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The Best American Erotica 2003
Special 10th Anniversary Edition
More Stories * More Sex * Author Interviews * Readers' Poll Results
There's a party going on in here. Please come.
Lick the icing on this cake: from the raunchy to the sensual, the 10th anniversary edition of The Best American Erotica includes the most esteemed and lascivious writers at work today.
Dorothy Allison explores the wonderful, mysterious abilities of the human hand, Chuck Palahniuk opens the door on a carnal meeting in a church bathroom, Susanna Kaysen takes us inside that sensual moment before two lovers touch for the first time, and Zane's corporate tigress plays mind games that make other office shenanigans look like mere games of Candyland.
In candid Q&A's the authors reveal that they are great-grandfathers, prostitutes with Ivy League diplomas, and former lunatic asylum attendants. Here, too, are the results of the readers' survey. Straight, bisexual, or gay; dominant or submissive; kinky or just curious, you're sure to be turned on by the steamiest Best American Erotica ever.
* CONTRIBUTORS *
Martha Miller, Chuck Palahniuk, Susan St. Aubin, Mel Smith, Greta Christina, James Williams, Robert Irwin, Susan Volchok, Myriam Gurba, Vaginal Davis, Bertice Berry, Dorothy Allison, Susanna Kaysen, Jack Fritscher, Lisa Wolfe, Zane, Scott, Jill Soloway, Tennessee Jones, Alison L. Smith, Paula Bomer, Dagoberto Gilb, Tsaurah Litzky, Aaron Travis, Nicholson Baker, Rose White and Eric Albert, Ivy Topiary, William Harrison
368 pages, Paperback
First published February 3, 2003
8 people are currently reading
337 people want to read
About the author
Susie Bright
121 books360 followersSusannah "Susie" Bright (also known as Susie Sexpert) is a writer, speaker, teacher, audio-show host, performer, all on the subject of sexuality. She is one of the first writers/activists referred to as a sex-positive feminist.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
September 13, 2011
I base my star ratings on both the quality of writing within the tome as well as if I'll return to re-read parts. The 10th Anniversary edition of "Best American Erotica" fulfills that. Although a few of the excerpts were misses for me, the diverse array of stories has something (I believe) for every daring reader.
January 12, 2008
the best story in this is about courtney cox's personal assitant who confesses that ms. cox bleaches her rusty sheriff's badge pink.
February 15, 2008
A couple of noted authors contributed to this edition - Susana Kaysen (Girl, Interuppted) and Chuck Palahniuk (an excerot from Choke). Also a good one from Zane.
Read
March 8, 2009Great, specially for role playing
January 7, 2015
this is a GREAT anthology. bright has done it once again, and this year it's even better than in the past because this edition includes interviews with some BAE authors of past years, as well as some of the best of the best erotica as voted by readers. there are gay, lesbian, straight, and BDSM stories, and probably a few others that i can't think of a name for at the moment. a GREAT collection, i highly recommend it for the erotica enthusiast and the erotica 'virgin.'
June 20, 2007
My favorite story in this collection is
"Fucking His Wife, Four Months Pregnant With Their Third Child" (This story turns me on even though I don't want it to...damn breeders!)
"Fucking His Wife, Four Months Pregnant With Their Third Child" (This story turns me on even though I don't want it to...damn breeders!)
January 8, 2008
A nice collection of various tastes and a fun read. A bit heavy on S&M and homosexual content - not that I disliked it, just though it was out of proportion. The last few stories were a good ending.
June 12, 2012
Jill Soloway's story was my favorite -- had a quick pace and a fun premise.
April 20, 2017
This review is of both the book and the audiobook. Best American Erotica 2003 can best be described as a cornucopia (or rather pornucopia) of titillating and scrumptious stories from fantastic erotica writers across the country. The range of stories includes straight, gay, lesbian, and transgender sex with a variety of landscapes including Hollywood, a military base, a strip club, and the quintessential pool scene. This special 10th anniversary edition includes twenty-three new stories and several delicious additions.
Being the only Best American stories to be published for ten years straight without interruption, the book, first, takes a trip down memory lane. Acting editor for ten years, Susie Bright went through painstaking work to contact all prior writers for the Best American Erotica series and gave the readers highlights of what she had discovered about life after being published in this series. Through surveys in her 9th edition, Bright also reprints the five favorite stories of all time—making it a total of twenty-eight wonderful tales of sexual delight.
Like many Best American series, it can be hard to enjoy the book through its entirety because not all the stories are relatable to the reader. But particularly a book based on sexual content can have more trouble. Whereas a Best American Mysteries or Best American Travel Writing can feature a story the reader might not like, some stories in Best American Erotica may disturb the reader. The story could be disturbing due to its content or quite possibly, what erotic feelings, and questions it evokes in the reader. However, like other Best American series, it stays true to its purpose in providing the reader with a vast sampling of quality erotica writers. Therein also lies a benefit because while there will be stories that one does not like—there is bound to be a story for everyone. And be aware that your definition of erotic literature may not meet the same definition as Susie Bright and her band of writers. Many of the stories did not meet my interpretation of an erotic story but rather seemed to be erotic vignettes, which was just as entertaining.
Erotic literature is not the text version of porn and this book reaffirms that notion. While these stories do have “sex” in common—that’s not really the driving point of erotic literature. The act of arousing is what makes these stories so damn fascinating and enticing. In most pornography, it’s the sex itself that people are interested in but in this anthology, one finds that sex is not always the climax but the path taken to find sex which proves much more stimulating. A book like this makes the reader more aware of the vast panorama of what is and what can be sexual and enjoyable.
The only flaw in this gem of an audiobook was the introduction. While Susie Bright is great at hosting her show and decent at the stories she reads, her introduction lacked professional quality. She came across as bland or fake even when trying to sound exciting. She also had a few stumbles while reading the introduction, which should have been corrected. And yet, even the introduction was beneficial, learning about the history of Best American Erotica. From there, the book examines interviews with former and present writers in the series. Her questions range from typical (“What special awards did you receive” and “Did you attend college?”) to not so typical but certainly entertaining questions (“Any interesting felonies or misdemeanors you’d like to mention?” and “Has your work ever been banned in another country, expelled from a local library, or seized at Customs?”). What’s more amazing and funnier than the questions are the responses.
Listening to the Best American Erotica 2003 was a pure delight. Regardless of their arousal factor, these stories were exciting and interesting. One piece of advice when listening: Be careful where you listen to this audiobook; it proved quite distracting while listening to it at work, but was much easier to deal with in the car or at home. This audiobook has that rare ability to fully draw your attention and keep you from getting anything done, both a bane and an attribute to this book.
Open-minded listeners will enjoy this voyeuristic journey into various sex lives to observe sex both different and akin to their own experiences. While not every story will have you on the edge of your seat, ready to orgasm, it certainly will provoke your imagination and give you some superb ideas for your next sexual encounter. With 2004 right around the corner, I look forward to hearing next year’s edition.
Being the only Best American stories to be published for ten years straight without interruption, the book, first, takes a trip down memory lane. Acting editor for ten years, Susie Bright went through painstaking work to contact all prior writers for the Best American Erotica series and gave the readers highlights of what she had discovered about life after being published in this series. Through surveys in her 9th edition, Bright also reprints the five favorite stories of all time—making it a total of twenty-eight wonderful tales of sexual delight.
Like many Best American series, it can be hard to enjoy the book through its entirety because not all the stories are relatable to the reader. But particularly a book based on sexual content can have more trouble. Whereas a Best American Mysteries or Best American Travel Writing can feature a story the reader might not like, some stories in Best American Erotica may disturb the reader. The story could be disturbing due to its content or quite possibly, what erotic feelings, and questions it evokes in the reader. However, like other Best American series, it stays true to its purpose in providing the reader with a vast sampling of quality erotica writers. Therein also lies a benefit because while there will be stories that one does not like—there is bound to be a story for everyone. And be aware that your definition of erotic literature may not meet the same definition as Susie Bright and her band of writers. Many of the stories did not meet my interpretation of an erotic story but rather seemed to be erotic vignettes, which was just as entertaining.
Erotic literature is not the text version of porn and this book reaffirms that notion. While these stories do have “sex” in common—that’s not really the driving point of erotic literature. The act of arousing is what makes these stories so damn fascinating and enticing. In most pornography, it’s the sex itself that people are interested in but in this anthology, one finds that sex is not always the climax but the path taken to find sex which proves much more stimulating. A book like this makes the reader more aware of the vast panorama of what is and what can be sexual and enjoyable.
The only flaw in this gem of an audiobook was the introduction. While Susie Bright is great at hosting her show and decent at the stories she reads, her introduction lacked professional quality. She came across as bland or fake even when trying to sound exciting. She also had a few stumbles while reading the introduction, which should have been corrected. And yet, even the introduction was beneficial, learning about the history of Best American Erotica. From there, the book examines interviews with former and present writers in the series. Her questions range from typical (“What special awards did you receive” and “Did you attend college?”) to not so typical but certainly entertaining questions (“Any interesting felonies or misdemeanors you’d like to mention?” and “Has your work ever been banned in another country, expelled from a local library, or seized at Customs?”). What’s more amazing and funnier than the questions are the responses.
Listening to the Best American Erotica 2003 was a pure delight. Regardless of their arousal factor, these stories were exciting and interesting. One piece of advice when listening: Be careful where you listen to this audiobook; it proved quite distracting while listening to it at work, but was much easier to deal with in the car or at home. This audiobook has that rare ability to fully draw your attention and keep you from getting anything done, both a bane and an attribute to this book.
Open-minded listeners will enjoy this voyeuristic journey into various sex lives to observe sex both different and akin to their own experiences. While not every story will have you on the edge of your seat, ready to orgasm, it certainly will provoke your imagination and give you some superb ideas for your next sexual encounter. With 2004 right around the corner, I look forward to hearing next year’s edition.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews