NSFW: Book Title Edition
Have you ever found yourself out in public minding your own business ~ reading your little book ~ when you being to notice the furtive glances from the stranger across from you? The darting eyes of a panicked mother clutching the hand of her curious child?
Suddenly, you’re hyper-aware of the dodgy-looking book you’re currently reading. ‘Send Nudes’. ‘Revolting Prostitutes’. ‘I’m Glad My Mom Died’.
Well I say away with the shame. Read that book with your chest. Take it a step further, and go out of your way to find a book with a questionable title to read in public. Viva la revolution. It’s what Emmeline Pankhurst would have wanted x
Looking for a place to start? Why not take a gander at our roundup of eyebrow-raising titles you wouldn’t want your nan to catch you reading.
How To Kill Your Family by Bella Mackie
Coming in hot with a book that is sure to cause drama at your next family roast. This book follows our protagonist, Grace, as she embarks on a quest to right the wrongs enacted on her by her family. From the title, you can make a pretty educated guess on how it goes down.
I’d personally go down the lawyering-up route but you do you bestie.
Everyone In This Room Will Someday Be Dead by Emily Austin
Read this in the waiting room at your GP and watch chaos ensue. I’m joking, that’s horrible…
Gilda is a twenty-something atheist lesbian who is obsessed with death. When she signs up for free therapy at the Catholic Church, the priest at the church mistakenly hires her as the new receptionist instead and Grace has to pretend to be someone she’s not. On top of this, Gilda takes it upon herself to investigate the death of the receptionist she replaced. Naturally, chaos ensues.
Send Nudes by Saba Sams
This one’s pretty self-explanatory.
This collection of ten short stories explores the joys and pitfalls of being a young girl growing up in a world that tries to dictate her every move.
Exploring the contradicting and confusing expectations imposed onto young women in today’s society, this witty and bittersweet collection will make teenager-you feel seen (While inviting some dirty looks in the meantime).
More Orgasms Please by The Hotbed Collective
I mean they’re saying what we’re all thinking.
Described as the ‘Couch to 5k for orgasms’, this non-fic pick explores the orgasm gap, analysing this disparity through the lenses of porn, body image, the menopause and social custom.
It’s funny, it’s informative, it’s for the people. Thank us later x
I'm Glad My Mom Died by Jenette McCurdy
Not sure if you’ve noticed, but there’s a little bit of a theme here. Allusions to sex or death - the two horsemen of the polite society apocalypse.
Try explaining the title to your hyper-sensitive mother. No I’m literally begging you to try. Feel my pain.
Jeanette McCurdy’s insightful and heartbreaking memoir recounts her tumultuous relationship with her controlling mother and Jeanette’s time as a child actress, leading to her eventual emancipation from both suppressive forces in her life.
Glittering a Turd by Kris Hallenga
This heart-warming memoir follows Kris, who at the young age of 23 received an incurable cancer diagnosis. An age where life wasn’t negotiable, it was a given.
This memoir follows her story as she attempted to live life to the full - achieving more in these years than she ever would have otherwise. The message is about taking the shit that is thrown at you and making it work.
The Ethical Slut by Janet W. Hardy and Dossie Easton
One for the polyamorous besties out there.
Seasoned ‘ethical sluts’ Janet and Dossie explore ethical polyamory and open relationships, dispelling harmful rumours surrounding these relationships while promoting how to conduct healthy ones.
The trick for reading this one in public is visibly nodding your head and making sounds of approval so people think you, too, are ethical.