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The History of Sex by Philippe Brenot, illustrated by Laetitia Coryn.
Graphic story ... The History of Sex by Philippe Brenot, illustrated by Laetitia Coryn.
Illustration: Laetitia Coryn/Penguin
Graphic story ... The History of Sex by Philippe Brenot, illustrated by Laetitia Coryn.
Illustration: Laetitia Coryn/Penguin

Graphic sex: intimate cartoon history of sex translated into English

This article is more than 7 years old

The Story of Sex, a witty account that embraces everything from the earliest humans to the age of cybersex, has already been a hit in France

Ranging from Cleopatra’s invention of the vibrator to a Dutch shopkeeper’s accidental discovery of the existence of sperm, a comic book detailing the history of sex, which became a surprise hit in France earlier this year, is due out in English in October.

The Story of Sex takes in medieval impotence trials and the contraptions used to stop 19th-century schoolboys from touching themselves – as well as Cleopatra’s bee-filled calabash and the Dutch shopkeeper who discovered sperm after masturbating on his microscope. It was published in France in April and sold more than 20,000 copies in its first month on sale. Written by Philippe Brenot, a psychiatrist and director of sexology at Paris Descartes University, and illustrated by Laetitia Coryn, the comic-strip history has now been translated into English by Will McMorran, and will be published in the UK on 27 October by Penguin Press.

“We were all surprised by the way in which The Story of Sex was received in France,” said Brenot. “Laetitia and I worked every day for a year on a long history of humanity and sexuality. We had no idea of the importance of the volume which we were in the middle of writing … [But] it was reprinted before its release … and reprinted a month later.”

Penguin said that although the book was “told with wit and humour”, it also tackles “many vital and serious topics, covering a history of repressive laws that discriminated against women and LGBT communities, genital mutilation and the use of pornography in a digital age”. It is also, added the publisher, the “only history of sex in graphic novel form”.

Brenot believes the reason the graphic novel has sold so well in France is because there is no equivalent work. “The Story of Sex tells a story which has never been told before, because it combines anthropology, sociology, psychology and history for a more accurate understanding of this fundamental dimension of humanity,” he said.

Moving through the centuries, from before civilisation to the present day, the book covers everything from creation myths to sex robots.

“At the start of this third millennium, sexuality seems to be all around us – within easy reach, shown on our screens, talked about in the media – but, paradoxically, it’s rarely explained and almost never taught,” Brenot writes in his introduction. “In our schools there is no real sex education. At the very most, some information about contraception and STDs. But nothing that helps to understand the nature of intimate relationships, or the difficulties of developing these, or the vital link between respect and equality between partners, or questions about sexual orientation … And in this educational void, the internet and porn offer themselves as models.”

Brenot hopes, he added, to write a follow-up, considering the history of sexuality in other civilisations such as ancient China.

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