The Bright List

Tristan Taormino on Audio! - Sex Advice from The Woman Who Turned Vanilla On Its Head

 

Down and Dirty Sex Secrets: The New and Naughty Guide to Being Great in Bed, by Tristan Taormino

I’m picky about sex advice, but this is one of the must-have’s. 

Whether you’re happily vanilla or the type who’ll try anything, this book will probably give you a few ideas to make it even more satisfying and fun, either alone or with a partner (or two).

Taormino is without a doubt the hardest-working sex educator today. She’s in the news constantly, a multi-media threat with her feminist porn and educational videos, her VoiceAmerica radio show, or her new Feminist Porn Book: The Politics of Producing Pleasure. With a devoted and ardent fan base, Tristan is the go-to gal for many women and men who want the real scoop on imaginative, out-of-the-box sex.

Down and Dirty Sex Secrets covers oral sex, multiple orgasms, strap-ons, female ejaculation, erotica, S&M, sex toys, and more. Her warm conversational tone makes the book much more accessible, especially if you’re encountering some of these ideas for the first time.

Even though she speaks with unmistakable authority, I feel like I'm  having a fun chat over lunch!

Narrated by the charming Tristan Taormino herself, along with co-narrators  Madison Vaughn, and Bryce Hamilton,  who specialize in sexuality and romance at Audible.

--Aretha Bright

The Man Who Brought the Armed Services Out of the Closet: Allan Berubé

Coming Out Under Fire: The History of Gay Men and Women in World War II, by Allan Bérubé, Estelle Freedman, and John D'Emilio

Allan’s classic gay history expose is the book that took the Gay/Military debate out of the twilight zone and right into the White House and Pentagon.

It is impossible to imagine “don’t ask, don’t tell” — or all the struggles that followed — without Allan’s pioneering work. His interviews with gay and lesbian vets of WWII will have you crying, laughing, and screaming at their audacity in the face of brutal discrimination.

Allan was one of my best friends and teachers in the early gay liberation movement— I learned everything about “gay family” from him, in so many different ways. When I came to work at Audible as an Editor, his book was one of the first I pursued. I’m honored to produce this edition in his memory.

Narrated by Victor Bevine,  a terrific actor who also narrated "And The Band Played On."

—Susie Bright

Joan Roughgarden's Queer, Kinky Animal Kingdom

Evolution’s Rainbow: Diversity, Gender, and Sexuality in Nature and People, by Joan Roughgarden

If you've ever read stories about “gay dolphins” and the like, you can thank the work of evolutionary biologist Joan Roughgarden.

Roughgarden's book Evolution's Rainbow has caused huge amounts of controversy since it was first published in 2004, depicting a natural world in which animals' lives are teeming with the same variety in their sex lives and behaviors as any human being— but without the moral outrage.

Alfred Kinsey supposedly once said that "The only unnatural sex act is that which you cannot perform." Roughgarden takes that sentiment and runs with it, giving example after example of just how broad the spectrum of "natural" sex and gender really is in the animal world.

For instance, meet the bighorn sheep: macho males live apart from the females and have lots of anal sex to keep them occupied during the mating off-season. Then they rely on feminine males to broker sex between them and the ladies.

Same-sex swan couples happen to be far better parents than their hetero counterparts. Fish bros work together to get laid.  Those doves aren’t actually monogamous. Through impeccable empirical evidence, Roughgarden opens up a world where humans aren’t the center of the universe, and animals have their own dramas and life cycles to get through.

Roughgarden also explores the world of science itself, shining a light on scientists who have refused to acknowledge that animals engage in homosexual behavior, or any gender roles that deviate from the classic Darwinian model of promiscuous males competing for picky females. Sometimes, it's just the opposite!

Narrated by the delightful Carrington MacDuffie.

--Aretha Bright

Saddle Up, Beauties— and Bring a Crop: "The Marketplace" is on Audio

The Marketplace, by Laura Antoniou

Back in the 90s— a time when S/M was still "too hot too handle in the downtown bookstore"— Laura Antoniou's The Marketplace was THE Story of O for the smart-girl BDSM set.

Don't even try to compare it to 50 Shades of Blah-- this is the real thing, both writing-wise and sexwise. A pony-girl classic!

Marketplace stands out for its characters’ depth and believability— and its feminist approach to sexual submission. (Isn’t it so much better that way?) 

You'll follow the trials of four ambitious "slaves" as they undergo training in order to be accepted into the secret underground society of masters and slaves (and ponies). 

Audiobook narrated by the drool-worthy British voice of Elizabeth Jasicki.

--Aretha Bright

Susie Brings Betty Dodson to Audio— My Happiest Clits Up! Moment

Sex For One, by Betty Dodson

The only female orgasm primer you’ll ever need— now in audio! This has been a dream of mine, to make this happen. I consider Betty my fairy godmother— she always comes through.

An American legend, pioneer of women’s liberation, and a founder of the pro-sex feminism— what's not to like about Dodson?  She personally changed my life— it's not just her orgasm ideas, it's her WHOLE ATTITUDE.

Sex for One isn't really a “how to” manual— it’s a “why the fuck not!” Betty is the personification of "Seizing the Day," of grabbing life by the horns and giving it a good tussle. When people ask what women's liberation and sexual liberation have to do with each other, I just point at Betty's entire life. 

Funny, smart, and full of great quips you'll repeat to your friends and lovers the rest of your days. Fall in love with Betty, go ahead— and have some “self-love” along the way, too. 

Narrated by Genvieve Bevier, who did Anne Rice's Sleeping Beauty" trilogy!

Orgasms for Two: The Joy of Partner Sex, by Betty Dodson

Dodson followed up Sex for One with the kind, but frank Orgasms for Two:

“ There are many sex manuals on the shelves of bookstores. They offer advice on being sexier, on giving him what he really wants, on making her wild with desire. 

 Most of them are about as substantive as a filmy piece of lingerie. What is missing is a down-to-earth, realistic, honest book.” 

Orgasms for Two speaks to the core of sexuality today, and tackles difficult, hot issues, and slams politically-correct topics. I doubt you’ll think or have sex the same way again after listening to this book. 

Narrated by Genvieve Bevier, who did Anne Rice's Sleeping Beauty" trilogy!

 

 

Open Audition for "Sex and the Single Girl" - Actors Invited to Audiobook Try Out

 

Hey Pussycat! — Do you have a sultry delivery?

Audible Editor-at-Large, Susie Bright, seeks the perfect voice to bring Sex and the Single Girl to life; we invite all actors to submit online auditions.

Let me hear you purr and scratch! —Imagine Ru Paul crossed with Lauren Bacall and a soupçon of Dolly Parton. (Helen Gurley Brown, the book's author, was a New Yorker by way of the Ozarks!)

Audible Studios seeks the perfect voice to capture the shrewd, sophisticated, audacious sensibility in a first-ever audio production of the iconic 1962 book.

We invite actors to participate in an online audition for the work by submitting a recording of Sex and the Single Girl’s introduction at www.acx.com/singlegirl.

Audible will produce the audiobook immediately upon announcing the chosen actor. (Yes, you do get paid, kitten... handsomely).

“We were all saddened about Gurley Brown’s recent passing, but we welcome this opportunity to keep her voice alive and to bring a new audience to her most significant work,” said Audible publisher Beth Anderson. “Sex and the Single Girl has sold millions of copies in print, and its influence continues to reverberate throughout the culture, from Sex and the City to Mad Men. 

The audition text (3 pages) for Sex and the Single Girl can be found at www.acx.com/singlegirl.  

(If you haven't signed up for ACX yet— and if you're an actor, MY GOD DO IT NOW— just register— after that, the audition instructions are simple. You might end up auditioning for a whole bunch of other books!)

“Sex and the Single Girl is a ball to read,” said renowned feminist sex writer and Editor-at-Large Susie Bright, who acquired the audio rights for Audible. “It’s the most radical work Helen Gurley Brown ever published. The right actor, with the right sass and wit, will make Helen’s voice even more captivating.”

Bright added, “Helen Gurley Brown had a very sexy voice. No wonder she always got her way on the phone.”  

Bright negotiated the deal, for world audio rights, with publisher Carole Stuart at Barricade Books, which brought the book back into print in 2003.

Audible Studios’ acquisition efforts continue to revitalize backlist gems in audio, from the acclaimed 2009 production of John Irving’s A Prayer for Owen Meany to forthcoming recordings of Tim O’Brien’s The Things They Carried and Truman Capote’s Breakfast at Tiffany’s.

 

Photo Credit: Natalie Wood in the 1964 film version of Sex and the Single Girl. Yes, she's adorable to look at, but we bet your vocal talents can knock her out of the park! 

 

Sex After Sixty: The Straight Talk & The Erotic Walk

I've just published two audiobooks by Joan Price, on the nitty-gritty of sex after sixty: Naked at Our Age, and Better Than I Expected.

Joan is so forthright, so real about what it feels like to have a mature mind and body, while part of you may always feel like seven... she just gets it. 

We all know the hard parts: Loneliness, loss, physical challenges— and yet, our libido and fire remain, along with our need for connection and intimate creativity. I think she tells it like it is! 

 If you're aging and wondering about your sex life— or you have a friend or parent who  you see looking for some answers (or at least the right questions!)— I can't recommend Joan enough.

Joan's two titles are  narrated by the beloved Suzanne Toren, who did the The Women's Murder Club, and Emma Donaguhue's Room.