Questions About The Sensuous Woman

by "J"

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Mt then wife & myself "devoured" this tale when it came out in 69 when we were 26. It led to the wild 70's as we got involved in swinging, orgies & infidelity that eventually ended in divorce at 34. Looking back did it effect others as strongly as us?

Evolve_Undefined I read this book secretly as a 12/13 year old around 1978 or so. It was on the shelf of a woman I babysat for who herself was a bit of a mess in subur…moreI read this book secretly as a 12/13 year old around 1978 or so. It was on the shelf of a woman I babysat for who herself was a bit of a mess in suburban NY/ CT (self absorbed, confused, obsessed with her looks and tennis, ignored her kids). She also had a lot of Playgirl magazines LOL. However, I learned more about healthy sex and sexuality from this book than anyone would have ever taught a young teenager. I knew what to expect and not expect, how to do or at least try stuff. I didn't have a lot going for me --surrounded by shameful Catholicism, eating disorders and addiction but I'm convinced that this book played a big role in helping me develop a healthy and enjoyable relationship with my sexual self and sex itself. Of course I could not recommend this to teens, and I'm not surprised at all that the language is outdated, sexist and hetero-centric but it strangely made a very positive difference in my life. I'm sure I would cringe reading it again. Perhaps there were so few sex positive resources for teens that it was a better source than pornography (actually the only other access teens often have for learning about sex- this is bad news). I experimented a lot as a young adult and was incredibly safe considering I was reckless about other things (it was the onset of the AIDS era). But I was never out of control, I was confident and empowered in what I was doing- what I wanted to do and not do. Nor did I engage in sexual activity that anyone could consider outre, dangerous or harmful to myself or anyone else. I may have read this at the right age and the right time after the 70s. As a kid I watched a lot of adults act out pretty badly in my community (read/watch the Ice Storm). I even thought it was strange that this woman I worked for was reading this as I did not respect her... though this did not stop me from "devouring" the book. Even though I had my own issues to work through as a young adult I had few illusions about what went on in the 70s. Maybe someone should do an updated version that would be more appropriate for young teens or adults (perhaps someone already has done something similar). Maybe it all just happened the way it was meant to.(less)

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