Judy Norsigian

Wow, this updated version is excellent! It covers issues in womens' physical, mental and emotional health and tells it in a very straightforward way. It gives information that is relevant to women of all ages from adolescence to old age. It is a book that can be revisited throughout one’s life. I revisited it when I was pregnant with my children and now again as a woman in middle age. I am old enough to have purchased the first edition of this book in the early 1970’s. It was a show more revolutionary book back then and it is still a solid resource today. It changed my life back then. I was only fourteen when I read it and I remember that I hid it in my closet so that my parents wouldn’t get wrong ideas about me and find out that I knew about all that stuff! The information I got from the book back then gave me a sense of self-knowledge and empowerment that is still relevant for today’s teens. It was very liberating at that age to know that much of what was in the book was going to be my own private business in life and I was taking my own voluntary steps to educate myself in preparation for adulthood. Every young woman deserves to feel that sense of empowerment.
This new edition of course has expanded on the first edition a great deal. I was glad to see more information on Violence and Abuse because I don't remember reading about that in the first edition. I highly recommend this book be part of high school library collections. show less

This was the first book about pregnancy I read so, of course, it is going to influence me more than books I read later. That said, it still stands out as a good book on the topic of pregnancy, labor, and the early postpartum period.

I appreciate the balance the authors of this book struck between being clear as to which choices they considered best but still discussing multiple options and the situations under which those alternatives might be best. One example prevalent throughout the book show more is the preference for vaginal, minimally medicated birth over more heavily medicated or cesarean births. The authors described both why they preferred less medicated vaginal births and discussed the situations under which other options were reasonable or necessary. With this background, I feel more confident in my ability to try to make the right decisions for myself without feeling guilty about not having the "perfect" birth experience.

Another aspect of this book that I liked was the clear focus on empowering and advocating for women. This book did not try to limit itself to just the birth process. The authors were not afraid to discuss policies they considered bad or advocate for change.

One aspect of this book that may be considered a weakness, depending on what you are looking for, is that it focused on breadth more than depth. The authors gave just enough detail to enable you to ask further questions. Thus, while it's a great first book about pregnancy and birth, those who have read other books with similar scope will likely not encounter as much new material. show less

This is an excellent, well-researched and put together reference on basic biology, personal health, and resources that are socially available for women and trans-persons of all ages. Every home should have this book on its shelves.

My eldest sister gave me this book in 1973. As the first person in my family to graduate from college and as a feminist, she believed she ought to help me add the feminist perspective to my worldview.

Looking at this yellowed paperback now, it's a sort of time capsule from that exciting, turbulent period of my youth when the societal status quo was challenged by a broad swath of rebellious young people. I became one of them, in my quiet way, and my critical, rebellious thought processes have show more persisted into crabbed old age.
OK, I admit this isn't much of a book review. Maybe I will rewrite later. show less