Thisis not a comprehensive study of every sexual quirk, kink and ritual across allcultures throughout time, as that would entail writing an encyclopaedia.Rather, this is a drop in the ocean, a paddle in the shallow end of sexhistory, but I hope you will get pleasantly wet nonetheless.

Theact of sex has not changed since people first worked out what went where, but theways in which society dictates how sex is culturally understood and performedhave varied significantly through the ages. Humans are the only creatures thatstigmatise particular sexual practices, and sex remains a deeply divisive issuearound the world. Attitudes will change and grow – hopefully for the better –but sex will never be free of stigma or shame unless we acknowledge where ithas come from.

Drawing upon extensive research from Dr Kate Lister's Whoresof Yore website and written with her distinctive humour and wit, A CuriousHistory of Sex covers topics ranging from twentieth-century testicle theftsto Victorian doctors massaging the pelvises of their female patients, from smuttybread innuendos dating back to AD 79, to the new and controversial sex dollbrothels. It is peppered with surprising and informative historical slang andillustrated by eye-opening, toe-curling and hilarious images.

Inthis fascinating, Lister deftly debunks myths and stereotypes and gives unusualsexual practices an historical framework, as she provides valuable context forissues facing people today, including gender, sexual shame, beauty andlanguage.