Sexual ethics are fascinating, aren’t they? But I got tired of this book anyway. It was all disorganized. I was pleased to learn about Sylvester Graham, a completely joyless fellow who advocated bland food, invented the graham cracker, and said that if someone didn’t do something to stop little boys from masturbating, they would grow up and become “a living volcano of unclean propensities and passions”. I swear. Those were his words. I suspect they are burned into my brain forever.
But as for the rest, Ms. Horowitz kept teasing me with the promise of a good story, and then not delivering. She’d be like “And a fascinating trial ensued!” and move on to something else without saying another word about the fascinating trial. I believe this is because America didn’t keep good records of trials, so okay, it’s not her fault. I still really wanted to know more. Nothing I love more than hearing stories about trials relating to sexual ethics.
Oh well. On to the next.