Despite the fact that neither Flavorwire nor any other outlet recommended E.L. James’ Grey, the novel that was basically a warmed-over rehash of her first Fifty Shades installments, avid readers remain enthusiastic.
Indeed, the numbers are in and they are good. Holy moses good:
Vintage has already gone back to press for third, fourth and fifth printings of the book, which was released last week. The first printing was for 1.25 million copies, and the next runs will bring the total number of copies in print up to 2.1 million, Vintage said.
So, why has such a poorly crafted and cliched novel continued to break the bank and land in many a purse and e-reader? Is it because the masses have no literary taste and should be castigated for their love of poor prose? Nope, the answer is far simpler than that. It’s popular because it’s socially-acceptable, even socially valuable, porn. And people like porn, including lady-people. Including lady-people with kids. Onwards, society.