Women on Top
by Nancy Friday
★ Top 25 book of 1991 · #15 on Best Books of 1991
Nancy Friday gathers detailed sexual fantasies from more than 150 women, drawn from interviews and letters. The book revisits her earlier work to show how women's erotic inner lives have shifted over the decades and what has stayed constant.
Best for: Adult readers interested in candid explorations of female sexuality and desire
Women on Top is #15 on BookWard's Best Books of 1991, out of 23 1991 books that cleared our data bar.
What Women on Top is about
Nancy Friday extends her long-running study of women's sexual fantasies, begun in My Secret Garden and Forbidden Flowers, and asks what has changed now that women's everyday lives have changed. Her argument is that women's erotic imaginations have shifted over the decades while also staying the same in important ways.
The book draws on intimate interviews and letters from over 150 women of varied backgrounds. It opens with a report on the erotic interior and a section on masturbation, then presents the fantasies themselves in three chapters, including women who seduce and take control, women with women, and women who want more. The tone is frank and analytical. It will interest readers curious about female sexuality, gender roles and the taboos that still surround them.
Women on Top on the Best Books of 1991
Women on Top came out in 1991. Of the 23 books first published in 1991 that met BookWard's data bar, it ranks #15 on our Best Books of 1991 list.
Why it made the list: 155 readers have shelved it on Open Library. The list ranks each year’s books on how many readers have picked them up, how highly readers rate them, and how many are reading them right now.
Nearby on the 1991 list
- Scarlett Alexandra Ripley, #13
- The Girlfriend Robert Lawrence Stine, #14
- The River Gary Paulsen, #16
- Maus II Art Spiegelman, #17
See all Best Books of 1991 Best books by year
More years: Best Books of 1990 Best Books of 1992.
The numbers behind it
- Readers: 136 want to read it, 14 are reading it now and 5 have read it, according to Open Library.
| Signal | This book (0 to 100) | Weight |
|---|---|---|
| Reach | 17 | 55% |
| Reader love | 57 | 25% |
| Being read right now | 70 | 20% |
Questions about Women on Top
When was Women on Top published?
Women on Top by Nancy Friday was first published in 1991.
Was Women on Top one of the best books of 1991?
Women on Top is #15 on BookWard's Best Books of 1991, out of 23 1991 books that cleared our data bar. 155 readers have shelved it on Open Library.
Why is Women on Top on the Best Books of 1991 list?
155 readers have shelved it on Open Library.
More of the best books of 1991
- Outlander Diana Gabaldon, #1
- Needful Things Stephen King, #2
- American Psycho Bret Easton Ellis, #3
- Shiloh Phyllis Reynolds Naylor, #4
- The Firm John Grisham, #5
- Reaper Man Terry Pratchett, #6
See the full Best Books of 1991, the Top 100, or new books on Rising.
How we know
This page uses public data: Open Library reader counts and ratings, and Wikipedia page views for recent years. The description is paraphrased from real source text. Rankings reflect reading interest, not quality or sales, and can be affected by data gaps. Lists update monthly.
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