On a miserable January morning Sarah is sitting on a plane to Tenerife - dickheads' destination of choice - for a week-long getaway. She's just realised that she's very angry and becoming a bitter bitch, despite being just thirty years old. With her on the plane she has a copy of Erica Jong's "Fear of Flying" and wishes it were 1975 instead of 2005. Sarah never intended for things to turn out the way they have: she just dreamed of love like everyone else. But now she's sitting here, thinking about all the injustices she's suffered. Thinking about how thoroughly fooled she was by the promise of love - the one that makes us want to start a family. Thinking about all the women she knows who, like her, were drained of all their energy by family hell - an inheritance passed down directly from generation to generation, from her restless mother's eczema-covered dishpan hands to her own nervous over-achiever complex. Angry and candid, "Bitter Bitch" is an uncompromising novel, at the heart of which is one of the most important women's issues: how can we ever have an egalitarian society when we can't even live in equality with those we love?

This is one of the most important books I've ever read. It's the book that showed me that we still need feminism in Sweden and the world, and that the struggle for gender equality is far from over. Maria Sveland is one of my heroes, she tells the story of her life and I recognize my self and many women close to me in it.

But this is also a very controverdial book. Alot of people love it, like I do, but many also hate it and the author for what she has written. To me it has a lot to do with the fact that women are not allowed to be angry on their own behalf. "Good girls" always put the needs of others first and are at peace with their position in life. They don't try to change things no matter how misserable they make them feel. But Maria Sveland shows us something else. She tells us it's ok to be angry and bitter! To me, reading this book was an eyeopener and has changed my life, it's a modern femenist classic! I'm not sure how "international" it is though, if it's just as easy to read for a non-swede as it is for a swede... I guess we'll see because this copy will travel the world!

And it's off into the world! ♥ Peace, Love & Joy ♥

Thank you, Victoria, for this exciting book! It arrived about 5 days after you mailed it - clearly the post office is more efficient than me right now :)
I'm looking forward to reading it. Controversy is often a good thing - some things have to be to shaken up to be improved. I'll tell you my thoughts about it soon :)