The Sex Lives of English Women: Intimate Questions and Unexpected Answers

Description

'English women have a reputation for being reserved and uptight; actually behind closed doors we're outrageous.' In the 700 years that books have been published in England, there has not been one that invites women to talk about what they want from sex. Wendy Jones thought it was about time someone had the courtesy to ask. So she went out with a tape recorder and spoke to twenty-five women from all walks of life: a wealthy suburban housewife, a former prostitute, a feminist into BDSM, a covered Muslim, a transsexual, a woman in her nineties who remembers the sexual freedom of wartime, a gynaecologist. They talk about their lives, families, partners, bodies and sexual histories, about what they have learnt, how they have been hurt, what they enjoy and what they long for. The interviews are frank, engaging and sometimes suprising. Each woman is unique but together, perhaps, they speak for a majority. For the first time since Nancy Friday, women are talking about what they want. And it's time we listened.

Wendy Jones is a graduate of the University of East Anglia and has a PhD from Goldsmiths in creative writing. She has published two novels and is the author of Portrait of the Artist as a Young Girl, a biography of Grayson Perry. She lives in London.

Fascinating and thought-provoking * Grayson Perry * A compelling and thought-provoking collection ... it's brave, honest and full of things you'll relate to. * Elle * We are bombarded with commercialised images of what women's sexuality is about. This book shows us what it is really about. Wendy Jones' gift is that she can really listen to what people tell her, pick out what's important without distorting their distinct voices. -- Philippa Perry The interviews feel very real and immediate...entertaining, heart-warming -- Viv Groskop * Telegraph *