The book All Steamed Up by Kathy Lette is an A5 36pp book with full colour cover, while the internal pages are two-colour, printed by London-based printer Printhouse Corporation.

A spokeman at the printer said that Radox chose to use gloss lamination rather than a synthetic paper stock to provide the 'splash-proof' quality, requiring a high volume of lamination work, as normally internal pages are not laminated.

"It’s the largest number of sheets we’ve ever had to laminate for a single project," he said.

However he said the book was not designed to be waterproof so wouldn't be protected if submerged in water.

Some 10,000 of the books are available from Radox's Be-Selfish website, while others are destined for point of sale displays as well as being poly-bagged on the cover of an upcoming issue of a leading women's magazine. However, orders through the site have used up the quota already and the company is considering extending the print run.

Lette said: "When Radox approached me to write a water resistant book which women could read whilst letting off steam - literally in a bubble bath - it resonated with a theme I've often addressed in my books ie that being selfish and taking time out for you is so much cheaper than a divorce or a nervous breakdown."