Title: Lady Chatterley’s Lover
Author: D. H. Lawrence
Type: Fiction
Page Count/Review Word Count: 316
Rating: 8/10
D. H. Lawrence – Lady Chatterley’s Lover
Lady Chatterley’s Lover has ended up with a somewhat unjust reputation for being the 1920s equivalent of Fifty Shades of Grey, but I don’t think that’s fair – sure, it caused a scandal, but it’s a bit like how the female form has caused a scandal throughout the years despite the fact that it can be represented artistically, or like how people used to go around hacking penises off old statues so that they didn’t offend anyone.
Of course, I’m not saying that some of the concerns were unfounded, either – it certainly did cause a stir, mainly due to the steamy sex scenes between Lady Chatterley and Mellors, her gardener and lover. The book also poses a powerful moral question, even if it seems like a dated question what with the shift in what’s considered ‘normal’ in society over the last 90 years.
Still, it does read like a classic, and a classic is what it is – notoriety aside, it’s a pleasant enough read with a gripping story, top notch characterisation and that certain flair, that little bit of magic that sits inside some books and makes them stand out in your memory. It’s also the sort of book that you can re-read, not necessarily because there are hidden layers to discover but because it’s just a genuinely pleasant read, not too filthy and not too straightedge either.
And the people who claim this is an erotic novel are wrong – it’s a love story, it’s just a different kind of love story, one which includes impotence, love clashing with passion and society itself amongst the topics that it confronts. Definitely a book that you should look forward to reading then, and one that everyone should read before they’re forty. How many years have you got left?
D. H. Lawrence
