The World's Best Sex Writing 2005 [Paperback]

Mitzi Szereto (Editor)

Book Description

Series: World's Best Sex Writing | Publication Date: November 8, 2005

Here is the year's best nonfiction writing on sex, for the first time expanded to include contributions from overseas. It includes an interview with Harry Reems of Deep Throat fame, essays on the growth of asexuality, the XXXChurch, “sexperts” and their lack of qualifications, sex in Japan, and alternative sexual practices. Publications featured include Wired, Salon.com, Village Voice, the Spectator, the Guardian (London), the Sunday Times (London), the Erotic Review (London), and more.

The distinguised and varied list of contributors includes: Dave Barry (Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and columnist for the Miami Herald) on sex, men, and fruit flies; Nigel Planer (novelist and actor) on the sexual allure of Tahitian women; Ron Nyswaner (screenwriter on Philadelphia) on his sexual and emotional domination by a male hustler; Toni Bentley (former ballerina) on her obsession with anal sex; Steven Rinella (novelist and journalist) on his discomfort watching a friend’s wife strip; Jeannette Angell (novelist and professor) on her experiences as an escort; Jonathan Margolis (novelist and author of The Intimate History of the Orgasm) on the obsession for orgasm; Sebastian Horsley (controversial British artist who underwent crucifixion as part of his art) on the benefits of no-strings, paid-for sex with prostitutes; and others.

 

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Szereto, whose books include Erotic Fairy Tales: A Romp Through the Classics, tries to include something for everyone in this collection, from oral sex to anal, from a tribute to porn opponent Andrea Dworkin to an interview with porn star Harry Reems. There are explicit descriptions of sexual experiences, but it's not all fun and games: Sarah Klein examines the controversy around labioplasty and other vaginal cosmetic surgeries, and Steven Kurutz offers a sometimes hilarious article about the fallout from Alabama's incomprehensible outlawing of adult sex toys. There's even a Dave Barry essay about what horny men can learn from the male fruit fly. But not all readers will appreciate Polly Peachum's long-winded and self-satisfied discussion of the pleasures of being a submissive ("I think I assumed that all little kids dreamed of being chased naked in a circus arena by a swarm of bees trying to fly up their bottoms as the crowd laughed uproariously at such a shameful and painful predicament") or Jeannette Angell's smug account of being a college lecturer by day and call girl by night. It's all about sex, indeed—but much of it is far from erotic. (Dec. 13)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

About the Author

Mitzi Szereto has nearly a dozen books to her credit, including the critically acclaimed "Erotic Fairy Tales: A Romp Through the Classics," and the anthologies "Wicked: Sexy Tales of Legendary Lovers" (spring 2005 from Cleis Press); "Foreign Affairs: Erotic Travel Tales," and "Erotic Travel Tales 1 & 2" (all from Cleis Press). She’s also penned several best-selling erotic novels under the name M. S. Valentine: "The Celia Collection," "The Governess," "The Captivity of Celia," "The Possession of Celia," "Elysian Days and Nights" (all from Blue Moon and Venus Book Club), and "The Martinet" (Chimera UK and Venus Book Club). Aside from having pioneered the erotic writing workshop in the UK and Europe, this transplanted Californian is a well-known fixture on the international interview circuit, appearing frequently on television and radio. She also travels in academic circles, presenting papers on erotica at literary conferences. Her outspoken views on the erotic literary scene have made Mitzi a trendsetter, earning her a reputation as an author and editor who has put the "literature" back into erotica. She conducts her erotic writing workshops around the world, from the Greek islands to the Cheltenham Festival of Literature. Her anthology "Erotic Travel Tales 2" is the first anthology of! erotica to include a Royal Fellow of Literature.

Product Details

• Paperback: 286 pages
• Publisher: Thunder's Mouth Press (November 8, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1560257725
• ISBN-13: 978-1560257721
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.5 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,250,264 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

MITZI SZERETO is a bestselling author and anthology editor of multi-genre and erotic fiction and non-fiction, blogger for the popular ERRANT RAMBLINGS: MITZI SZERETO'S WEBLOG (http://mitziszereto.com/blog), and the creator/presenter for the internet TV channel MITZI TV (http://mitziszereto.com/tv), which offers a quirky take on London.

Her published titles include PRIDE AND PREJUDICE: HIDDEN LUSTS; RED VELVET AND ABSINTHE: PARANORMAL EROTIC ROMANCE; IN SLEEPING BEAUTY'S BED: EROTIC FAIRY TALES (solo short story collection); THE NEW BLACK LACE BOOK OF WOMEN'S SEXUAL FANTASIES (non-fiction/survey); GETTING EVEN: REVENGE STORIES (crime/multi-genre); DYING FOR IT: TALES OF SEX AND DEATH (erotica/multi-genre); WICKED: SEXY TALES OF LEGENDARY LOVERS (erotica/romance/historical); the EROTIC TRAVEL TALES anthology series (erotica/romance); THE WORLD'S BEST SEX WRITING 2005 (non-fiction/criticism); EROTIC FAIRY TALES: A ROMP THROUGH THE CLASSICS; and the popular M. S. VALENTINE erotic novels (which have sold in excess of 100,000 copies). Her short fiction and erotic novels have been translated into Russian, Italian and German.

MITZI SZERETO's Web TV channel MITZI TV covers "all things quirky and London" and has attracted an international audience. Segments have ranged from prowling the streets of London in search of jellied eel and chatting about classic cars with Formula 1 racecar driver/BBC TV presenter Tiff Needell and couture shoe designer Jimmy Choo, to joining in a lively pub singalong, being recruited into dance by a troupe of Morris dancing software geeks, hanging out with a chapter of Harley Davidson riders, and covering a teddy bear festival with her famous bear and cohort, Teddy Tedaloo.

In addition to books and web TV, MITZI SZERETO is a pioneer of the erotic writing workshop in the UK and Europe, teaching them from the prestigious Cheltenham Festival of Literature to the Greek islands. Her outspoken views on the erotic literary scene have made her a trendsetter, cult figure, and frequent interviewee, earning her a reputation as the author and editor who's put the "literature" back into erotica. Frequently sought out for her opinions on a range of topics, she's been featured in the Sunday Telegraph, Independent, Times, Observer, London Evening Standard, Toronto Star, The London Paper, Company Magazine, Dare Magazine, First Magazine, Family Circle, Writing Magazine, Scarlet Magazine, and Forum, as well as on Bravo UK Television, Telecinco TV 5 (Madrid), BBC Radio, Newstalk Ireland, and FM4 ORF Radio (Vienna). She's performed readings of her work from Los Angeles to London and Vienna, and has given talks on such subjects as erotic writing, women's publishing, and social media. Her work as an anthology editor has earned her the American Society of Authors and Writers' Meritorious Achievement Award. She also travels in academic circles, having lectured in creative writing at a number of British universities as well as presenting papers on erotic literature at conferences. Her anthology "Erotic Travel Tales 2" is the first anthology of erotica to feature a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature. Originally from the USA, she now resides in London, England.

ERRANT RAMBLINGS: MITZI SZERETO'S WEBLOG: http://mitziszereto.com/blog

MITZI TV: http://mitziszereto.com/tv

Follow Mitzi on Twitter @mitziszereto

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Cover doesn't match Content, July 30, 2008

By 

Duke Win - See all my reviews

This review is from: The World's Best Sex Writing 2005 (Paperback)

This book has a cover that is very misleading. A picture of a sexy woman posing with sexy legs leads reader to believe that this is some sort of erotica that they can enjoy reading in the dark. Unfortunately it is not (in a good way). The book is more like a documentary about sexual research and varius interviews and commentaries published in newspapers about sexualy active people. Some segments are very good such as "Call Girl" about the daily life of a prostitute from her perspective. Another one that was higly insightful was the research performed at truck stops and the sex-drug comunities that follows it. However I had to use a paper to hide the cover of this book just to read it outside the house just because it misleads people to think that this is a "naughty" book which it isn't.

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Best sex writing, February 23, 2008

By 

Richard Brower (Maine USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The World's Best Sex Writing 2005 (Paperback)

A widely varied collection of articles concerning our frequently perverse human sex practices. But it is always interesting.

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Not TOO hot to handle, May 17, 2007

By 

Betty Dobson "InkSpotter" (Halifax NS Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The World's Best Sex Writing 2005 (Paperback)

If you've ever done any public speaking, you know that some of the best advice you can get is to open with a joke. You put both the audience and yourself at ease before diving into the weightier points.

Editor Mitzi Szereto seems to have followed that advice in compiling The World's Best Sex Writing 2005. This non-fiction anthology opens with a humorous article. "The Big Ooooooohh!"--if I have to tell you what it's about, you really need to read it--had me laughing hard enough to warrant a dirty look from the cat whose midnight bath I'd so rudely disrupted.

But then the content turns serious as we delve into "Andrea Dworkin, 1946-2005" and "The Sex Files." Antipornography feminism and the lingering legal ramifications of homosexuality represent a major point shift away from the opening article. Then we move on to political interference in scientific research on sexuality and the advent of female genital "plastic surgery." Weightier points indeed!

Like Szereto's previous editorial offering, Wicked: Sexy Tales of Legendary Lovers (see my review in issue 3.11), this collection has something to suit every taste and runs the gamut from humorous to horrifying.

Other reviewers have--and probably will--include the following proviso, but it bears repeating nonetheless. The World's Best Sex Writing 2005 is not pornography. It's not even erotica, although some of the memoirs test that theory. It is, however, a frank and sometime profane discussion of human sexuality.

Will you be offended at least once by the time you're done reading? No doubt. (I know I had to grit my teeth through some of the articles.) Sex is, after all, a delicate subject with countless variations of perception. What I find amusing, you might find obscene, and vice versa.

However, if you stick it out (so to speak) and read every article, you stand a far better chance of being educated, enlightened, and entertained.

Just don't expect to be coddled. The language used is often graphic. Little is left to the imagination. If you're offended by such things, don't read the book.

In fact, you probably shouldn't be reading this review. Now that I've brought the book to your attention, you might feel compelled to read it, if only for curiosity's sake.