Sex self-help books: Hot secrets for great sex or promoting the sex of prostitution?

Synopsis :Authors of current sex self-help literature often adopt pseudo-feminist language in their work, and frequently claim that it promotes women's interests. A number of commonly recommended sex self-help books were analysed to test this notion. A critical feminist analysis of the texts suggests that far from promoting women's pleasure and sexual empowerment, this literature promotes the (active) sexual servicing of men by women. Drawing on previous feminist work in this area, it is proposed that current sex self-help literature should therefore be understood as advocating the sex of prostitution as an ideal for women to follow in their heterosexual relationships.