YOU CAN BE YOUR OWN SEX THERAPIST

As self-help manuals go, this seems both sensible and workable. The author concludes--with good reason--that the biggest problem couples have with sex is their inability to talk about what pleases them; and this, with its detailed questionnaires--what parts of your body do you dislike; what pleases you; what embarrasses you--is designed to encourage discussion of sex, not in the abstract, but as it relates to the couple reading the book. Altman has chapters on (and thus supposed cures for) everything from premature ejaculation to vagirdsmus, and includes detailed instructions for exercises ranging from hackneyed chapter-fillers (rub yourself and/or your partner with velvet or fur to heighten your awareness) to masturbatory techniques for accustoming the body to sensual response without pressure-to-perform. Actual coitus is approached gradually, through a series of written ""contracts"" composed by the partners and designed to take away fear of failure and replace it with pleasure. Proceed through the various stages step by step, and Altman swears that everyone but the seriously disturbed or physiologically impaired will become orgasmic. Who can argue with that?