Rate this book

The Story Of O: A Graphic Novel (2009)

by Guido Crepax(Favorite Author)

3.4 of 5 Votes: 5

ISBN

1561635731 (ISBN13: 9781561635733)

languge

English

genre

Graphic Novels & Comics

publisher

Eurotica

review 1: Unless you have any background researching, participating in, or witnessing real S&M/BDSM/other like-minded sub-cultures I would suggest you stay far far away from this book because you simply will not appreciate it. This book is a classic. This book holds several foundations for the culture which it describes and, to keep away from the misconception that this book simply objectifies women or that O is a "weak" individual, it must be understood that in the real sub-culture men play the same roles as O does in this book and that O's story is about some individuals' need to tap into a part of their psyche that most of us simply do not possess. Yes, many if not all of these things really happen. No, these things are not "perverted" or "grotesque". This is simply an alternativ... moree lifestyle which seems extreme by the standards of mainstream western culture. I would like to point out that besides O's alternative sexual preferences, she was a functioning part of her society, complete with a career, an apartment which she paid for before Rene's appearance in her life, and she continued to keep up her facade of conforming to a "normal" daily life like her coworkers despite her private life; no one besides those she chose to expose her secret life to knew about the conditions of her willing servitude. When one considers how little they actually know about those they deal with on a daily basis it begs the question, "how common are these types of alternative lifestyles?"
review 2: This is a banned book off my list of 120 to read. AND IT'S INCOMPLETE! I didn't know this going in. The final chapters of the Story of O were not originally published. It was only 10 years later that they were published separately in "Return to the Chateau". I just spent all last night and this morning trying to figure it out. It drove me that crazy. Here's why...There's not a page that goes by where someone's not naked or engaging in a sexual act of some sort. It's an erotic novel about a Parisian woman on her journey as a slave. THAT much sex, to me, gets boring. I just don't care after a while. However, with the BDSM dynamic thrown in, there's something larger unfolding that's only hinted at in those last couple of paragraphs that tell you what happens in the suppressed chapters. Something interesting and horrible that saves the book from being shallow pornography. I don't think I'll rate this book without reading the second book, to be honest. It's too important. I don't think I'll be disappointed though.What I did like...so far: BDSM power dynamics is my favorite subject to investigate in human sexuality studies. There are no two stories that are the same. Protocols, levels of submission, who is in control?, who thinks they're in control?...it's fascinating. The Story of O got a lot of backlash from feminists who thought it glorified violence against women. It's just not that simple. Yes, O is debased and beaten, but it's clear that she takes pleasure from it and she is reminded over and over again that she can choose to leave. "Slave" is as valid an identity as "feminist" and just as much a choice. I think the author anticipated that not everyone would understand this, and that's why we get the character Anne-Marie. It lets readers see that there's not just one dynamic, but many. In this diversity, there is certainly a space where women have an enormous amount of power. less

Download links for: The Story of O: A Graphic Novel

Advertising