October 3, 2008
The real English class
You begin the real English class:
O, Lolita, The Happy Hooker.
Even a few pages from Danielle Steele,
copied, folded and ready
for customers to put in their backpacks,
take-home tests. Taken to beds.
No muss, no fuss. Just the best
sexy scenes literature has to offer.
There are those who
find you ridiculous
or disgusting. But you know
they’re afraid. You don’t blame them– just feel sorry
they don’t recognize
your skills.
Thirteen is young and old, depending
on who you know.
–Jennica Harper, from “Burning Up” in What It Feels Like For a Girl
