Here’s a few more reviews on my little red book, the anthology of first period stories. Here’s one from a male reader:

The engaging and humorous anecdotes effortlessly connect reader and author on a very personal level; more importantly, the theme of the book creates a strong message that transcends age, culture, ethnicity, religion, or any background. While the stories will inevitably more powerful for women, I would highly recommend it to men who have an open-mind in learning about “the other half of the world.”

And another:

Fourth, the advance and all proceeds of this book are being donated, by the author, to women’s health charities. Which are involved in causes such as providing sanitary supplies to those unable to afford them in places such as Africa, so the girls do not have to miss school during their period.

Indeed, I received a letter from Planned Parenthood yesterday which informed me of the donated money they received for this very cause.

Today my students discussed a scene in Tayari Jones‘ Leaving Atlanta where a character gets her first period and her mother takes her out to dinner. The students talked about the scene and their own experiences with their bodies when getting their first period. A young male student wanted to know if girls talked about this sort of thing because the discussion seemed so normalized in the text. I kept thinking, well some do, some don’t, but maybe more would. I think having a book like our bodies, ourselves or my little red book or any text which helps to demystify the female body is so necessary. It is only because such events like menstraution are cloaked in secrecy that they seem shameful.