photo: getfrank.co.nz
Once upon a time, a friend and I were hanging out behind a flat complex, smoking a cigarette and just chilling out. There was a pile of detritus outside - broken safes, jugs of anti-freeze, old shoes, clips, tubes, wires ... what have you.
But there, in a faded red milk crate, was a book. A plain blue hard-bound book. Written by a woman known at that time only as J, The Sensuous Woman ended up in its time selling over 9 million copies. My friend and I were fascinated. And justifiably so!
Throughout the course of the day, we would flick open and peruse the various passages and chapters in this book; chapters, say, on how a woman should look. How a woman should exercise herself - sensually. How a woman should masturbate (mechanical and manual). How a woman should appear to her man. Sexual ethics. What to wear. Aphrodisiacs. Pointers on how to perform oral sex. My favorite: How to Tell In Advance If a Man Will Be a Good Bed Prospect. You're getting the picture.
This book was published in 1969, by a woman known only as "J." Sadly, her publisher outed her three months later to much scandal.
However, I was moved enough to share this book with whoever reads this, chapter by sensual chapter. It's fun to look back at sexual thoughts and sexual politics from back in the day. Even though I've only glanced at perfunctory bits here and there during the course of the day, I'm looking forward to reading this book in its entirety, and sharing with you, dear reader, the gist and the zeitgeist of the sexual revolution, told through the words and deeds of this fantastically brave (and libidinous) woman who wrote the damn thing.
Chapter by chapter.
I, myself, am looking forward to it. Are you? Ciao!
