1. Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde
Best way of cutting to the chase:
“The only way to get rid of a temptation is to yield to it.” Oscar Wilde
2. Complete Works by D.H. Lawrence
When you’re encouraging the flame:
“Be still when you have nothing to say; when genuine passion moves you, say what you’ve got to say, and say it hot.” D.H. Lawrence
3. Tropic of Cancer by Henry Miller
Infamous heartbreaker, that Henry Valentine:
“What holds the world together, as I have learned from bitter experience, is sexual intercourse.” Henry Miller
4. Twenty Love Poems and A Song of Despair by Pablo Neruda
You could almost pick a line at random with Neruda, really, but here’s a sure thing:
“I want to do with you what spring does with the cherry trees.” Pablo Neruda
5. Written on the Body by Jeanette Winterson
Get ready to test adulterous waters:
“I used to think marriage was a plate-glass window just begging for a brick.” Jeanette Winterson
6. “Don Juan” by Lord Byron
For the shy ones, sitting in the room downstairs:
“A little she strove, and much repented,
And whispering, ‘I will ne’er consent’ — consented.” Lord Byron
7. “Bright Star” by John Keats
Who is able to resist Keats’ spell? If anyone can, you shouldn’t be interested in them anyway:
“Pillowed upon my fair love’s ripening breast,
To feel for ever its soft fall and swell,
Awake for ever in a sweet unrest,
Still, still to hear her tender-taken breath,
And so live ever — or else swoon in death.” John Keats
8. Confessions of a Mask by Yukio Mishima
When you suddenly realize your kendo teacher is thinking of molding more of your body than your mind:
“I seemed like a baby bird keeping its truly innocent animal lusts hidden under its wing. I was being tempted, not by the desire of possession, but simply by unadorned temptation itself.” Yukio Mishima
9. The Lost Poems by Dorothy Parker
To use in any bar, in any city, but probably best with Wall Street guys:
“I require only three things of a man. He must be handsome, ruthless and stupid.” Dorothy Parker
10. Just Kids by Patti Smith
It’s a risk, but it worked when Patti used it on Robert:
“Will you pretend you’re my boyfriend?” Patti Smith
11. Delta of Venus by Anaïs Nin
For people who insist they enjoy “erotica” and not porn:
“He was now in that state of fire that she loved. She wanted to be burnt.” Anaïs Nin
12. A Primate’s Memoir by Robert Sapolsky
For scientifically-minded perverts:
“We’re getting along so well; I trust you so much for this one second that I’m going to let you yank on me.” Robert Sapolsky
13. Male Colors by Gary Leupp
This one will work in most gay bars or history departments:
“Excuse me for talking to you this way, master, but isn’t your bottom hard to please?” Gary Leupp
14. Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov
For chrissakes, please do not attempt on anyone under 18:
“It was love at first sight, at last sight, at ever and ever sight.” Vladimir Nabokov
15. My Name Is Red by Orhan Pamuk
To the woman in the blue dress:
“Let me first state forthright that contrary to what we’ve often read in books and heard from preachers, when you are a woman, you don’t feel like the Devil. ” Orhan Pamuk
16. The Enchantress of Florence by Salman Rushdie
This man was once married to Padma Lakshmi. He must have done something right:
“For a fellow who’s not to much to look at, you have the instincts of a champion.” Salman Rushdie
17. Alien Hearts by Guy de Maupassant
To the man or woman who will in no way break your heart:
“You’ll find that my coquetry is quite impartial, which allows me to keep my friends.” Guy de Maupassant
18. Super Sad True Love Story by Gary Shteyngart
Let’s be honest here:
“I’m the fortieth ugliest man in this bar. But so what! So what!… Isn’t this how people used to fall in love?” Gary Shteyngart
19. Portnoy’s Complaint by Philip Roth
When confronted with your first threesome:
“The signore…wishes her to begin at the beginning.” Philip Roth
20. Sula by Toni Morrison
Saying it like it is:
“What do you mean take him away? I didn’t kill him, I just fucked him.” Toni Morrison
21. London Fields by Martin Amis
When a clear sense of foreboding conquers all:
“You know how it is when two souls meet in a burst of ecstatic volubility, with hearts tickling to hear and to tell, to know everything, to reveal everything, the shared reverence for the other’s otherness, a feeling of solitude radiantly snapped by full contact — all that?” Martin Amis
22. The Ask by Sam Lipsyte
When it’s time to get fruity:
“Stuff me in a tutu and let’s screen experimental videos all day.” Sam Lipsyte
23. Couples by John Updike
Sometimes you have to be the bait:
“The first breathe of adultery is the freest.” John Updike
24. Where I’m Calling From by Raymond Carver
When you are the last man at a bar, talking to the last sympathetic woman:
“We were so intimate once upon a time I can’t believe it now. The memory of being that intimate with somebody. We were so intimate I could puke. I can’t imagine ever being that intimate with somebody else. I haven’t been.” Raymond Carver
25. “First Love” by Isaac Babel
Who enjoys saucy French words? Hopefully, your admirer does:
“She would lift her peignoir above her knees and say to her husband: ‘Give baby a kiss…’” Isaac Babel
26. Foxfire by Joyce Carol Oates
When you meet your first baby dyke:
“Like they’re pretending not to know who I am: I’m Legs Sadovsky I’m FOXFIRE I don’t fuck around with guys.” Joyce Carol Oates
27. “Tonka” by Robert Musil
When you think coming clean about your anxiety will get you through the difficult parts:
“You see how wrong I go, how ridiculous I’m making myself in your eyes by keeping on guessing wrong like this! Doesn’t that help you to come out with it? Come on now!” Robert Musil
28. “Fireworks” by Richard Ford
When you need to switch identities:
“I realized I loved you, and I didn’t want to be married to somebody I didn’t love. I wanted to be married to you. It isn’t all that complicated.” Richard Ford
29. The History of Love by Nicole Krauss
When honesty is the best policy:
“Are you happiest and saddest right now that you’ve ever been?” “Of course I am.” “Why?” “Because nothing makes me happier and nothing makes me sadder than you.” Nicole Krauss
30. Pussy, King of the Pirates by Kathy Acker
For the post-punk, French critical theory set:
“If you ask me what I want, I’ll tell you. I want everything.” Kathy Acker
