4th, 2008 at 2:54 pm
Laurie, thanks so much. And yes, I do remember that book. It should be given to every girl when she approaches puberty. There’d be far fewer unwanted pregnancies, STDs, anxiety about body image and sex, etc. etc. The authors should get a medal!
April 4th, 2008 at 3:18 pm
Hi Susan,
Yes, Donald E. Westlake, the mystery writer, wrote a pornography novel! In the first chapter he describes the form of such a novel, that is to write chapters that are no longer than 10 pages in length and have a sex scene in every chapter. What does it matter that the sex partners are octegenarians who meet on a bus! You’ll recall the Westlake also writes funny, and he’s true to form in this novel. I loved it!
April 4th, 2008 at 3:21 pm
How about Erika Jong’s Zipless fuck? I don’t even remember the name of the book, but the high school girls couldn’t stop talking about it. And then there was the Happy Hooker. Holy Moly!
April 4th, 2008 at 3:41 pm
Waves Susan!
How nice to fine you were hangin’ here today.
Making a list of books to find.. that’s 6 or 7 so far. I don’t have that much room on my TBR shelf right now.
I read a lot of HQ Presents, and anything in that line by Janet Daily in the Early/Mid-Eighties. One historical I read, and don’t remember the title now, had a rape scene in it that confused and excited me - but I wasn’t big on branching out until after I had kids.
I remember the theme music for Payton Place, does that count? One movie that had a huge impact for me was Barberella (1968) with Jane Fonda.
Tagline from IMDb: Who seduces an angel? Who strips in space? Who conveys love by hand? Who gives up the pill? Who takes sex to outer space? Who’s the girl of the 21st century? Who nearly dies of pleasure?
And a more “scandalous” movie for Doris Day was with Cary Grant called That Touch of Mink (1962) and one that influenced me a lot in waiting for that first time.
Plot from IMDb: A rich businessman and a young woman are attracted to each other, but he only wants an affair while she wants to save her virginity for marriage.
Great topic, thanks for taking me back!
April 4th, 2008 at 4:06 pm
Terrel, the Westlake book does sound funny. And was the Jong one “Fear of Flying”?
Hi Dragon. Oh yes, Barbarella! I had to look up what year that was 1968. Very hot! It was almost 10 years later that Star Wars came out, with Princess Leia in the gold bikini - but Jane Fonda was kicking intergalactic butt way before her!
As for Doris and Cary - well, all I can say is, that man could have me at hello! Another old movie I must watch again.
April 4th, 2008 at 4:09 pm
Hi Susan!
All In The Family was the TV show that made me open my eyes. I’ve been watching daytime soap operas for as long as I can remember.
April 4th, 2008 at 4:15 pm
I remember watching the Porky’s movies when I was about 13. I was mesmerized with all the nudity.
April 4th, 2008 at 4:23 pm
Oh yes, Susan. All in the Family. That was sure a different vision of “family” than all those 50s and 60s “happy-family” shows! I sure didn’t like Archie Bunker, but the shows were interesting.
And Jane, I confess I’ve never seen a Porky’s movie. Am I missing anything???
April 4th, 2008 at 4:23 pm
I also read a couple of books in my early teens that formed my dirty mind. Hee hee. Fuck Yes was one and The Joy of Sex was the other.
April 4th, 2008 at 6:49 pm
Shelli, I do remember trying a position or two from The Joy of Sex.
Fuck Yes is a great name but I’ve never come across the book.
April 4th, 2008 at 7:12 pm
Susan - that and the Karma Sutra…
Shelli do you still have Fuck Yes?
April 4th, 2008 at 7:28 pm
Oh yes, definitely the Kama Sutra, Dragon. I definitely looked at it when I was writing Touch Me, since Adonis is into tantric sex and all that fun stuff.
April 4th, 2008 at 9:46 pm
I don’t still have the book! I borrowed it from a friend in Jr. High. I think it was like a Male POV about all his sexual encounters.
April 5th, 2008 at 11:26 am
And the contest winner is Jane C! Congratulations, Jane, you’ve won a copy of She’s on Top. (I’ll email you privately to confirm the details.)
Thanks to the gals at Naughty & Spice and especially my pal Shelli for inviting me here - and thanks to everyone who came out to chat with me.
April 6th, 2008 at 1:25 am
wtg jane c
April 6th, 2008 at 9:53 pm
Oh, hurray!
Reading this post reminded me of a paper I wrote in college, about movies in the early ’60s that indicated sexual morals were changing. I watched “A Summer Place,” “Where the Boys Are” and “Love with the Proper Stranger.”
“Where the Boys Are” was quite fun, especially after Yvette Mimieux starts running around in traffic because premarital sex made her crazy.