When Naomi Alderman had finished writing her seminal novel The Power, she sent an early copy to a friend to read. The response was unorthodox. “She texted me and she said, ‘Why is this book making me feel horny all the time?’ I thought about it and I said, ‘Listen, the reason is, because when you’re reading it, you’re not feeling afraid.’”
Just think of being a woman, she says, sitting on the tube. You catch the eye of a good-looking man, but can’t even smile at him lest he turn out to be “one of those totally random, horrible dudes.” As a result, “you can’t even really experience your own sexuality properly.”
