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King Kong Theory
King Kong Theory | Virginie Despentes
14 posts | 16 read | 23 to read
King Kong Theory is Despentes' candid account of how she became notorious: reviled and admired in equal measure for her rape-revenge novel turned film, Baise-Moi, she is the poster girl for modern female rebellion. Powerful, provocative and personal, King Kong Theory describes the ways her ideas have been shaped by her experiences of rape, prostitution and working in the porn industry. Feminist theory sheds its fusty image and takes on a punk mentality as Despentes claims that sisterhood explodes our belief in feminine perfection and creates a space for all those who can't or won't obey the rules. Woolf and de Beauvoir are revived and updated by the loudest, most fiercely unapologetic misfit writing in France today.
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review
AnneCecilie
King Kong Theory | Virginie Despentes
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Pickpick

An essay collection that was published back in 2006 and in a Norwegian review that I read it said that it felt dated, but I didn‘t find it that at all.

Despentes writes about rape, prostitution and the porn film industry. She tell about her own rape at 17, working as a part time prostitute in her early 20s. She looks at the stigma surrounding this, how the society expects you to react and to behave.

#2006 #192025
@Librarybelle

RowReads1 It was a very important book especially when it first came out. 🥰 1y
AnneCecilie @RowReads1 I can see that. It‘s still important. I thought it would cover something else because of the review I read. Not much has changed when it comes to these things since 2006. 1y
Librarybelle Great review! 1y
batsy I love this book. I read it when it initially came out and at that stage in my life it felt like a much-needed jolt. 1y
59 likes3 stack adds4 comments
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plathcamusdostoyevskyjagger
King Kong Theory | Virginie Despentes
Pickpick

What an enlightening read!

1 like1 stack add
blurb
batsy
King Kong Theory | Virginie Despentes
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Thanks to @Billypar I've been listening to the song #SheWill by Savages. The perfect embodiment of this fiery rebellious punk spirit to my mind is always Virginie Despentes, and this is a quote from the angry and brilliant tagged book.

#NoFemmeber @Billypar @Cinfhen

Kalalalatja Great quote! 5y
Cathythoughts Excellent choice... I read one of her books #BlameItOnBatsy & it was good 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻 5y
erzascarletbookgasm This quote 👏! I still haven‘t read this author. Must rectify next year.. 5y
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CampbellTaraL Oh wow, I need to read this ASAP. Thanks for the prompting! 😀 5y
merelybookish Great quote!! Reminds me a bit of the description of the "cool girl" in Flynn's Gone Girl. A different but equally impossible male fantasy of the perfect woman. 5y
batsy @Kalalalatja @erzascarletbookgasm It's a great quote isn't it 🙌🏽 5y
batsy @Cathythoughts Haha! I'm so glad to hear that you enjoyed a book of hers ❤️ 5y
batsy @taraWritesSci My pleasure 😊 5y
batsy @merelybookish You're so right, I didn't think of that but that's another one of those badass quotes that capture a whole culture! 5y
Billypar Excellent quote and what a perfect picture to pair with it! 😀 I love all the contrasts she rattles off- she really nails ridiculous gender ideals that are often unacknowledged. 5y
batsy @Billypar She's so good with that in this book! And this is a cover from one of the French editions, I believe. Too good not to use 😊 5y
GatheringBooks oh this one sounds perfect for our #WomenReadWomen2019 theme! i have to get me a copy of this one. 5y
73 likes2 stack adds12 comments
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RowReads1
King Kong Theory | Virginie Despentes
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readordierachel King Kong Theory was an interesting read 6y
28 likes1 comment
review
roneea
King Kong Theory | Virginie Despentes
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Pickpick

This is off to an amazing start. Respect.

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ephemeralwaltz
King Kong Theory | Virginie Despentes
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#readingwomenmonth

💥 One of my favorites from this year #intranslation (translated from the French)
💥 explosive, raw, punk, and feminist

@thereadingwomen @andrew65 @Weaponxgirl

lalatiburona omgggg I love Virginie Despentes! Just the kind of unapologetic badass I need in my life always. 6y
batsy @lalatiburona Yes! 🖤 6y
55 likes4 stack adds2 comments
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readordierachel
King Kong Theory | Virginie Despentes
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Pickpick

Finished this a few days ago and have been letting it marinate. I appreciated this slim book of punk feminist theory, even though I didn't always agree with her conclusions. I think she has a tendency to generalize based on her own anecdotal experiences even as she criticizes mainstream society for generalizing and pigeonholing women. But I also think her perspective is very valuable. She challenges the status quo, and what more can you ask for?

ephemeralwaltz Great review! 100% agree. 6y
readordierachel @ephemeralwaltz Glad we're on the same page! 6y
batsy Excellent review! I disagreed in parts as well but gosh, what a searing polemic! 6y
readordierachel @batsy @ephemeralwaltz She certainly doesn't pull her punches! I also like how it's almost conversational. She doesn't overwork it. 6y
64 likes1 stack add4 comments
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readordierachel
King Kong Theory | Virginie Despentes
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A little airport reading ✈

andrew61 I've just finished vernon subutex and really enjoyed it so this looks great. 6y
batsy Ooooh! 6y
readordierachel @andrew61 @batsy Very interesting so far! 6y
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batsy @ReadOrDieRachel I love it even though I don't agree with her every step of the way. But I've recommended it to people and they didn't like it. I hope you find it worthwhile! 6y
AustenJennings Never heard of this. Thanks 6y
readordierachel @AustenJennings it's an interesting read 6y
66 likes3 stack adds6 comments
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SilMar
King Kong Theory | Virginie Despentes
Pickpick

Fascinating view of how a woman grows stronger in a patriarchal society. Despite being neglected by the society itself, she shows us that we are not alone. We need to change the way our fist faces and fight the oppressors.

review
ephemeralwaltz
King Kong Theory | Virginie Despentes
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Pickpick

I'm so glad I read this little but powerful book - a very striking PUNK feminist manifesto that sends a big F*** YOU to gender roles and rape (from her own experience) culture - touching on related topics such as motherhood and pornography, always in extreme detail and full of pop culture and literary references. Might be an unsettling text for some but EXTREMELY important!

⭐⭐⭐⭐

batsy Great review! I absolutely love this book. 6y
ephemeralwaltz @batsy yes! I loved reading her point of view - she's visiting Barcelona this May! I hope I can go see her speak ✊ @ReadOrDieRachel it's really something! 6y
62 likes3 stack adds3 comments
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ephemeralwaltz
King Kong Theory | Virginie Despentes
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The publishers I interned at this last semester recently edited and published the first Catalan translation of Despentes' KING KONG THEORY. I'm loving the cover and can't wait to read it. It's supposedly raw, punk, honest, and very, very powerful - 🔥#grrrl

#ReadingResolutions #Releasedin2018
@Jess7

Jess7 🤗🤗 6y
readordierachel Sounds awesome! 6y
batsy I loved it, without necessarily agreeing with all of her views. Hope you find it a worthwhile read :) 6y
ephemeralwaltz @batsy I hope so too! Just started it. 6y
52 likes4 comments
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SuperPunkNinja
King Kong Theory | Virginie Despentes
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Pickpick

I don't necessarily agree with everything she says but I like her hardcore 'take no shit' attitude. She covers everything from rape to punk rock and doesn't give a fuck what the patriarchy thinks.

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batsy
King Kong Theory | Virginie Despentes
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Today in badassery: Virginie Despentes

#ugly #QuotsyDec17 @TK-421

saresmoore 🙌 6y
vivastory The last sentence. Love this quote. Hopefully badassery becomes a daily post...😉 6y
2BR02B 👏👏👏 6y
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TrishB What @vivastory said 👍🏻 6y
Leftcoastzen Woo hoo! 👏 6y
youneverarrived 🙌🙌 6y
LeahBergen 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻 6y
RohitSawant 👏👏👏 6y
batsy @vivastory @TrishB I might have already set the bar too high with this quote 😂 🙌 #loveDespentes 6y
68 likes2 stack adds11 comments
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batsy
King Kong Theory | Virginie Despentes
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I have had a #think, or rather frantically looked up "What is the exact shade of tan?" and Wikipedia tells me that there are several shades of tan so I'm interpreting it as broadly as I can ? Thanks for the tag @shawnmooney and also for the Will Eaves book with its tannish cover ? #bookcolortag #AugustGrrrl @Cinfhen

shawnmooney Great! 👍👍And just what the heck is King Kong theory anyway? 😛🐵🐵 7y
batsy @shawnmooney Polemical feminist theory 🐵🔥 7y
Cinfhen Well done 🙌🏻 7y
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LeahBergen I better go try to make my tan stack, too. Nicely done! 👍🏻 7y
Kammbia1 You have a Jonathan Carroll book in your stack! He's one of my favorite authors. Good deal! 7y
batsy @Kammbia1 I'm embarrassed to say that it's one of the books from the stack that I haven't read yet! But I look forward to it now, I've heard lots of good things about his work 👍 7y
batsy @Cinfhen @LeahBergen Thank you 💛 7y
Kammbia1 @batsy I've read four Jonathan Carroll novels: White Apples, Glass Soup, Land of Laughs, and The Wooden Sea. I enjoyed all four of them with The Wooden Sea as my favorite. I have not read the one you have in your stack. Let me know what you think of it. @DeborahSmall is another JC fan and she may have read the one you have. (edited) 7y
batsy @Kammbia1 Thank you for sharing your review, it does indeed sound very intriguing. I will definitely report back once I've read the one I have! 7y
DeborahSmall @batsy @Kammbia1 Bones of the Moon is fantastic. One of my favourite JC novels ❤️ 7y
74 likes11 comments