Rating: 
Summary: didn't like it; please don't read it
Review: I read this and while I appreciate the "knowledge" about the act, the LaHayes are way off. They are not fair in assessments about Natural Family Planning. If I remember correctly, they also are pro-abortion in cases where the baby is severely deformed. Go figure!For information about Natural Family Planning (NOT the rhythm method), visit: ccli.org
or popepaulvi.com
Rating: 
Summary: I LOVED THE ENTIRE BOOK.
Review: I received the book as a gift in 1988. I decided to read the book starting at chapter 13. This chapter was the one chapter that stood out to me. The reason that this chapter stood out is it express the importance of the good lord Jesus Christ being head of any and all married couples.
Rating:
Summary: Presumptuous People
Review: I was offended in the chapter about oral love. It was insinuated that decent people did not engage in this activity. It suggested that oral love was a recent phenomenom which encouraged promiscuity. I hardly see that as the case. What goes on between two married people in their bedroom needs to be left alone. Point number two was the saying female orgasm was important but on the other hand saying a woman could not miss what she never had. They spoke of earlier times when women just lay there for the man and did not complain. I was utterly disgusted with that. Point number three was the one about begetting children. Propagating our genes could be looked on just as selfish as those who want to abstain from having children. Look around at all the filled orphanages and tell me that we are taking care of our children on earth. I was given this book upon my wedding night by a friend's mother. It did not bring me comfort but instead caused needless guilt to my already inhibited husband. Please get your theology straight and stay out of married couple's bedrooms.
Rating:
Summary: Terribly one-sided
Review: My husband and I only had to read the first chapter of this book to realize how one-sided this book was. (Notice the more in-depthness in the "What Lovemaking Means to a Man" chapter compared to the "What Lovemaking Means to a Woman".) Sentences in there, indeed paragraphs!, make the man seem like a neanderthal and a selfish pig. My husband took offense to this, as did I, and we stopped reading it after chapter 3. Would NEVER, EVER recommend this book for newlyweds. We would recommend "Intended for Pleasure" by Ed Wheat, instead. Shame, shame on you, Mr. and Mrs. LaHaye, for writing such an out-dated book. We will be taking our book back. (Of course, I could write TONS more on this book, however, Amazon would not give me enough space :-)
Rating:
Summary: Terribly one-sided
Review: My husband and I only had to read the first chapter of this book to realize how one-sided this book was. (Notice the more in-depthness in the "What Lovemaking Means to a Man" chapter compared to the "What Lovemaking Means to a Woman".) Sentences in there, indeed paragraphs!, make the man seem like a neanderthal and a selfish pig. My husband took offense to this, as did I, and we stopped reading it after chapter 3. Would NEVER, EVER recommend this book for newlyweds. We would recommend "Intended for Pleasure" by Ed Wheat, instead. Shame, shame on you, Mr. and Mrs. LaHaye, for writing such an out-dated book. We will be taking our book back. (Of course, I could write TONS more on this book, however, Amazon would not give me enough space :-)
Rating:
Summary: Dr. Ruth with a few Bible Verses slapped on
Review: My husband and I walked away from this book disgusted. Spousal love is intended to be completely self-giving. Married couples must always be on guard against treating each other's bodies as objects, or using them for purposes other than those for which they were created. Yet this book provided a formula for objectification-husband and wife are reduced to body parts on the page, and the focus is on how to better stimulate each other, reaching greater orgiastic heights through sexual technique and skill. There was no mention of the fact that co-creating a baby with God is one of the most significant and transcendent experiences of our lives. Pleasure has so little to do with technique that I wonder if the couples who write these books are even in communion with each other. I don't love the way my husband makes ME feel or the way he "pleases" ME sexually. I love him, period. I would still love him if he were injured and we could never make love again. Innocence and communication are the two best things you can bring to your marriage. It's 10 times better to read a down-home anatomy book, with clinical explanations, than these technical how-to mechanics. Selling 2,500,000 books does not make you wise (Dr. Ruth has sold more books than these guys). Being 60 also does not neccessitate wisdom (watch Barbara Walters on "the View"). After reading the implication that God's primary design for marriage is one perpetual mutual orgasm, the LaHayes lost any credibility of being wise Christian counselors in my estimation. People will accuse me of being sexually inhibited, because I thought this book was crude.Why is it that when people want to be reticent about private things and guard mysteries, they are accused of being "prudish" or having a filthy view of sex? Notice the way the Song of Solomon veils everything in metaphors. When sex is dragged out into the street, or reduced to explicit anatomical instructions, it does become ugly. I walked away from that book feeling like I was one big (insert female anatomical part) and my husband was one big (insert male anatomical part). "You cannot examine the coal away from the fire. You can't learn the meaning of a rose by pulling it to pieces." What fun is there if God drops you off on a secret island--your own private garden of Eden--and the LaHayes meet you on the beach with a map of all the best sight-seeing spots?
Rating:
Summary: Looking Forward to a Great Marriage
Review: My husband, Joe, who wrote the review above, is the man of my dreams. Who would have thought the Lord would bless me with such a wise, old man - and a virgin as well! Even though there is a gap of 50 years between us his job as Assistant District Manager of Vending Operations for Southwest Toronto keeps him active and gives him ample opportunity to witness for our Lord. Since Joe has been reading Beverly LaHaye's book he has decided to also sponsor my 6 teenaged sisters, who will live with us in our little trailer on the outskirts of Toronto. Joe is a firm believer in family and asks about my sisters often. Joe has sent me a list of things to do to improve our marriage and every night after I leave the Nike plant I sit in front of a candle and work on my checklist. Thank you, Beverly LaHaye.
Rating: 
Summary: Birth control information is misleading
Review: My wife and I read this book right before we were married and it contains practical information about what to expect in the sexual act and ways to increase physical enjoyment, although we did not find all of the suggestions to be useful. My main concern with the book is the chapter titled "Sane Family Planning." The LaHaye's heartily endorse the pill (oral contraceptives) as the preferred method of birth control, although there is a lot of evidence that the pill acts as abortifacient at least some of the time.....In addition, the LaHaye's description of the "rhythm method" poorly characterizes Natural Family Planning (NFP) techniques currently used today.............
Rating:
Summary: READ THIS BOOK
Review: Read this book before you get married, or even after. I love the religious perspective on all the things my parents didn't know or were too embarrassed to tell me about. My husband and I learned so much from this book.
Rating:
Summary: LeHaye provides a wonderful Christian perspective on sex
Review: The Act of Marriage was very beneficial to me before I was married. I had never heard or read anything about sex from a Christian perspective. The LeHayes provided a course of the physical aspects of marriage (sex), while at the same time focusing in upon the more relational and spiritual. The physical aspects included things like the role of male and female hormones in the arousal of sexual feelings. The relational and spiritual focused upon things like pleasing your spouse and finding out what is most pleasing for your partner. I was especially pleased to hear about the physiological components of sex from two Christians, because my experience with Christians and sex has been very Victorian and repressive. The LeHayes are not like that at all. I was very nervous and scared about the First Night. I found out that my spouse was also very nervous. The LeHayes book helped to lessen and queit our fears. I think the best part of the boo is the description of the Brain and mind as the most important sexual organ. Overall, the LeHayes did a wonderful job.
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