cover image Thanks for Coming: One Woman’s Quest for an Orgasm

Thanks for Coming: One Woman’s Quest for an Orgasm

Mara Altman, . . Harper Perennial, $13.95 (378pp) ISBN 978-0-06-157711-6

At 26, Altman is far from a virgin, but, as her memoir opens, she has yet to experience an orgasm. So she does what any enterprising journalist in a similar situation would do: she recruits a slew of sex experts to help find the key to unlock her pleasure—not that she writes about it so obliquely. It won’t be easy: Altman is “grossed out” by masturbation and other aspects of her sexuality; told to imagine her vulva as a flower, she instead sees “an inside-out bat flying backwards.” Consequently, she wouldn’t necessarily recognize an orgasm if she did have one. But she writes about the parade of research scientists, professional dominants and prospective boyfriends with self-deprecating humor and a grudging recognition of what others peg as her sexual and emotional immaturity. Altman can come across as self-absorbed, but perhaps that’s to be expected with such personal subject matter. If readers are willing to ride out occasional impatient reactions all the way to the happy ending, they may find her journey of self-discovery subtly inspiring. (Apr. 14)