Do you think sex only shapes our lives in the bedroom? Think again.Your breakfast cereal. Your neighborhood's crime rate. Even your Amazon Prime account. Believe it or not, nearly every aspect of modern life has been shaped in some way by sex. In this fascinating journey through the human psyche, journalist Ross Benes digs deep into the hidden relationship between everyday human existence—including religion, politics, technology, and more—and our sexuality....

From pro wrestling and Pokémon to Insane Clown Posse and Jerry Springer, this look at the low culture of the late ’90s reveals its profound impact and how it continues to affect our culture and society today."If you had a subscription to Spin or Rolling Stone as a kid in the 90s, this one is a must-read."—Chicago Book ReviewThe year 1999 was a high-water mark for popular culture. According to one ...

After Ross Benes left Nebraska for New York, he witnessed his polite home state become synonymous with “Trump country.” Long dismissed as “flyover” land, the area where he was born and raised suddenly became the subject of TV features and frequent opinion columns. With the rural-urban divide overtaking the national conversation, Benes knew what he had to do: go home.In Rural Rebellion, Benes explores Nebraska’s shifting political landscape to better understand what’s plagu...

Whether you are an abstinent virgin or a kinky horndog, one thing we can all agree on is that sex manifests itself throughout society in bizarre ways.Sex is the ultimate multidisciplinary subject, and it cannot be confined to a single facet of life. Through a series of amusing tidbits, Sex Weird-o-Pedia will walk you through how sex affects our technologies, economics, politics, religions, and cultures, as well as some strange sex facts that, for better or...

A gripping exploration of the relationship between sex and our society, with a foreword by bestselling author A.J. JacobsWhy do political leaders become entangled in so many sex scandals? How did the U.S. military inadvertently help make San Francisco a mecca of gay culture? And what was the original purpose of vibrators? Find out the answers to all these questions and more as journalist Ross Benes delves into the complicated relationship between everyday human lif...

From pro wrestling and Pokémon to Vince McMahon and Jerry Springer, this look at the low culture of the late '90s reveals its profound impact and how it continues to affect our culture and society today.According to Benes, there are many lessons to learn from the year that low culture conquered the world. Talk shows and reality TV foreshadowed the way political movements grab power by capturing our attention. Pro wrestling mastered the art of "kayfabe"—the agreemen...

A gripping exploration of the relationship between sex and our society, with a foreword by bestselling author A. J. JacobsWhy do political leaders become entangled in so many sex scandals? How did the U.S. military inadvertently help make San Francisco a mecca of gay culture? And what was the original purpose of vibrators? Find out the answers to all these questions and more as journalist Ross Benes delves into the complicated relationship between everyday human li...

**An instant New York Times bestseller!“Informative, endlessly entertaining.”—BuzzFeed“Generation X’s definitive chronicler of culture.”—GQFrom the author of But What If We’re Wrong comes an insightful, funny reckoning with a pivotal decade**It was long ago, but not as long as it seems: The Berlin Wall fell and the Twin Towers collapsed. In between, one presidential election was allegedly decided by Ross Perot while anothe...

From the author of the #1 New York Times bestseller So You Want to Talk About Race, an “illuminating” (New York Times Book Review) history of white male identity.What happens to a country that tells generation after generation of white men that they deserve power? What happens when success is defined by status over women and people of color, instead of by actual accomplishments?Through the last 150 years of American history -- fro...

A landmark in women’s empowerment—as relevant as ever in the age of #MeToo—that honors female sexuality in all its complexityIt’s been more than twenty years since Eve Ensler’s international sensation The Vagina Monologues gave birth to V-Day, the radical, global grassroots movement to end violence against women and girls. This special edition features six never-before-published monologues, a new foreword by National Book Award winner Jacqueline Woodson, a...

The hilarious and controversial host of HBO’s Real Time with Bill Maher has written his funniest, most opinionated, and most necessary book ever—a brilliantly astute and acerbically funny vivisection of American life, politics, and culture.Some of the smartest commentary about what’s happening in America is coming from a comedian—this comedian being Bill Maher. If you want to understand what’s wrong with this country, it turns out that one of the best info...

From New York Times bestselling author of Lead From The Outside and political leader Stacey Abrams, a blueprint to end voter suppression, empower our citizens, and take back our country."With each page, she inspires and empowers us to create systems that reflect a world in which all voices are heard and all people believe and feel that they matter." **—**Kerry WashingtonA recognized expert on fair voting a...