Confessions

By HarperCollins UK

Nine explicit confessions. Hot original erotica from Justine Elyot, Primula Bond, Chrissie Bentley, Lisette Ashton, and more.

Women pursuing secret desires and then confessing all.

One woman just has to expose herself to her hot neighbours from her apartment window.

A woman’s tennis partner is too tempting to resist in the showers.

And when a women’s reading group chooses foreplay as its subject, the revelations lead to the kind of misbehaviour most people only get to read about.

• Language: English
• Publisher: HarperCollins UK
• Release date: May 17, 2012
• ISBN: 9780007477746

Reviews for Confessions

[satyridae · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Engrossing and erudite essays are gem-like in their precision and sparkle. Informed by Fadiman's multi-faceted education and just personal enough to add depth and clarity. Highly recommended.

[cat1ballou · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I was charmed by this book. The only thing that alternated between charming me and irritating me was that Fadiman uses a lot of words that I am just not familiar with. She readily admits to a "weakness for long words" right up front - in the very first essay, as a matter of fact. And now I have a four columns of words on a post-it with which I need to familiarize myself - not my standard reading experience at all.

I should say, though, that her admirably extensive vocabulary doesn't get in the way of the book at all. And who knows - it might just make me a better Scrabble player!

[sriemann_2 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

A lovely book that I am sad to have finished, but glad to have such a nice list of sources/books in the back, so I can look further into those essay topics that really caught my interest. Some of my favorite essays were about the mail, coffee, and being a night owl. Fadiman's writing shows her lineage and her extensive vocabulary, but without making the reader feel dumb. Instead, I felt like I got to learn a lot of neat new words. Another good book for keeping on the bedside table and reading an essay a night.

[bell7_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

In the Preface, Anne Fadiman quotes her father's regret that the familiar essay is dying, and declares her intention of this book to be her contribution to continuing the genre. She defines the familiar essay as one that includes both the personal (the "at small" of her title) and the general ("at large"). Each of the dozen essays in this collection also include the large and small in terms of topic, ranging from ice cream to Samuel Coleridge, as well as exhibiting Fadiman's broad knowledge base in literature and vocabulary.One of my favorite essays was "Procrustes and the Culture Wars." Not only was it a topic that I was interested in - the culture wars as seen through four questions regarding one's interpretation of capital-L Literature - but also my personal response in reading was pondering what my own response might be, what my own essay on the topic might be like. Even when I disagreed with her points, the essay was thought-provoking, smart, and witty. One of the greatest strengths of this collection is Fadiman's ability to make disparate subject matter interesting, forcing me as a reader to only read one or two essays at a time, because I wanted to fully absorb what she was saying and think about the subject, rather than moving on quickly to something else as I could have done. Until now, I had only read Ex Libris: Confessions of a Common Reader, her collection of essays on books and reading, but this collection has convinced me to try more of her titles.

[bookangel_a · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A lovely book of essays by a talented writer. Fadiman mixes a good blend of information with personal anecdotes, keeping me interested while I learned things.Topics touched on are varied: collecting butterflies, Charles Lamb, ice cream, "night owls", Samuel Coleridge, mail, moving, the american flag, tastes in literature, arctic explorers, coffee, and tragedy.Ex Libris is still my favorite of hers, though. It touched me emotionally, while this book of essays was more intellectual, in my humble opinion.

[debnance_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I paid full price for this book; I only do that for books I really, really want to read. The truth is that I was disappointed. I don’t know why. Partly, I think, it was because the subjects of the essays were not of particular interest to me. But I think it was primarily that the essays felt forced, not written naturally out of love for the subject, but to meet the requirements of completing a book.

[woodge_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Eight years ago I read Ex Libris by Ms. Fadiman and really enjoyed it, so I was interested in checking out this batch of essays as well. A "familiar essay" is a reflection on a subject held dear by the author. Some of the subjects Ms. Fadiman covers include butterfly collecting, Victorian writers, little known Arctic explorers, coffee, ice cream, and finally, a tragic canoe trip. I found most of it interesting and all of it well written.

[ntempest_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Fadiman writes familiar essays, which are a kind of cross between a personal essay and an essay that poses some sort of argument. They have gone somewhat out of fashion, but Fadiman writes them so well that it kind of makes me hope that they catch on again. Her essay on mail, in particular, was a lot of fun. The personal aspect links to her own love of mail--the snail mail kind--and branches out into a history of postage and the evolution from letter writing to e-mail. Anyone who has heard me expound on the virtues of actually writing a real pen-on-paper letter once in a while will understand why this one hit home for me. I found this collection intelligent and interesting and a lot of fun to read.

[beserene · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

As is everything I've experienced by Anne Fadiman, this collection of familiar essays is wonderful. If you've never read her book 'Ex Libris', which is all about, of course, books, you are missing one of the greatest things known to book lovers. 'At Large and At Small', perhaps because of its variety of topics, lacks that intense, cohesive heart of the previous and therefore is not quite so all-engrossing as 'Ex Libris', but is witty, engaging, and fantastic never the less.

[teazle_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Collection of essays on various book-related subjects. I thoroughly enjoyed this it will have a permanent place on my shelves, alongside 'Ex Libris' by the same author.

[kambrogi_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Fans of Fadiman’s familiar essays are likely to enjoy this latest offering, bound in the same charming, rather old-fashioned style to fit neatly with the last such volume on one’s bookshelf. This collection is more diverse in subject matter, considering such topics as ice cream, entomology, Charles Lamb and sudden death. There is the usual evocation of her fascinating family and childhood adventures, her broad education and her insatiable curiosity. There is sure to be at least one essay for everyone. Unfortunately, I did not find myself smitten by the entire collection, as I was by her earlier Ex Libris: Confessions of a Common Reader. However, those essays stuck close to that one most beloved of topics: books.

[smiley_13 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

What a delightful little book. Little in only the number of pages. Packed with wit, intelligence, elegant writing and enough brain candy that will keep you thinking long after you close the back cover.At Large & At Small has inspired me to track down Fadiman's other work.