# The Most Eyebrow-Raising Books You Own? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 11, 2002, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-eyebrow-raising-books-you-own/118495 "2002-07-11T20:33:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Mephisto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/48db29/32.png) [@Mephisto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mephisto)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2002, 7:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-eyebrow-raising-books-you-own/118495/41 "2002-07-12T07:22:37Z")
Sorry. I didn’t mean to write a second-rate book report with my last post. No hijack intended. ---
**Author:** ![DemonSpawn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ac8455/32.png) [@DemonSpawn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DemonSpawn)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2002, 10:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-eyebrow-raising-books-you-own/118495/42 "2002-07-12T10:26:41Z")
**Sex lives of the popes** This should actually be a really short book, but it’s not … **The bizarre sex life of the animals** A series of true crime books focussing on autopsies (titles translated from the original German): **The language of the dead** **The games of the dead** **The traces of the dead** ---
**Author:** ![sirtonyh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ad7895/32.png) [@sirtonyh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sirtonyh)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2002, 11:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-eyebrow-raising-books-you-own/118495/43 "2002-07-12T11:07:00Z")
I have a book called Apocolypse Culture II which doesn’t look too contentious but inside is a collection of articles about people who live on the extreme edges of popular culture; lots of stuff about cannibals, drugs, serial killers etc. Some of the essays are really quite disturbing. Also have Paradoxia by Lydia Lunch which tends to freak people out if they read a chapter or two; The opening line is “No names have been changed to protect the innocent. They are all fucking guilty” It is an autobiography focusing on her relationships; very strange stuff ---
**Author:** ![Neidhart](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Neidhart](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Neidhart)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2002, 12:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-eyebrow-raising-books-you-own/118495/44 "2002-07-12T12:01:15Z")
originally posted by **Mephisto** > [@](#): > > I also like the Hot Blood books–anthologies of “erotic horror.” Very good. I reread certain stories fairly often, so there’s usually one or more of the books sitting around in plain view at my place at any given time. Hey! I have those too! Do you know if there are ever going to be any more volumes? ---
**Author:** ![PunditLisa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/4af34b/32.png) [@PunditLisa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PunditLisa)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2002, 12:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-eyebrow-raising-books-you-own/118495/45 "2002-07-12T12:18:44Z")
_The Diary of Anais Nin_ ---
**Author:** ![Tansu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/67e7ee/32.png) [@Tansu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tansu)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2002, 1:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-eyebrow-raising-books-you-own/118495/46 "2002-07-12T13:37:49Z")
Hastur - I figured the thing about chaos magic is that I didn’t really need a book, and had done relatively well up to that point without any ;). It was a present from my then boyfriend, the Skinny Anarchist. The idea that people would get of me from the living room bookshelves is that I like philosophy, penguins and maps. And it’s true. ---
**Author:** ![Knowed\_Out](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/knowed_out/32/7380_2.png) [@Knowed\_Out](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Knowed_Out)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2002, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-eyebrow-raising-books-you-own/118495/47 "2002-07-12T14:04:38Z")
About the only things I had that raised eyebrows were some of the various True Crime books I had like _Serial Killers_ and _Cult Murderers_, and Dori Seda’s _Stories to Read when the Couple Next Door is Fucking Too Loud_. ---
**Author:** ![booklover](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/85f322/32.png) [@booklover](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/booklover)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2002, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-eyebrow-raising-books-you-own/118495/48 "2002-07-12T14:37:00Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by wring \* > \*\*a pop-up version of the _Kama Sutra_ \*\* I want, I want!! ISBN, please?? ---
**Author:** ![The\_Wrong\_Girl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b782af/32.png) [@The\_Wrong\_Girl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Wrong_Girl)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2002, 3:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-eyebrow-raising-books-you-own/118495/49 "2002-07-12T15:06:06Z")
At an antique store, I found a book called [The Inferior Sex](http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0134643216/qid=1026485939/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_1/002-7937551-9068830), and had to buy it. It’s the insane ramblings of some British guy who argues that women are inferior because they’ve acheived nothing throughout history. IIRC, he discounts things like the patriarchy and limited access to education as something women really could have overcome if they’d just tried hard enough. It’s great–even as an 11 year-old, I knew it was garbage, but it’s fun to have it on my bookshelf. ---
**Author:** ![Bernard\_Marx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4491bb/32.png) [@Bernard\_Marx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bernard_Marx)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2002, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-eyebrow-raising-books-you-own/118495/50 "2002-07-12T15:17:12Z")
I’m not a Nazi but…_Mein Kampf_. ---
**Author:** ![Judith\_Prietht](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/b19c9b/32.png) [@Judith\_Prietht](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Judith_Prietht)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2002, 3:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-eyebrow-raising-books-you-own/118495/51 "2002-07-12T15:41:06Z")
**pesch** , _Evidence_ is one of my favorites. Not as outright gross as _Death Scenes_, which is, as **Eve** says, a little much. If you haven’t already, check out [New York Noir](http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0847821722/qid=1026487324/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_1/002-7484884-4083233) by Willia, Hannigan and [Police Pictures](http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0811819841/qid=1026487389/sr=1-8/ref=sr_1_8/002-7484884-4083233) by Sandra Phillips et al. Great collections of photographs and essays. Apart from the books listed above, there’s some others in my collection that people recoil from but for some reason can’t help but take down off the shelf: Damien Hirst’s _I Want to Spend the Rest of My Life Everywhere, With Everyone, One to One, Always, Forever, Now_ Michael Newton’s _The Encyclopedia of Serial Killers_ Brian King’s _Lustmord: The Writings and Artifacts of Murderers_ _My Secret Life: An Erotic Diary of Victorian London_: I must replace my copy as it is utterly thrashed and the spine has broken the book in two. Some of Creation Books’ offerings, which are notable for their jarring covers and pleasant rectangular heft: [Hollywood Hex: An Illustrated History of Cursed Movies](http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1871592852/qid%3D1026487833/sr%3D11-1/ref%3Dsr%5F11%5F1/002-7484884-4083233): I love this book. Creepy cover, meaty movie trivia, fun to leaf through on a Sunday. [Bad Blood: An Illustrated Guide to Psycho Cinema](http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1840680253/qid=1026487928/sr=1-5/ref=sr_1_5/002-7484884-4083233): Movies about serial killers and mass murderers. [Killing For Culture: An Illustrated History of Death Film](http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1871592208/qid=1026488088/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_1/002-7484884-4083233): All I wanted to know about snuff film but was afraid to ask. By the way, looking up those links has given me an [amazon.com](http://amazon.com) profile I think is well on its way to appropriate authorities. ---
**Author:** ![wring](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/838e76/32.png) [@wring](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wring)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2002, 9:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-eyebrow-raising-books-you-own/118495/52 "2002-07-12T21:46:07Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by booklover \* > \*\* > > I want, I want!! ISBN, please?? \*\* long since out of print, I’m afraid. It’s at home and I’m at the office, so it may take a few days for me to remember to do this. I’ve seen them on e-bay for $100; I’d try online out of print book sellers first, my own self. Personally, I’m kicking myself for not ordering a half dozen or so at the time I ordered it (it was something like $10) :smack: ---
**Author:** ![pesch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pesch/32/4925_2.png) [@pesch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pesch)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2002, 3:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-eyebrow-raising-books-you-own/118495/53 "2002-07-13T03:00:34Z")
**brondicon** , I’ll keep New York Noir in mind. I love newspaper photography, so that’s right up my alley. I’ll pass on “Death Scenes,” however. I saw an opened copy in the B&N, and discovered that there _is_ such a thing as “over the top.” Certainly increased my respect for what homicide detectives go through. :eek: **Knowed Out** , I’m glad to see another Seda fan on the boards. I still have that comic. RIP Dori. ---
**Author:** ![moodtobestewed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/3ab097/32.png) [@moodtobestewed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/moodtobestewed)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2002, 3:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-eyebrow-raising-books-you-own/118495/54 "2002-07-13T03:50:47Z")
Let’s see, just on my top shelf, I have: _Down Home Gynecology_ _The Monkey Gland Affair_ _Intestinal Gardening for the Prolongation of Youth_ _Giants, Dwarfs and other Oddities_ Yes, I try to steer visitors away from my bookshelves. 🙂 [Here](http://home.pacifier.com/~dkossy/healthbks.html) is an article about _Down Home Gynecology_ I wrote, including a picture of the rather intriguing cover. ---
**Author:** ![DarkWriter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ee59a6/32.png) [@DarkWriter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DarkWriter)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2002, 4:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-eyebrow-raising-books-you-own/118495/55 "2002-07-13T04:05:47Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Neidhart \* > \*\*originally posted by **Mephisto** > Hey! I have those too! > > Do you know if there are ever going to be any more volumes? \*\* The _Hot Blood_ series is awesome. _Hot Blood 11_ is due out sometime this year! Sheri ---
**Author:** ![DarkWriter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ee59a6/32.png) [@DarkWriter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DarkWriter)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2002, 4:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-eyebrow-raising-books-you-own/118495/56 "2002-07-13T04:10:20Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by sirtonyh \* > \*\*I have a book called Apocolypse Culture II which doesn’t look too contentious but inside is a collection of articles about people who live on the extreme edges of popular culture; lots of stuff about cannibals, drugs, serial killers etc. Some of the essays are really quite disturbing. > \*\* I have that one, too. _Very_ disturbing stuff. I used to have **Manson in His Own Words** , which was very interesting reading; however, I didn’t let too many people know about it. Sheri ---
**Author:** ![robertliguori](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/46a35a/32.png) [@robertliguori](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robertliguori)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2002, 12:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-eyebrow-raising-books-you-own/118495/57 "2002-07-13T12:51:37Z")
Aztec, by Gary Jennings, and Firefly, by Piers Anthony, are the two biggies on my shelves. ---
**Author:** ![Mephisto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/48db29/32.png) [@Mephisto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mephisto)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2002, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-eyebrow-raising-books-you-own/118495/58 "2002-07-13T19:08:00Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by DarkWriter \* > \*\* > > The _Hot Blood_ series is awesome. _Hot Blood 11_ is due out sometime this year! > > Sheri \*\* That’s extremely cool. Where did you here that, **DarkWriter**? ---
**Author:** ![DarkWriter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ee59a6/32.png) [@DarkWriter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DarkWriter)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2002, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-eyebrow-raising-books-you-own/118495/59 "2002-07-13T22:59:40Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Mephisto \* > \*\* > > That’s extremely cool. Where did you here that, **DarkWriter**? \*\* Jeff Gelb and Michael Garrett put out a call for submissions last year, and I know a few of the writers who had stories accepted. I’m not sure of the exact publication date, but I’m looking forward to it! Sheri ---
**Author:** ![Mephisto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/48db29/32.png) [@Mephisto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mephisto)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2002, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-eyebrow-raising-books-you-own/118495/60 "2002-07-13T23:09:31Z")
Cool–I can’t wait 'til it comes out! Thanks! 😃 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-eyebrow-raising-books-you-own/118495.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-eyebrow-raising-books-you-own/118495.md?page=4)