Best American Erotica 1994

by Susie Bright (Editor)

The publication of The Best American Erotica 1993 was cause for great celebration and critical praise. It was an immediate sensation and a national bestseller. Now comes The Best American Erotica 1994! This edition features twenty short stories and excerpts, including a mixture of well-known erotica celebs, among them the late John Preston, Pat Califia, and Carol Queen, while also introducing newcomers such as Mark Butler and Abigail Thomas. The Best American Erotica 1994 is a wonderful collection for all lovers of first-rate erotic literature.

Contributors

Marianna Beck

Bernadette Lynn Bosky

Mark Butler

Pat Califia

M. Christian

Leslie Feinberg

Sigfried Gold

Linda Hooper

Michael Lowenthal

Debra Martens

J. Maynard

Chris Offutt

Gerry Pearlberg

Bart Plantenga

John Preston

Carol Queen

Donald Rawley

Abigail Thomas

Anne Tourney

Danielle Willis

Genres: Erotica

272 pages, Paperback

First published November 2, 1994

About the author

Susannah "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.

Reviews

[Larou]

I read this book over the course of one and a half years, at the rate of one story every couple of months. Considering this (and my generally bad memory) it is no surprise that I do not remember much of the first few stories in this anthology, and cannot really say anything substantial about the whole thing. Although I suppose it is somewhat telling that it took me so long to get through the whole thing in the first place…
Still, there is one thing I have noticed that might bear mentioned, namely that either the title is slightly misleading or that the editor has a rather broad concept of erotica that includes pretty much anything where sex plays any kind of significant role even if it is not depicted in any detail. Personally, I would say this is so not much an overview of American Erotica but an overview of the diversity of sexuality in the USA at the end of the twentieth century. Which undoubtedly is very important and interesting… it’s just not (or not necessarily) erotica.
That apart, I guess this collection has the usual mixture of the good, the bad, and somewhere in between. I remember the story by Pat Califia having been a low point and the one by Leslie Feinberg a low one, but in retrospect I have to admit that I’m left feeling pretty lukewarm over this.

[HeavyReader · Rating 4 out of 5]

Favorites in this collection are

"PG Diary" (two teenage girls in a home for unwed mothers discover sex with each other--HOT!)

"Sweating Profusely in Merida: A Memoir" (really hot story by Carol Queen about a lusty woman who helps her bisexual boyfriend pick up guys in Mexico)

[Jelly Bean · Rating 5 out of 5]

What I learned from this book? A lot! Except learning to like nicking one's self with blade, drench the blankets and call it..uh..art.I like the vulnerability of the P.G. Diary

[Kayleen · Rating 1 out of 5]

Not erotic. Just a collection of bad stories.