Bad Girls

"I behave badly to set myself apart. To test myself. To push myself. To prove something. To shock someone....I behave badly because I can." That's how Ellen Sussman describes her deviant endeavors. To better understand them, she's invited 25 other bad girls to share their stories. Ann Hood lies, Mary Roach confesses. Lolly Winston blasts the music; Susan Straight puts the petal to the metal. Erica Jong, the original bad girl, challenges her own claim to that fame. Susan Cheever almost flunks out of prep school and then flunks her chance at redemption. Caroline Leavitt marries and cheats; Kim Addonizio celebrates a one-night stand. Roxana Robinson commits forgery. Daphne Merkin measures the penis. There's a kind of energy that gets generated when bad girls get together. These pages bristle with danger. The writers are digging deep—bad behavior lies in their souls. And what they bring to the surface reveals truths about their psyches and our society.