Customer Reviews

The Big Book of Porn: A Penetrating Look at the World of Dirty MoviesQuirk Books

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The Big Book of Porn lives up to its subtitle--it is a penetrating look at the world of dirty movies. It is a glossy, high-quality paperback with screenshots, actor portraits, vintage advertising posters, and glittery sidebars. Publisher Quirk Books has been known to release some wacky joke books in the past, but this thorough examination of a hobby with more viewers than sporting events (yes, it's true) is well worth the $20 cover price and a place on your history/anthropology bookshelf.

The book opens with a timeline of the invention of still and motion pictures, the ratings administered by the MPAA, the history of obscenity rulings by the Supreme Court, and the evolution of the stag film, peep show, dirty movie theater, and home video. The author is thorough in his examination of history, from the printing press to dime store novels to VHS to the Internet and on to...virtual reality? Grahams-Smith alleges that all the high-falutin' academic research in virtual reality is founded in a desire to invent the Holy Grail of porn. He decries our prudishness about "wardrobe malfunctions" and celebrates the mainstream influence of Madonna, men's magazine Maxim, and the rise of S&M-inspired fashion.

For anyone looking to advance their porn education, the author has a list of 20 all-time classics (Taboo, The Opening of Misty Beethoven, Insatiable, Alice in Wonderland, and more). The list explores the cultural and cinematic significance of each entry. Other lists include five modern classics and the two weirdest classics of all time (my lips are sealed, so pick up the book to find out the titles). The top list of leading ladies is impenetrable (who can argue with Annette Haven at #1?). Sidebars explore the magic formula for determining your porn name, the classic crossover actors, the international perspective, 20 sacred porn movie rules, and who's who in upcoming stars. Includes a glossary.

There she was, sitting just beyond the creamer
counter at Starbucks and she was reading the exact same page!?!
It was kismet. We clicked immediately.

I'm a porn history buff, but I had never known
some of these amazing facts and true stories!
Natalie loves the pictures and the do-it-yourself section.

The book is written with a great deal of humor, having
some fun with what is - too often - a very drab topic.
Great interviews, brilliant insights by the author,
and excellent descriptions consistantly make this
book an everyday read for this critic.

One word of advice though:
DO NOT BORROW THIS BOOK FROM A FRIEND.
Go out there and buy your own! It's a better idea!

Oh...and by "clicked"? I meant had sex with each other.

Remember when you used to ride the bus to school and there was that one tough kid who sat in the back seat who was wise beyond his years?
He was the go-to guy when you wanted to know about where to buy fireworks, what beer tasted like, and most importantly: what does "S-E-X" mean? You could ask him anything, and though he may chide you a bit, you'll get your answers.

Author Seth Grahame-Smith is THAT guy.

The Big Book of Porn has the answers to all those questions you were too lazy to search the internet to find, and too embarassed to ask your friends at the poker game. With a sharp and humorous slant to his writing, Grahame-Smith plows through the decades to make the Big Book of Porn an overview that's not only informative, but laugh out loud funny.

The Big Book of Porn isn't the end-all, be-all for the history of porn, but if you want a crash course in what was, is, and will be, it's a must-read primer. Before you know it, you'll be the tough kid everyone is coming to for answers.

This is a great book, and is full of bright, colorful pictures and witty comments. I bought it for my friend somewhat out of a joke, but I enjoy it just as much as he does. Full of information and it's very tastefully done.

This is a great book written in a humorous and witty style. It will entertain you as well as educate you. It reveals a lot of real names of porn actors and actresses. Also, it is packed, and I mean packed with pictures. This book is a page turner, and hard (no pun intended) to put down. I would highly recommend.

I came upon this product while searching for other Seth-Grahame Smith products and was intrigued. I was pleasantly surprised when I received the book so quickly and was in almost perfect condition in every detail. About the book, I admit, it is very well written quite informative with subtle humour in places. I recommend this book for the curious and the seller as well. Thank you.

This, I think, is an excellent book on porn. He covers the classics - both the old and the new. The biographies of the stars are great. It's nice to know what those old divas are doing now! He also has a few sections on doing your own porno, if you're so inclined. Those sections, while not long, were fairly complete. The best part of this book in my opinion is the humor. This guy is funny. It's a good read for 8 bucks. Nice binding too.

OK, first off, I am not into "porn" at all. I have seen a few films in my youth and found them stupid. I have seen occassional magazines. I currently own a few art books of nude men photographed in beautiful ways, many are not even totally nude. However, I saw this book on Amazon and it looked interesting to someone who knows nothing about porno movies. I have to say I enjoyed this book! It discusses the author's fave/best porn movies, a few of the weirdest, he talks porn stars, and about the history of adult films, a part I especially liked. He writes about different genres, what porn is typically like in other countries (you won't believe what the clean Germans are into), and terms maybe familiar to most but totally unfamiliar to me! There is no real nudity here, but it is full of color pages. It is also written in a very funny way. If you want right-out full on nude spreads they aren't here. I'd recommend it for the curious, like me, and for people more into porn flicks. You'll probably learn at least a little and laugh at the same time. Remember, no hard cord photos but lots of humor!

What red-blooded male could resist a book titled THE BIG BOOK OF PORN?

They say you should write what you know, and Seth Grahame-Smith obviously knows his porn. But what separates him from all the other raincoatters in the world is the way he can write about it in a way that makes you laugh, isn't offensive, and that actually teaches you something (albeit something you probably didn't need to know, like the porn preferences in Japan). There's details on how to make your own film, including what equipment you will need, and how to get it on the web. But my favorite part of the book was the listing of the top adult features of all time, including the original posters. I had obviously been focusing my efforts in the wrong place!

Seriously, if you want to know about the porn world, and don't want to read about the drugs and the disease and the other negatives so often present in other works about adult movies, this is the book for you. It's bright, well written, interesting, not offensive, educational, and overall just plain fun. There's jokes, gags, and inuendos up the wazoo. There's also jokes about gagging, and going up the wazoo. But the book delivers what it promises, and doesn't feel dirty at all. Well done Seth!

Great coffee-table books, this covers a bunch of stars and genres. Easy to read with fun picture, this will make a great gift for those who have everything.