The Book of Love: Every Couple's Guide to Emotional and Sexual Intimacy

by Laura Berman, Amanda Lebentz (Contribution by)

Overview

What does every couple want? A close, honest bond with their lover? Great communication and humor? Some romance? To feel loved, passionately, by their partner? A great sex life that keeps you both begging for more? The truth is that most couples aspire to have all of these vital components to loving relationships. But how do you get it and, more importantly, how do you keep your relationship fresh, vibrant, and sexy over the years?

Expert sex and relationship therapist Dr. Laura Berman teaches couples how to become connected, communicative, stable, romantic, and sexually-satisfied, as well as how to plan for a happy, intimate, and fantasy-fueled future together. The Book of Love provides an even split of sex and relationship advice, with the first part of the book offering relationship advice and the second part giving sex advice and technique. Dip into the book to find out the best communication and listening approaches. Learn how to find time together, talk about your sexual needs, use arguments to strengthen your relationship, and flip ahead to find a new position for Friday night. Discover how to create romance, seduce your partner, and share fantasies. Learn which sex positions and techniques to try when you want to increase intimacy, build passion, or experiment with role play.

Building on the Real Sex for Real Women formula, Dr. Berman's follow-up book has the same focus on practical content told in a warm, accessible tone. This time she speaks directly to both men and women, helping each to better understand and relate to their partner.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781465414090
Publisher:	DK
Publication date:	01/31/2013
Sold by:	Penguin Group
Format:	eBook
Pages:	256
File size:	30 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.
Age Range:	3 Months

About the Author

Dr. Laura Berman is a best-selling author and renowned sex therapist, as well as America's leading expert in female sexual health. She is the founder and director of the Berman Center in Chicago, which specializes in sexual health and therapy, and she is assistant clinical professor of psychiatry and obstetrics/gynecology at the Feinberg School of Medicine at Northwestern University. Dr. Berman has appeared in the pages of nearly every major US magazine, including Glamour, Elle, and Ladies' Home Journal, as well as in the New York Times and USA Today. She has frequently appeared on radio and television, including the Today Show, the Oprah Winfrey Show, Fox News, and CNN. She is also the star of Showtime's hit show Sexual Healing, a documentary series that follows real-life couples through a week in therapy with her at the Berman Center. Dr. Berman has been the recipient of numerous prestigious awards and honors, including the Israel Cancer Research fund's Women of Action Award, The National Association of Women Business owners' Rising Star of the Year Award, the Los Angeles Business Journal's Women Who Make a Difference Award, the Illinois State Treasurer Woman to Woman Making a Difference Award, and the Dressed for Success organization's Women Making History Award.

Table of Contents

Putting love first 6

The connected couple

Your committed relationship 10

Intellectual compatibility 12

The art of chemistry 14

Past influences 16

Complementary roles 20

The communicating couple

Building trust 26

Emotional honesty 30

The art of communicating 34

Active listening 36

Expressing your needs 40

Discussing life goals 46

The stable couple

Cohabitating happily 52

Finding time together 56

Nurturing individual interests 60

The art of conquering jealousy 62

Beating stress 64

The art of fighting 68

Raising a family 70

Dealing with change 74

The intimate couple

Everyday romance 78

The art of thoughtfulness 82

Connecting through touch 84

Flitting 88

Dating 90

Getting away 92

Increasing desire 96

The art of seduction 100

Sensual rituals 102

The erotic couple

Sexual response and orgasm 110

The art of talking about sex 114

Masturbation 116

Foreplay 120

Erotic stroking 124

The art of orgasm 128

Manual sex 130

Oral sex 134

Tried-and-true positions 138

Becoming adventurous 146

Sex for your schedule 152

Introducing variety 160

The art of sexual creativity 168

Building passion 170

The adventurous couple

Sex toys 178

Shopping for sex toys 180

Love games 184

The art of erotic play 188

Sex outside the bedroom 190

Sharing fantasies 194

The art of fantasy 198

Role play 200

S&D and S&M 202

The long-term couple

Planning for the future 208

The art of longevity 212

Maintaining communication 214

Maintaining connection 216

Maintaining passion 218

The healthy couple

Personal care 222

Contraception 224

Practicing safer sex 226

Pregnancy 230

Identifying sexualproblems 232

Surviving an affair 236

Sex therapy 238

Restoring sexual confidence 240

Erogenous zones map 242

Conclusion 246

Resources 248

Index 252

Acknowledgments 256

Editorial Reviews

If you worry that the sex guide in your bedroom reads like an auto repair manual, this is the book for you. Dr. Laura Berman's The Book of Love approaches emotional and sexual intimacy as the human subject that it is, rather than as a checklist of erogenous zones to be memorized. Like her reader favorite Real Sex for Real Women, this tastefully illustrated book opens the door to the honest communication and mutual trust that count more than any mastery of innumerable tantric positions. A shared gift for lovers.