The Best American Erotica 1996 (Paperback)

~ (Editor)
Key Phrases: little plan backfired, real drunk, The Hit, The Thing, New York (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

A collection of stories -- some straight, some gay, some funny, some very dark indeed -- by such erotic luminaries as Cecilia Tan, Susanna Moore, and Robert Olen Butler. Tan's "Pearl Diver" is a short but stunning tale of autoerotica. Fans of pagers and cellular phones will enjoy Amelia Copeland's sly story, "His Little Plan Backfired." David Shields plays merrily with a fetish in "Girls Who Wear Glasses." Aaron Travis' "The Hit" is raw and violent. There's something for every taste here.

From Publishers Weekly

Bright has outdone herself in putting together the latest edition of this annual series. You won't find one dud in the two dozen stories she's chosen. As in previous years, she's plumbed all the available resources?magazines, books, journals?to showcase new writers as well as established ones. These intoxicating stories, so diverse in style and content, are as surprising as they are satisfying. For those who like it dangerously rough there is the erotic horror of Lucy Taylor's "Choke Hold" and the feral "The Hit" by Aaron Travis (aka Steven Saylor). On the literary side is Cecilia Tan's "Pearl Diver," a sensuous celebration of womanhood, and Bonny Finberg's "Light," whose infant narrator exudes a stunning erotic sensibility. The sweeping current of skin-tingling drama that barrels through this anthology is tempered by a healthy dose of playfulness and humor. Robert Olen Butler offers the unforgettable, "Jealous Husband Returns in Form of Parrot." And hilarious stories like Lars Eighner's "The Trade," in which a gay man finds himself turning straight against his will, and Joel Dailey's "Progressive Lightning," whose narrator was born "with the largest phallus on record," will make you laugh until it hurts. This very literary, Epicurean collection is guaranteed to stimulate both hormones and funnybones.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Touchstone; 1st edition (October 8, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0684818302
• ISBN-13: 978-0684818306
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.5 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,223,347 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Bit on the Literary Side, May 23, 2001

By	Preston L. Allen "Author of All or Nothing" (USA) - See all my reviews

When I read Susie Bright's series, I am always surprised and aroused. This edition was pretty good too, but it lacked the sheer heat of the 1994 edition. The 1996 edition seemed to be going for a more intellectual orgasm, much like 1995 did. I give it four stars because of a few standout stories that do the intellectual thing as well as the sheer sexual thing: The Letters, The Hit (in fact, I am still looking for the novel it is excerpted from), Jealous Husband Returns in Form of Parrot (hey, anything by Bob Butler is good, geez). The other stories were worthy. Ms. Bright strikes again.