I mentioned in my post, Where Do You Start With BDSM – Books are Good For You, the importance of reading books about BDSM as an addition to all the information you can access on the web.
I would like to recommend some of them in a series of posts and my choices might be debated, but I believe they are good as introductory material.
One book that I usually recommend to people is SM 101 – A Realistic Introduction by Jay Wiseman. It’s an extensive introduction to the world of BDSM with chapters that cover everything from Bondage to Sadism. Wiseman is also a medical professional so he has definitely the authority to make statements about health risks involved when doing BDSM. The dangers of Asphyxiation play is a one of Wiseman’s pet peeves and he knows what he is talking about. There are also chapters on how to increase your chances to meet up with people that are into BDSM as well.
SM 101 has been debated within the community and some people don’t like the fact that someone is trying to “tell them how to do things”. There are people out there claiming that Wiseman is taking the dangers with asphyxiation play too far etc. If you bump into a debate like that, then remember that the BDSM community is full with people on the Dominant side of things that are control freaks as well as individualists. To them any kind of knowledge, that is formalised and based on experiences other than their own, is a danger to their ability to freely exercise their own BDSM.
Nothing could be more wrong.
Knowledge doesn’t have to be normative, but health related issues within BDSM is a crucial to know about and I would trust a professional and trained health worker any day before a scared sadist with leather pants in his own personal dungeon claiming that his latest strangulation device poses no danger as you will just “pass out”.
Bare in mind that there are even some people that claims to have read the book and is quoting it to support their own rant and dislike towards it, but when you look at what they are quoting, the quotes that are being refered to doesn’t even exist in the book and in the end it seems like they haven’t even read the book. My response to all the fuzz that is sometimes connected to SM101 is that is all good when a book stir up emotions and rants – It should tell everyone that debate and discussion is a necessity within the BDSM community and this book is a good starting point.
The BDSM scene has evolved since Jay Wiseman revised his book and in my opinion it needs to get updated on subjects as like online dating and Online mediated BDSM (Cyber BDSM). There is also a lack of information on D/s oriented towards mental Domination in terms of head play.
The book is a good foundation for a framework which can be utilised in discussion, debate and a general understanding of all the aspects that are present when it comes to BDSM. SM 101 is a comprehensive guide on a general level and I haven’t yet found a good match.