My boyfriend and I binge watched the Showtime series “Masters of Sex” and once I finished I was keen to learn more so I decided to read the book by Thomas Maier. In the past I had learned a bit about Masters and Johnson when reading “Bonk” so this book was not entirely unfamiliar territory. It was interesting to read how the book differed from reality (although even in a non-fiction book like this I am sure that some liberties were taken). Overall it was an interesting read, however towards the end it started to drag on and I lost interest somewhat but powered through it to finish. If you are watching the series or plan to read the book and want to be surprised then I don’t think you need me to tell you not to read on, but you never know.
If you are unfamiliar, Masters and Johnson were pioneers in the research of human sexuality. Starting in the late 60s and working together for several decades they risked reputations and sacrificed personal lives and marriages to the cause of sex research. They published several books together and gained massive success and media attention. Masters and Johnson had a complicated personal relationship as well, he requested (or insisted, or implied that it would cost her job to refuse) that they have sexual relations together as part of the research. Johnson was driven and although she lacked credentials, she worked very hard to achieve respect in the field.