Leda und die Anfänge der Liebe

by Norma Klein

"Joel is seventeen, shy, and inexperienced. Leda has a lot to teach him."

I know that practice makes perfect, but what about the first time?

I'm pretty shy with girls -- I never know what to say to them. Maybe that's why I was so surprised when Leda called me. My best friend Berger and I met her at a movie, and Berger was flirting with her like creazy. I didn't even think she noticed me.

But she called me, and we've been seeing each other ever since. I guess we're in love. I want to go to bed with her, and I can tell she wants to, too. But I'm a little nervous about it.

You see, Leda is more experienced than I am. She had a boyfriend who was much older, and she went pretty far with him (though not all the way).

Of courser, I've thought about making love a few thousand times. But for practical purposes, you'd have to call me a beginner...

Genres: Young Adult, Romance, Fiction

Paperback

First published January 1, 1983

About the author

Norma Klein was born in New York City and graduated cum laude and was a member of Phi Beta Kappa from Barnard College with a degree in Russian. She later received her master's degree in Slavic languages from Columbia University.

Ms. Klein began publishing short stories while attending Barnard and since then she had written novels for readers of all ages. The author got her ideas from everyday life and advised would-be writers to do the same -- to write about their experiences or things they really care about.

Ms. Klein died in 1989.

Reviews

[Jesska · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m surprised by the amount of reviewers calling this book pornographic. I hate to break it to them, but teens, you know, they have sex. I found the use of the word “oriental” to be more offensive than two high school seniors having consensual sex, but that’s me.


I also appreciated how this book gave a non-sensationalized account of a teenage couple taking agency over their lives and deciding on having an abortion—although a lot of the pregnancy is still blamed on the girlfriend, for her “flightiness” in forgetting to wear her diaphragm (which is pretty unrealistic, what teen is like “i think a diaphragm is the perfect birth control method for me!”) BUT HELLLO WEAR A CONDOM DUMMY, don’t go pointin fingers here.

I also enjoyed Leda’s feminist rants. Saving this one for my nieces—you’re welcome, kiddos!

[Nikki Boisture · Rating 4 out of 5]

I re-read this one for the blog and I'm so glad I did. This was my favorite Norma Klein book while I was growing up and I remember why. Even though it had a LOT of similarities to all her other books, the protagonists in this one seemed more believable than in the others. Such a great book about first love. I would honestly rank it right up there with Judy Blume's Forever....

[Cha · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this a lot earlier than I should have. It was educational, for sure.

[Lo · Rating 3 out of 5]

I tend to have a problem when Klein uses a male voice. I find them overly accommodating and sometimes a little too--I don't know--not authentic.

This was actually a decent stab at at getting the voice right. Definitely much better than Angelface.

I loved how the relationship between Joel and Leda developed though I find the climax of the book (heh) and the resolution a total drag both in terms of its clunky prose and also just the situation.

[Elizabeth · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this back in high school. My parents totally should have payed more attention to my reading material. This book is full of very graphic sex. Especially since it's for the YA audience. Just a warning.

[Heather · Rating 5 out of 5]

this was my first introduction to "erotic" style books. i was still a virgin and it told me what to look forward to. have to say at the time it seemed steamy but looking back now.... its nothing compared to what I've read and done

[Sarah Hanratty · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am so lucky my Dad never figured out this book is pretty much teenage pornography. i was 11 or 12 when i first read it and looking back, i would be horrified to know my preteen daughter was reading this. its fine for adults, but not for children.

[Marysol 47 · Rating 2 out of 5]

Zwischendurch mal ganz witzige Momente, aber schnell vergessenes Buch und hätte ich nicht fertig lesen müssen

[gemmedazure · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought this book was just okay. And very dated.
Maybe it's because I'm middle aged, but I find it amusing that people here are describing the book as "erotica" or "pornographic". No. It's simply a somewhat realistic portrayal of a teenaged ,sexually active relationship. I didn't find it to be gratuitous or objectifying. It was very similar to Judy Blume's "Forever". I guess if you're someone that thinks sexuality in young adult literature should be banned, you'd be shocked at it, but I found it to be pretty tame. That said, I think it should be for 15+, given the fact there are obvious sexual scenes.
It is odd to me, though, that almost all of Klein's books are heavy on sexual themes. Maybe that's what sells? Or there was a dearth of such literature for young adults at the time? Maybe she's obsessed? Who knows.
Joel and Leda, the protagonists, I found to be somewhat one-dimensional. Their characters weren't fleshed out enough. Leda, quite honestly, got on my nerves. Klein turns her into some kind of male version of what chauvinists picture a feminist is: shrill, complaining, prone to emotional outbursts. Joel is the stereotypical shy, "nice guy". His friend, Berger, is particularly obnoxious, and I found the whole story line of him falling in love with a doctor and suddenly becoming a one-woman man to be ridiculous. ...I highly doubt a mid-twenties, successful doctor is going to shack up with a guy just out of high school. THAT part read like a bad romance novel.
Joel and Leda's relationship kind of goes downhill after she gets pregnant and has an abortion (which he , at first, blames her for forgetting the diaphragm..buddy, hear of a condom? It's your fault, too.). Then it just..disintegrates. We're left at loose ends as to why it's all over, and they have super awkward meetings in college when they've both moved on.
I don't know what the moral of the story is, or if there is one. It's not a terrible book, but kind of pointless.

[Joe · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm a big fan of Norma Klein. Here she does a pretty good job of writing from the viewpoint of a male teenager except a bit on the clinical side. Like, she can tell us that he is physically attracted to his girlfriend but she can't get inside the feeling of it. Or maybe she's afraid to provide details for fear of being called pornographic-- which several of these reviews have done anyway. Hey, you don't have to name body parts but tell me about her freckles, or little beads of perspiration on her forehead -- the kind of stuff a teen boy will be obsessing over. Or at least that I obsessed over.

I remember teenage love. I remember the awe, the wonder of this emotional and physical connection. I didn't feel it from this book. I did enjoy the two main characters and their families. Norma Klein is usually good with families and their weird dynamics.

There's a subplot involving a high school boy in love with an older female doctor that is simply ridiculous. So ridiculous, in fact, that I suspect Norma Klein wrote it because it happened in real life. Fiction is like that. Real stories don't always translate into realistic fiction unless the author can make the details stick, overwhelm you until you give up and believe. Here, it's just a sketch. No belief.

[Logan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good read (get it?). Very entertaining story, and got me thinking about how little shame people seem to have and how normal sexualizing people can be for teens (especially males). Fairly typical relationship, but Joel is pretty relatable. (Maybe except for the no college and wanting to go to Paris thing). I'm planning on reading more Norma Klein books in the future, and I hope I enjoy them as much as this book.

[Aphrodite Lee · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book as a kid and really loved it. I think I will revisit it again soon.

[JH · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a very good book! I love seeing kids in late high school deal with relationships, parents, college admissions, etc. This had some particularly memorable scenes- a Simon & Garfunkel concert at Central Park, a tennis game with Joel’s little sister, and more.

[Hazel · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found this in a pile of old books from my childhood. I vaguely remembered the story (it was over 30 years ago I read it)! I was quite shocked that I was able to read this around the age of 13, I guess my parents had no idea of the subject matter. It was funny as a mature adult to read about the first love of two teenagers and the drama that goes with that. I can only imagine that I lapped up every word of this book as I was never actually given "the talk" by my parents so I learned a lot from this book. Lets just say I won't ,knowingly, be letting my daughter read this until she is at least 16.

[Lacy · Rating 2 out of 5]

The ending really broke my heart!

[Morgan Valentine · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's nice to read a romance novel where the characters' lives won't end if they are apart.

[Chicklit]

One of my favorite teen novels.