(no subject)

[skygiants]

I forget who on my dwlist mentioned Erotic Stories for Punjabi Widows, but I was intrigued by the premise: a British-Indian twentysomething seeking Fulfilling Employment signs up to teach what she thinks will be a creative writing class and what her middle-aged-to-elderly Punjabi immigrant students think will be an ESL class, which through a series of coincidences eventually morphs into an enthusiastic weekly porn-writing group.

And indeed this premise is charming, and the developing relationships between Our Very Young Very Feminist Heroine and her various students with very different experiences are interestingly drawn, and the widows' newfound enthusiasm for crafting smutty fanfiction is adorable! I did not expect there to also be a murder plot, a romance plot, and a coming-to-terms-with-your-sister's-different-life-choices plot but all these things are also happening. There is quite a lot of plot in this book, all of which somehow gets resolved through the transformative power of porn and Women Being Empowered To Ask For What They Want Out Of Sex And Relationships. Yes, even the murder plot.

There is a certain kind of literary fiction about the Transformative Power of Literature -- I just saw the Netflix Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society film so I'm thinking of that as a prime example, but it's a whole subgenre -- that often walks a fine line between being genuinely heartwarming and being a bit self-congratulatory, and Erotic Stories for Punjabi Widows does indeed also walk that line and YMMV on where it falls. I will not say my heart was not warmed but I did also sometimes find myself squinting at the book going, "really, every problem was resolved by the Transformative Power of Smut? Like, every one?" EVERY ONE.

Comments

[sovay]

I just saw the Netflix Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society film so I'm thinking of that as a prime example

How was it? I found the book much less sticky than it so easily could have been, but worried very much that a film adaptation would pour on the treacle to make up for it. [edit] In point of fact, I appear to have hoped in e-mail that it never would get made into a movie. I favored stage play or radio drama if it had to be adapted at all.

[raven]

Yeah, I thought very similar thoughts about that book. Too much happens!

[cyphomandra]

The murder plot in this really didn’t work for me and I do wish she’d just gone for more smut (even non transformative! )

[annotated_em]

I want to live in the world where every problem can be solved by the transformative power of smut. It sounds delightful.

[thewrongkindofpc]

This sounds like such a cool concept, though, definitely adding it to the list!

[zulu]

Saw this one randomly in the library and the title ensured I'd have to pick it up. A little too much going on, yes, but my favourite part was the underground zine ring that immediately developed!

[lokifan]

I mean, yes, somewhat sentimental and self-congratulatory. BUT AHH YES EVERYTHING BEING SOLVED BY SMUT AND FEMALE FRIENDSHIP, IT IS MY ID AND MY LIFE <333

[larryhammer]

That sounds entirely intriguing. And my library has the ebook ... 24 people waiting for 2 copies ... hmm.

[slashmarks]

I think this was probably me? Although it looks like other people have read it, too.

And yes, you are right, the Transformative Power of Smut apparently has the ability to BEND REALITY here, which might be a fun universe to live in but certainly is not our own. And the subplot balancing was very odd - for ages I was convinced Jason would turn out to have something to do with the murder.

But when the author forgets about her theme, it's so much fun!

[slashmarks]

ANONYMOUS PHOTOCOPIED SCANNED EMAILED SMUT.

[skygiants]

It was less that it was treacly and more that I found myself feeling contrarily judgmental of the heroine's lack of boundaries in a way that I do not remember having been when I read the book -- but also it's been a LONG time since I did read the book, so who knows, perhaps this present version of me would also be judgier!

[skygiants]

Sometimes porn can just be enjoyable without also solving a murder!

...or sometimes porn can solve a murder without also resolving the emotional difficulties of twenty different women? I would also read the book where all the porn did was solve a murder.

[skygiants]

(I would have been OK with some of the smut being slightly less transformative! I'm glad she remembered queer people exist in the middle but I'm not entirely sure she believes in the existence of ace people.)

[sovay]

I found myself feeling contrarily judgmental of the heroine's lack of boundaries in a way that I do not remember having been when I read the book -- but also it's been a LONG time since I did read the book, so who knows, perhaps this present version of me would also be judgier!

Fair enough! I remember nothing about the heroine's boundaries or lack thereof from the book, so either it was not an issue or I also did not notice.

[skygiants]

I, personally, don't particularly to solve all my problems by sitting around with my grandmother and her friends and talking about porn, but I would love for this to be a solution open to them that wished it!

[skygiants]

It is a really cool concept and has a ton of really enjoyable elements! The porn book club members love their new hobby so much!

[skygiants]

SPREAD THROUGHOUT THE ENTIRETY OF LONDON IN THREE DAYS FLAT

[skygiants]

I think my favorite moment was when Nikki managed to talk her best book club friends into meeting with her at the bar -- honestly, the local widow's porn book club should be a fixture at any local watering hole!

[skygiants]

Dang! Mine came in lickety-split from the BPL, but I also suspect they stocked up on copies....

[skygiants]

yes it was totally you, thanks for relinking me to your review!

... and oh my god, I was also completely convinced that Jason was going to turn out to be the murderer! And ... a little weirdly disappointed that he wasn't? >.> at least that would have meant that two different subplots were in fact really just one! but the widows and their newfound porn superpowers were indeed very great

[slashmarks]

I'm glad that Jason wasn't the murderer because that would have been so obvious, but I think that there should have been some kind of dramatic moment in which Nina is convinced he is. As it is I'm honestly not sure if he was supposed to be a red herring or if it was a complete accident.

[kalloway]

I just read it and there were at least two too many plots (or subplots, at least) and I'd hoped for a better ending for the murderer's lover, but overall I really enjoyed it.