A Frenchwoman's Guide to Sex after Sixty

by Marie de Hennezel

Overview

A Frenchwoman's advice for how women—and men—of a certain age can enjoy love, sex, and desire in their sixties and seventies and beyond.

With wit and a soupçon of irreverence, Marie de Hennezel shows that there is no age limit for erotic joy. Through interviews with countless older French women and men, de Hennezel uncovers a plethora of tips for enjoying a rich and satisfying sex life after age sixty. She suggests that perhaps the most important point is to have a positive self-image—to love yourself—and instead of worrying about wrinkles and other outward signs of aging, to cultivate an inner youthfulness, which, combined with a certain maturity, she says, can be sexier than youth all by itself. It is better to skip the plastic surgery and intense workouts at the gym and focus on sensuality, pleasure, and emotional intimacy instead.

Other tips for how to keep that certain je ne sais quoi include forgetting about sexual performance, shifting from thinking about the body you have (how it looks in the mirror) to focusing on the body you are (how it feels), and being able to surrender during love and sex. Bringing a sense of humor and a bit of playfulness to the boudoir doesn't hurt either.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781771643344
Publisher:	Greystone Books
Publication date:	10/31/2017
Pages:	224
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.40(h) x 0.60(d)

About the Author

Marie de Hennezel is an esteemed psychologist and therapist and the author of ten books, including The Art of Growing Old andThe Warmth of the Heart Prevents Your Body from Rusting: A French Recipe for a Long Life, Well-Lived. She lives in Paris.

Table of Contents

Introduction: A future for loving intimacy 1

Chapter 1 The age of pleasure and desire 7

Chapter 2 Second adolescence 25

Chapter 3 Couples who stand the test of time 45

Chapter 4 Couples who have had enough of sex 57

Chapter 5 Solitude and freedom 69

Chapter 6 A different kind of sexuality 81

Chapter 7 Other erotic ways 125

Chapter 8 Old-age love 147

Conclusion 175

Afterword 182

Acknowledgements 187

Works cited 188

Notes 192

Editorial Reviews

…deeply un-American in its realism…Aging ain't pretty, Hennezel admits. Yet for many of us, Eros lives, and Eros wants its due…Feeling good through exercise and a healthy diet is paramount; looking younger through plastic surgery is mentioned not at all. Reading the stories of septuagenarians and octogenarians who are finding love or intimacy or sometimes just sex, one is reminded that the very French concept of joie de vivre—a sense of joy that comes from curiosity and playfulness, from looking outward instead of inward—is its own form of Botox.

The New York Times Book Review - Judith Newman

★ 11/13/2017
French psychologist De Hennezel (The Art of Growing Old) boldly yet sensitively explores a topic she says is still taboo: sex for seniors. De Hennezel conversationally recounts her interviews with various couples on their marital and extramarital relations and discusses approaches that have worked well for some couples, including some ideas drawn from Tantra and other Eastern erotic arts. The book is not just about sex but delves deeply into intimacy and how to ignite and sustain it. De Hennezel interviews men who have found passion outside their marriages, women who have given up on sex, and older adults who have recently entered into same-sex relationships for the first time in their lives. The later years can be a challenging time to be sexual, she acknowledges, particularly in a culture fixed on youth, firm bodies, and intercourse resulting in climax. But she writes persuasively and inspiringly that by adjusting expectations and broadening concepts of intimacy, it is possible to stay sexually active after 60 and to have rich, mutually rewarding sex because “the heart does not age.” The book is written for those over 60, but it offers many insights for readers of any age who are interested in improving their relationships. Agent: George Lucas, Inkwell Management. (Nov.)

Publishers Weekly