Tickle my tush - book discontinued by Tickle Kitty Press - review by Adriana Ravenlust

Dr Sadie Allison wasn't someone with whom I was familiar before reading this book; however, she's no stranger to informational sex books. Her writings include Tickle My Pickle and Ride 'Em Cowgirl. As you can tell from the titles, Dr. Sadie likes to keep things tongue-in-cheek, sassy and informal. This friendly, casual approach is great for some people, but it seemed a bit too elementary for me.

The good doctor has also appeared on talk and radio shows and has appeared at other events to impart her advice and knowledge about sexuality, romance and relationships. Her formal education includes a Doctorate in Human Sexuality. Dr Sadie is a member of the American Association of Sex Educators, Counselors (AASECT), so she's recognized professionally, rather than one of the many personalities that provide advice without experience or education.

Dr. Sadie begins at the very basics, introducing readers to the very idea of anal play and asking frequently asked questions in the first two chapters. She discusses hygiene and anatomy before warming you up with ideas for manual anal massage. She slowly moves the reader up to finger play and oral massage before getting to the penetration. If you're experienced, you might be interested in penetration, anal-safe toys or penetration, and each of those subjects get its own chapter, as does one mentioning new positions. The meat and potatoes of this book is definitely in the minority, however.

One thing that I do like is that Dr Sadie constantly stresses how normal and okay it is to want to engage in anal sex. Whether you like a little, a lot or none at all, Dr Sadie won't judge. She also emphasizes using enough lube and communicating with your partner, which is something everyone needs to know about assplay. However, Sadie falls short when she always assumes that strap-on play will occur between a man and a women, and this hetero-normative slant excludes some readers. The information inside isn't less useful because of this, but you might have to find a way to enjoy the book in spite of it if you're trans, gay, lesbian or otherwise fall outside the normal box.

While Sadie's conversational tone is mostly a good thing, she just sometimes sounds silly. I'm not sure I need sex advice from someone who says "O-Rings" instead of sphincter. In fact, that can become pretty confusing if you start to talk about strap-ons. She dedicates an entire page to this alternative lingo that is, in my opinion, mostly unnecessary. I can say "anal canal" instead of "pleasure inch." It seems to me that Dr. Sadie could have used this book as a way to get the reader comfortable with both medical terms and layman's terms.

This book is best for individuals or couples who are new to anal sex. If you're interested but afraid it might hurt, Dr Sadie has tips for you. If previous experiences have left you a little disappointed with anal play, then this book might be right up your alley. You can read it on your own or introduce it to your partner. Leave it on the bedside table if you're like to encourage your less-than-enthusiastic partner.

As a more experienced person, I found the chapter on position to be the most useful. The pictures helped explain where words couldn't, and Sadie took the time to explain which positions might work for those with certain body shapes or disabilities.

However, I do wish she had talked more about toy safety when it comes to playing with the backdoor. She doesn't mention flared bases at all.

This book is small in every way. It only has slightly more than 100 pages. It's short and narrow. This bothers me aesthetically because I like my bookshelves organized by size, but it might work in your favor if you're trying to hide the book, the cover of which features a woman's lower face and shoulders. While the pursed lips aren't necessarily sexually explicit, the title is in bright, bold words. Plus, the tagline discusses "mild-to-wild analplay adventures." Once someone has the time to read the cover, they'll know what this is.

In my opinion the cover is cheesy and the few pages contain little more information than a pamphlet. However, the book is printed like any other in terms of quality. Every so often, my sex books are subpar, but that's not the case with Tickle My Tush.

The text is larger than it would be with a trade paperback, and there's plenty of space between paragraphs and headings, of which there are many. The overall appearance works with Dr Sadie's casual approach, but you can also tell that the content requires less space than the layout uses, which is often the case with these tiny books. Hand-drawn sketches in black and white accompany the text, while each chapter starts with its own illustration. However, the numerous headings and images make this book easy to digest for people who don't love to read.