All Women Want

by Alyx Gorman

The truth about why straight women aren't satisfied in the bedroom – and what to do about it


Pleasure should be a simple thing, but straight women are at the statistical bottom of the pile when it comes to finding a happy ending. There's a name for this it's called the pleasure gap. And when tracked against other gains in women's freedom, like pay or education, it is still alarmingly wide.

All Women Want is about that gap, the methods women use to try to bridge it ( they don't always want to do it solo), and why physical pleasure might be a final frontier for gender equality.

Written with candour, wit, and insights from over 130 interviews and 'field reports', Alyx Gorman's probing investigation shows sex as it really is, not as we think it should be. Free from the moralising, marketing and misinformation women are fed, it's a groundbreaking book that will educate, illuminate and, above all, satisfy.

Genres: Nonfiction, Feminism

346 pages, Kindle Edition

Published March 5, 2025

Reviews

[EmG ReadsDaily · Rating 5 out of 5]

Enlightening, informative and witty!

This well-researched non-fiction read offers so many gems about the pleasure gap, insights into the misinformation and marketing we all inadvertently face, and the ‘anatomical ignorance’ in medical literature, among health professionals and their patients, which ultimately impacts all women.

Alyx Gorman has written the sexual education that we all need, including a fabulous list of resources for extra learning, including podcasts, books, websites and documentaries.

[Joshua Mason Browne · Rating 5 out of 5]

It’s true what it says in the cover, everyone should read this book. It is sensitive, balanced, incredibly informative but not in the sense of instruction. Gorman has found a way to talk about women’s pleasure that we can all learn from, and she does it with wit, style and respect of her sources.

I found myself reading it while walking off trains and bumping into commuters, so that’s saying something if you’re looking for a page-turner.

[Janine Hills · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quite academic but with wit. Informative for those who would benefit from a very wide range of topics on
women’s sexual matters and historical changes. Fortunately I’ve had a diet of life experiences that have afforded me this knowledge firsthand. ( I am in my 70s and lived the “good life” through the 60s, 70s, and 80s).

[Jessica · Rating 5 out of 5]

Got an early copy of this book and wowowowow! There’s a lot of information in this book, but never does it feel didactic or like slogging through facts because the writing is superb. Some of the case studies were quite moving, and I actually cried once or twice. An erudite, tender and revolutionary take on female sexual pleasure, and yet somehow also a perfect beach read.

[Emma · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really well written discussion of dynamics within heterosexual relationships, information given, advice shared. a lot of interesting discussion re rights, protection for sex industry. i particularly loved the boom's ending and call to arms esque message, which felt like a really measured argument produced by the boon itself. Sex and sexual differences normalised and explored really well. 

[Bec Zhuang · Rating 5 out of 5]

THE book on hetero sex

[Josephine Ann · Rating 5 out of 5]

An incredibly clever, funny and more-ish deep dive into women’s sexuality, the dire state of heterosexual dating and the burgeoning market of products promising fulfillment and empowerment.

[Luisa Bedoya Taborda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Silence and shame have never helped women.