Luann by Greg Evans and Karen Evans for November 11, 2020

that book will really ease Bernice’s mind

Lol, Nancy. I am a romance reader myself. They can be trashy or classy. I dislike those that focus only on the sex. I like my romances to have substance and some realism.

Bern will get ideas. ✨

When you’re done with that one, you can go through her collection of 50 Shades.

With that size of a book, would page 218 be towards the end or the still-getting-to-know-you part?

Oh my, someone is unfulfilled.

No sex until page 218? Not much of a romance novel.

Now Nancy makes that book sound like motivational therapy as well as an instructional manual for her to try out with lucky Frank.

Okay, Nancy, you crossed a line there.

While not necessarily “porn,” it does sound inappropriate.

If for no other reason than the advice is unsolicited.

Nancy likes those trashy novels she and Bern could start a reading club.

DAMN, Nancy.

Shocking, Mrs. DeGroot, simply shocking! Bernice’s parents probably didn’t approve of romance novels; they probably provided tomes about how not to catch boy cooties (as a result of their own experiences).

You should have more questions about the drawings on the margin

It is called foreplay.

When Greg draws something that is steaming, he draws that little wisp above what ever it is that is steaming. Note the same little wisp above the book where Bernie opened it. Therefore, it follows that something must be steamy on that page…

.

Midnight Oil has a song for that.

There are still folks who clutter their homes with physical novels? I can see having hard copies of references such as dictionaries or cookbooks, but I thought the rest of the “light reading” stuff had moved to Kindle by now.

You don’t want to miss one purple phrase!

At least Nancy didn’t start Bernice off with “the clan of the cave bear.” The fictitious paleontology the novel begins with would have caught Bern’s attention. The flat out porn later on in the story line might have hospitalized her.

Where’s the friggin’ bonbons? This simply isn’t stereotypical enough!

Just read it, Bernice. No further questions.

Nancy recognizes that Bern is lonely – even though Bern may not admit it to herself. Not sure this arc is going anywhere but I hope so. G & K were mean to Gunther for many years – I hope it doesn’t go like this for Bernice.

Jolt of the old romance, passion, LUST theme. We all need it, as there wouldn’t be an all without it. Hope it works for Bernice.

Perhaps there is a pop – up on that page.

Page 218 – underlined – for the hard driven and responsible - a destination

Just how many times can you responsibly use the word “throbbing” on a single page?

I am so intrigued with page 218, I think I will play those numbers in the lottery this week.

Nancy….dang!

Better the page that’s all underlined than the page that’s all sticky.

A tale of crossed-tide lovers. Sounds like a Juliet and Romeo story?

Sorry, when I’ve chosen something to read for pleasure (and reading for pleasure is different for each person’s taste) the last thing I want is some idiot saying, “Oh no, read this instead.” It may be something I should read (but seldom is), but in my experience it has never been a pleasure read. Let me read the book I want to read. Recommendations are different and rare, “Oh, if you like that you might try this author.” I have been introduced to some fun stuff. But if Bern wants to read history Nancy has no business diagnosing a problem, “Oh, you can’t enjoy what you want to enjoy, you need to read what I enjoy.” That’s just rude.

Bernice is being groomed for a life of sexual frustration.

Bernice will be gasping by the time she’s done…reading, that is.

so a hardworking woman needs to delve into a lame romance novel? is this a calgon take me away moment too?

The little smoke curl coming off the page in the last panel is a nice touch.

“Romance novel?” I doubt Nancy gave Bernice an innocent story of romance. Can’t really see the cover drawing, Greg deliberately kept it vague, but not vague enough not to suggest what it really is. A full blown woman’s fantasy story, aka a “bodice ripper.”

I just hope it’s not a Harlequin one. Romance novels can be fun, but I hate Harlequin. They’re the world’s leader when it comes to the idea that “Romance novels aren’t art; they’re commodities. They’re extruded book products.”

You know how some people say that "If you’ve read one Harlequin romance, you’ve read them all? That’s by design. Their business model is to make sure that the name “Harlequin Romance” on the cover is more important that the individual writer. Literature as McDonald’s hamburgers… sigh

Here in Sweden, they often sell collected editions. Four novels, abridged so they can fit into one volume. The cover doesn’t say who the writers are, or the names of the novels. But it does say “4 in 1 for just 99 SEK!” That’s how little respect Harlequin has for their writers.

Look out, Jack.

Easy there, Nancy. Everyone goes at their own pace. No need to porn Bernice up.

Nancy is so wise and reasonable. She knows what Bernice’s soul truly needs ♡. The sad part is that Bernice’s mother never gave her an advice like that.

“Driven, hard-working, and responsible”… Everything Luann is not!

Pretty sure Bernice’s mom would NOT be giving her this kind of advice! :)

Housewife soft porn.

This reminds me of the old movie A League of Their Own where the Madonna character is teaching an illiterate fellow player to read using a romance book. The woman is crudely sounding out words and says “he gr-ab-bed her mil-key white bre-asts..”, the woman pauses, Madonna says “it gets really good on the coming pages”, and the woman dives into reading.

I knew a guy who wrote romance novels. He really enjoyed the writers’ conventions.

You mean this dog eared page Nancy?

Oh Nancy, how dare ye corrupt the young innocent impressionable mind of our Bernice! I wonder if Nance has shared this book with Luann, or does she not consider Luann to be “driven, hard-working, and responsible”.

She’s going to get Bernice to admit her true feelings.

They are not my cup of tea now, but when I was a teenager I enjoyed reading through my mom’s collection of books like these. These days I prefer supernatural mysteries.

Might be a vibrating moment in the book.

Is Bernice smoking in bed? Drinking coffee? There’s a little wisp of smoke emanating from the other side of the book. I hope the house doesn’t burn down!

This book is not available on Amazon; however, there is “Forbidden Craving” [Book 3 of The Atlantis Trilogy: “A world of myth, mayhem and love under the sea!”

Ou, must be steamy.

I love that there appears to be smoke or steam coming off the book in that last panel.

The nuns warned us about those who lead us into the near occasion of sin.

This is actually a great point being made in the storyline. I’m a teacher and reading for pleasure is always challenging during the school year. This year I gave myself permission to read fluff and not try to take on the heavier stuff I’d usually aim for. Totally worth it.

Hard to understand why Bernice is so erotically naïve. The Halper’s seemed to know a lot about that stuff pretty early. Ben is the prima facie evidence.

Hold it Nancy.

For YEARS your son Brad was a potato-headed, lazy, oreo eating, couch sitting, SLUG.

For YEARS you’ve complained that Luann did little and never cleaned up her room.

NOW you have a House Guest that keeps her room neat, and who, SELFLISHLY cooks pancakes for the entire family for breakfast.

A House Guest who was perfectly fine reading Her history text until You barged in.

A House Guest who YOU just complimented by saying she was “Driven, Hard-Working and Responsible.”

The Very Model of what You wanted you daughter to be.

And YOUR “solution” to Bernice’s “problem(?)” is a copy of “The Introduction to Sleaze 101??”

What are you trying to do? Turn her into Luann?

Awwww… those times your friends mom lend you their favorite porn, so sweet

Again I don’t for a moment believe that a woman who watched a child grow up and probably thinks of her as close to a daughter would be pointing out fantasy sex scenes in romance novels. A friend her own age, maybe.

Why underline it? The book automatically opens to that page. Plus, the top corner is turned down.

This is a case of………….wait for it! Ooohhhh.

Now give her “Mother’s Little Helper” aka “B.O.B.”

Romance Novels are an acceptable form of pornography because they don’t come with pictures.

So is it about surfers? Or commercial fishermen?

Page 218 certainly rang Nancy’s chimes.

♬My antediluvian baby, oh yeah yeah, yeah yeah yeah♬

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hgfopLC2Afc

She should try “Love in the Time of Scurvy”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ouF7iaElCTU

Is that smoke coming from the book?

Sounds like a lot of you don’t know much about romance novels. Many subgenres are tame, anything but porn. They have interesting paths that lead to the obvious happy ending, historical settings, some are even the (gag) “Amish” romances that christian women lap up because they don’t want cussing.

I take it it’s a ‘how to’ book.

Most women the age of Bernice would be very uncomfortable getting a book and talk like this from Nancy. It is awkward to read.

Saying that a woman who is driven, hard-working and responsible needs to offset those traits with pornography is insulting. But the person writing these story lines is an idiot who would put an adult offering porn to a teen, so what comes next? A trip to the brothel? Maybe the dirty movies? Nancy DeGroot the voyeur? Is she going to get Bernice to discuss the key points of the book after reading? I tried to joke about it at first but this feels wrong to me.

Fantasies can really be shared with most husbands and we would never be repulsed. Might have to practice a few times to get it right but practice makes perfect :)…..

It’s going to be even more awkward in a few days when Nancy asks Bernice how she liked the book and what parts she liked best. Icky!

Now I want to read it.

I’m guessing she hasn’t shared this book with Luann.

Identify the book this passage is in: “He was kissing her now, and his mustache tickled her mouth—kissing her with slow, hot lips as if he had the entire night before him.” I was 10 or 11 when I read that passage in a book that was in my grandmother’s house—a very respectable book. You can bet I read the entire book.

My hope is that this will lead into an epic imagined fantasy take-off on The Little Mermaid with Bernice as Ariel and Jack as Prince Eric and Puddles as Prince Eric’s dog.

Comic strip artists may not be allowed to do this now but what would be realistic IRL is to handle stress Bernice begins smoking. Sitting down by the trash dumpster? Who would do that without a cigarette in hand? Living in the DeGroot home, trying to hide it, contrast to the athletic Jack, and her RA life, so many possibilities. Not advocating the lifestyle choice, of course, but it would make her more interesting. And a realistic college-age situation.

Is she telling Bernice to get laid?

I had a female colleague long ago—so long ago that one could still call her “girl”—who was driven, hard-working, and (mostly) responsible. She read bodice-buster romances and even convinced me to try one (it was a Georgette Heyer). One was more than enough, thank you. I immediately returned to science-fiction for my escapism….

Not a sex novel JD’Hunsville’AL, romance.

Looks like page 218 is steaming.

That’s not Underlining. The page is a bit Singed.

Gonna make a guess that, from the look on Nancy’s face, this is the book she reads when she wants to get herself “in the mood” for frank.

Uhhh no. Smart girls don’t read this kind of crap, thanks