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A review by softrosemint
The Mister by E.L. James
1.0
An incredibly unserious book and more than anything, it is deeply offensive - to immigrants, to Eastern Europeans, to victims of human trafficking. I am not angry but I am resentful because it repeats the same stereotypes you can hear from your average Tory voter and it does nothing to challenge them. Rather it uses them for its silly little plot or to sexualise Alessia's vulnerabilty.
And while I am at a point where I am happy to hurl back an offensive stereotype to any English bellened, it was the way the book treats the matters of domestic abuse and human trafficking that I did not find funny at all. Yes, Eastern Europe has a lot of modern and forward thinking people living normal lives, having normal relations. Yes, there are more conservative regions. And yes, both domestic abuse and human trafficking are key issues of women on the Balkans - and that I care deeply about. All of these can be simultaneously true.
What I am not going to take is an Englishwoman telling me that what we need is a nice posh Englishman to show us what it is like to be treated well. Should we be so lucky to be very, very pretty and very, very hot and maybe talented at playing the piano.
And while I am at a point where I am happy to hurl back an offensive stereotype to any English bellened, it was the way the book treats the matters of domestic abuse and human trafficking that I did not find funny at all. Yes, Eastern Europe has a lot of modern and forward thinking people living normal lives, having normal relations. Yes, there are more conservative regions. And yes, both domestic abuse and human trafficking are key issues of women on the Balkans - and that I care deeply about. All of these can be simultaneously true.
What I am not going to take is an Englishwoman telling me that what we need is a nice posh Englishman to show us what it is like to be treated well. Should we be so lucky to be very, very pretty and very, very hot and maybe talented at playing the piano.