"Perv: The Sexual Deviant in all of Us"

“Perv: The Sexual Deviant in all of Us”

Written by Jesse Bering

Review written by Diana Iozzia

           

            I had decided to purchase this after listening to a podcast by the Bangin’ Book Club, a club of young women in England. I’m very glad I listened to that podcast.

            “Perv” is a fascinating non-fiction book about sex, sexual deviance, fetishes, paraphilias, and sexuality. This is a very psychological book with mentions of scientific studies, anecdotes, events, and real life examples. The main idea behind “Perv” is the dissection of sexual deviance, the harm or innocence behind it. As I read on, I realized that the author does not excuse negative sexual behavior, but he points out different biological reasons that sexual deviance occurs.

            Bering has separated his book into many definitive sections: ones on sex in prehistory, in the era where B.C. meets A.D., and throughout the years since. There is a large section that is quite vivid about bestiality, but the origins of bestiality and how the laws have changed over the years.

            The most interesting part of the book was the chapters that spoke about pedophilia and the different types of pedophilia. Bering talks about the distinctions between each type, the biological reasoning and explanation for pedophilic tendencies, and more. The moral debate he speaks of if pedophilic thoughts harm as well as actions. This book made pedophilia understandable, and it seemed to me that one of his goals was to help people understand, rather than fear.

            Bering mentions the harm we cause by not fully understanding certain types of people, based on their sexualities, paraphilia (kinks) or fetishes, and their behaviors. This was a really enlightening read about sex education that didn’t make me feel uncomfortable. The material is quite dense and a bit hard to understand, but re-reading sentences and paragraphs for extra clarity made me feel I understood the information more.

            I really recommend this read, even if sex education makes you feel a bit skeeved out. It made me feel much more understanding and sympathetic to people I don’t relate to based on viewpoints, feelings, lifestyles or paraphilias. Since this is a bit graphic in certain areas and may be risqué, perhaps I would recommend this to those above the age of eighteen.