Pearl

Other than the 18th Century Fanny Hill, The Pearl is the earliest genuine Victorian erotic classic. In tone, style and subject matter, it is undoubedtly the Real McCoy of the genre. As they say, there is something for everyone, and much that may not be of interest. The writing is varied...reflecting the different contributors, but uniformly well done. Often funny, frequently raunchy, mostly playful, The Pearl should be able to offer something you like if you have an interest in Victorian erotica.The text follows the magazine format from which it was taken, so that the stories are arranged in installments that pick up and resume after other segments. This can be distracting if you particularly want to follow one thread, but not difficult once you get used to it. The "plots" are not significant, in any event. Great scenes of initiation into sex, voyeurism, and other delights. Interestingly, women seem to like this book (at least parts of it) which is not a given with its successors. My partner loves the scenes of blushing young maidens being initiated by a strapping youth beside a meadow fence, and the like.This is a tome you will mark up for re-reading favorite passages. Get it even if you don't like mild S & M, incest, and punishment...you can skip those sections. As you get to know later examples of the Victorian genre, you will never lose your fondness for the original article.

This anthology of Victorian sexual adventures is both titillating and hilarious at the same time. The lustful adventures of the protagonists in the serialized stories make you realize that the Victorians weren't as repressed as they're supposed to have been. Let's face it, sex didn't go out of style, no matter what you've heard! You'll enjoy the sexual feats of the heroes and heroines of the stories and laugh at the gross exagerations. I mean, the guys have shall we say,unusual stamina -- to say the least -- and the ladies are up for anything! Believe me, nothing is held back and the many sides of human sexuality are explored, in detail. The vernacular of the day is used, of course, and it's hilarious as well. In addition to serialized stories, there are poems and limericks. The limericks alone are worth the small change you pay for this book. It's restroom wall material to last you forever......

This was my first book on erotica and i havent found any that even comes close. Ive lent it to a friend of mine who is extremely conservative and she couldnt put it down!! I highly recommend it....

This is a classic of erotica, with something for everyone. This appears to be a genuine Victorian work. The S/M is very Victorian, and very well expressed. There are generous helpings of homosexuality, male and female, along with plenty of heterosexual couplings, all with a reasonable literary flair. BTW, to buy this book in New Zealand you had to fill out a form declaring that you were buying it for serious literary purposes and not just because you like to read erotica!

I first found this on my mom's bookshelf when I was 14. I've bought it and reread it 3 times since, and it's still lots of fun. The novelettes are wonderfully-developed, and the whole thing is just great baudy fun!I recommend this to all my baudy friends, especially those interested in mild B & D.