Close windowThe Story of O by Pauline Réage Scandalous Book Club Bound To Be Read Books continues its Scandalous Book Club with the classic erotic novel The Story of O (Ballantine, 1981, 240 pp., pbk, reg. $7.99; sale $6.39) by French author Anne Desclos under the pen name Pauline Réage (and also Dominique Aury). The next meeting of this quarterly book club will be Sunday, June 7th at 3:00 p.m. Desclos wrote the novel as a series of letters to her lover Jean Paulhan, who had admired the work of the Marquis de Sade, and won the French literature prize Prix des Deux Magots. Desclos did not reveal herself to be the author until four years before her death. The Story of O is a tale of female submission as a beautiful Parisian fashion photographer makes herself available for her master, Sir Stephen. Is the book the ultimate objectification of a woman, shortening her identity to the briefest name possible- "O"? Or is it a tale of a woman's ultimate empowerment via her own consent? An ascent into purity by degradation? Come join the discussion and hear what others say. The Scandalous Book Club meets quarterly to discuss the most controversial books in publishing history, contrasting their relevance at the time they were published to social values of today. We'll determine whether these books still stand the test of time, or have become nothing more than campy trash from a bygone era.
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