Holy cow, what a book. Definitely not for the faint of heart. I was alternately disgusted and angry as I read this. Dines makes the point that as pornography enters the mainstream media, it makes degradation of women a "normal" and "acceptable" thing. She also discusses how using porn affects men and their attitudes towards sex. Difficult to read (because of subject matter), but important if one is trying to understand the dynamics of sexual gender stereotypes in society. ( )

I'm giving this the full five stars as to my mind this is an urgent and important topic for our young people - and Dines argues her case very well. The topic is so vast though, that the surface can only be skimmed .... little about the 'homemade' market (who are these people? I assume some at least put their videos up for public consumption through choice?), nothing about 'ugly' sites, or 'fat' sites or 'senior citizen' sites (where the performers fall into these categories, not the viewers!). Diines' descriptionsof gonzo porn sickened me (although with a weird undercurrent of titillation - and I'm a middle aged housewife, so what must they do for red blooded young men?) ... and her points about desensitization were spot on. This book should be required reading on every media studies course in the world ... and would make an ideal 18th birthday present for your average randy teen! ***** ( )

Dines makes some great points in this book: that individuals try on the trappings of gender as such things are projected by the greater culture. If those archetypes are harmful, as in the ones common in 'gonzo' pornography (as Dines calls it), then the social order can be harmed. I understand what the author is trying to do, truly, but I also think she neglects some of the subtleties of sexuality that are interwoven inextricably into the fabric of each complete being. The last chapter of this book about 'PCP' or pseudo-child pornography is particularly horrifying, and Dines argues convincingly that pornography might help desensitize men to violent or otherwise awful sexual practices. ( )

I just finished this book and am still digesting it. Rating & review to come.

From publisher: Although we are surrounded by pornographic images, many people are not aware of just how cruel and violent the industry is today. PORNLAND shows how today’s porn is strikingly different from yesterday’s Playboy and Penthouse magazines— how competition in the industry and consumer desensitization have pushed porn toward hard core extremes. And, with the advent of the internet and other digital technologies, users don’t have to wander far to access porn; today, the average age of first viewing is about 11 for boys, and studies reveal that young men, who consume more porn than ever before, have difficulty forming healthy relationships.

PORNLAND also looks at how our porn culture affects the way women and girls think about their bodies, their sexuality and their relationships. PORNLAND; How Porn has Hijacked our Sexuality argues that rather than sexually liberating or empowering us, porn offers us a plasticized, formulaic, generic version of sex that is boring, lacking in creativity and disconnected from emotion and intimacy.