A Sex Manual For Beginner Couples

Missionary Position

The title of the book is the "Newlywed's Guide to Physical Intimacy" and it was written by Jewish Rabbi and sex therapist, Dvid Ribner with Orthodox researcher Jennie Rosenfeld. The manual "starts with the very basics - explaining, for example, how the body shape of men and women differs". According to the author, "Judaism regards sex as something positive, but it has become taboo to discuss it openly," which reminds me a lot of the Nigerian cultural and religious stand on sex. According to the BBC,

Ultra-Orthodox boys and girls are educated separately, and have little interaction with the opposite sex until their marriage night, when they are expected to consummate their union.

Physical touch with the opposite sex - even something like a handshake - is only permitted with one's spouse and close family members. Access to films and the internet is often restricted.

"We wanted there to be a place where people could say, 'I know nothing and I want to know something,'" says Ribner.

"Sex is only appropriate within a marital context," he says. "Beyond that it's not talked about. Because of that, it's become very difficult for people to have any kind of dialogue about it."


"We wanted to give people a sense of not only where to put their sexual organs, but where to put their arms and legs," Ribner says. "If you have never seen a movie, never read a book, how are you supposed to know what you do?"

"It's a very useful book for people who were raised religious and have never received any form of sexuality education," he says.

I agree that this would be quite a useful book for beginner couples. Anyone know of a sex manual book that is written to a Nigerian cultural and religious context?