Sex: An Oral History [Audio Cassette]

Harry Maurer (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1996

Robert Rauh is a well-to-do Manhattan art dealer living with his lover, Dan. Even though he is committed to this relationship, Robert occasionally seeks out the thrill of having sex with a stranger in a public place. Sixty-eight-year-old Emma Karsten admits that she is obsessed with sex. Through her frequent personal ads, she currently enjoys sex with a different man every day. Jackie Dunhill is a bisexual doctor liberated by her S&M experiences. Protestant Minister Eli Gregory has been faithfully married and in love with one woman for 40 years. In their own words, these ordinary people speak out about their sexual needs and how they try to fulfill them. April publication date. 2 cassettes. ADULT FICTION.

Editorial Reviews

From Kirkus Reviews

What do people actually do in bed? That's the question that nagged at oral historian Maurer (Strange Ground, 1988, etc.), who, at age 44, realized that he rarely talked explicitly to his wife about sex, much less to others. To answer it, he interviewed about 120 men and women; here, in a smoothly edited, erotically charged report, is what 55 of them had to say. Maurer's subjects range from a 12-year-old boy just awakening to sex to a 68-year-old woman plunging into the sexual revolution by way of personal ads; from a happily married, monogamous man to a pricey prostitute and a man who would obsessively call pay phones to have phone sex with chance passersby. Each talks at length in baldly graphic terms about sex: what turns them on, what doesn't, and why: about orgiastic sex with strangers; intimacy with a spouse; the power-plays of sadomasochism; or techniques of masturbation, foreplay, and intercourse. At times, the text is so bawdy--Maurer admits in an preface that often both he and his female subjects were aroused during their talks--that it resembles nothing more than a collection of Penthouse letters. But the difference is that these confessions--and most do have a quality of the forbidden revealed about them--presumably reflect reality, not fantasy, and it's fascinating to be privy to the astonishing variety of sexual expressions on display. Maurer works hard to order his material, grouping the voices into sections like ``Masculine/Feminine'' and ``Turning Points''; providing intros to each; presenting cautious findings, such as on the surprising (to him) verbal openness of women as compared with men; but the testimonies here stand mostly on their own: revelatory, heated, shocking. Too haphazard and noninterpretive to rank with the comparable oral-history of S&M sex, Different Loving (p. 498)--but, still, opening a clear window onto the sex lives of the neighbors, for those bold enough to peep in. (First serial to Playboy) -- Copyright ©1993, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Audio Cassette
• Publisher: Passion Pr (June 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1886238081
• ISBN-13: 978-1886238084
• Product Dimensions: 7 x 4.2 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,973,708 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #58 in Books > Books on Cassette > Health, Mind & Body > Sexuality

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A book for those who wonder, "Am I the only one?", April 9, 2003

By 

Chad Webb (Pikeville, KY USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Sex: Real People Talk About What They Really Do (Paperback)

I came across this book while conducting research into sexual intamcy for Biological Psychology class. While at first I believed that this book was nothing more than an academic version of the Penthouse forum, I soon began to grasp the true intent behind this work.
Not only can one find detailed sexual histories from a veritable plethora of demographic groups, you can find in the discussion between the interviewer and interviewee, the human side of sexual desire and the decisions of sexual practices.
The amount of biographical detail and candid anecdotes alone make this an enjoyable read, but the aformentioned insight and the comfort derived from knowing that someone else's view of sex could be as convulted as your own make it a book that can be enjoyed for a lifetime.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Real People, Real Passion, October 24, 2002

By 

Omni - See all my reviews

This review is from: Sex: An Oral History (Hardcover)

I bought this book several years ago and was deeply impressed by the creativity of the idea as well as the depth of the interviews. People truly open up and reveal hilarious, startling and scandalous feelings and motives about their sexual escapades. What makes these oral histories even more intriguing, much like Studs Terkel, is the fact that a basic outline of the person is given and at some point you come away with the impression that this could be anyone from anywhere. Which makes gazing across a large group of people in public, all the more interesting!
A great buy!

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Real Side of Sex, December 27, 2001

By 

"schmoopy13" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Sex: Real People Talk About What They Really Do (Paperback)

Contrary to what it seems, this book has little to do with the sexy side of sex. It's all about the feelings and motivations that are behind all the different things people do. Each interview is filled with insights that are as original and interesting as the preferences that are practiced. Plus, the book satisfies the curiosities we all have when it comes to finding out what everyone else is up to!