E.L. James’s 2011 erotic novel became a bestselling behemoth and global cultural phenom this year, with the sweaty saga of Anastasia Steele and Christian Grey, plus bondage, dominance, and S&M, enrapturing readers everywhere. See 50 changes the potboiler wrought.

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A picture shows copies of the novel "Fifty Shades of Grey" on display at a bookshop in central London on July 19, 2012. It's a literary phenomenon: with nearly 40 million copies sold, "Fifty Shades of Grey", an erotic romance spiced up with sadomasochism is well on its way to breaking all the records. (Will Oliver/AFP/Getty)
1. Stimulated the economy … in all the right ways.
2. Made reading erotica on the subway acceptable (commuting has never been so titillating).
3. Made “Mommy Porn” an acceptable phrase in the English lexicon.
4. Introduced youths to a brave, new, bondage-loving world.
5. In protest of spanking bottoms, members of a British Domestic Abuse charity used the book to wipe their own bums.
6. Created a cooking class, complete with playroom pretzel ropes and bondage wrapped shrimp. Julia Child would be so proud.
7. Gave White House staffers something to read other than memos on the fiscal cliff.
8. Made us question the merits of literary masters—or our own literacy. Take our quiz.
9. Titillated us with the possibility of Ian Somerhalder or Ryan Gosling moonlighting as Christian Grey in the trilogy’s film adaptation.

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