Love & Sex

Forget who is going to play Anastasia Steele in the Fifty Shades of Grey movie for a second. The hot question of the moment is who is reading the book. And actress Roseanne is about to add herself to the list, thanks to a copy she got from a rather unlikely source: her lesbian sister-in-law.

According to Roseanne, the hottest book for the hetero set is pretty hot among lesbians too. Now let me just say that I don't know exactly the context in which this was said. But I'm just not sure why this would surprise anyone.

E.L. James has written three books about a woman being pleasured over and over and over again. What's not to love if you're a lady ... any kind of lady? I know, I know, not everyone loves Fifty Shades of Grey. I'm not saying they have to. But there seems to be a myth about porn -- whether it's erotic literature or live-action films -- that the sexuality of the on-screen characters should limit those who enjoy it.

Awhile back I read a piece (I wish I could find it now) about the huge numbers of straight women who prefer lesbian porn to hetero porn. The women interviewed explained they liked it better because they felt they could relate to the women on-screen. So why not the other way around? Why shouldn't people, all sorts of people, be enjoying Fifty Shades of Grey? Lesbians. Straight women. Straight men. Heck, even gay men if they want to.

The Fifty Shades phenomena has seemed to do one really good thing for America: it's gotten more people to be more open about sex and be more open to trying something new ... whether it's in the bedroom or just the thought of trying an erotic book. I say the more the merrier (well, except in the bedroom ... that's one thing I'm not up for trying!).

What about you? Has Fifty Shades of Grey been something that's made you more open?

Image via Elmo H. Love/Flickr