A smart, honest, and comprehensive education on movement building and menstrual rights.
The story of how one young woman turned her passion for menstrual rights into an international movement.
When debut author Okamoto was 16, her family experienced financial hardships that led to housing instability. The Portland, Oregon, teen, now a Harvard undergraduate, was deeply shaken by this crisis. She began speaking to homeless women about their experiences living on the streets, and as she developed relationships with them, she was shocked to discover that many had no access to safe menstrual hygiene products, often resorting to discarded newspapers or grocery sacks. These conversations inspired her to found PERIOD, a nonprofit dedicated to making menstrual health a universal human right. Part memoir and part manifesto, the book uses Okamoto’s personal journey as a teen activist as a springboard to discuss everything from the technical aspects of menstruation to the history of menstrual taboos in the United States to the menstrual movement’s policy priorities and environmental sustainability. The book is truly intersectional, and Okamoto is refreshingly open about her commitment to amplifying the menstrual experiences of transgender and nonbinary people as well as menstruators of various races, religions, sexualities, and class backgrounds. The final chapter is dedicated to taking action and will be a useful guide for activists inspired by this work. The friendly, chatty writing style ensures that the information-packed text remains accessible. Art not seen.
A smart, honest, and comprehensive education on movement building and menstrual rights. (notes, bibliography, index) (Nonfiction. 13-adult)Pub Date: Oct. 16, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-5344-3021-1
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Sept. 1, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2018
Small but mighty necessary reading.
A miniature manifesto for radical queer acceptance that weaves together the personal and political.
Eli, a cis gay white Jewish man, uses his own identities and experiences to frame and acknowledge his perspective. In the prologue, Eli compares the global Jewish community to the global queer community, noting, “We don’t always get it right, but the importance of showing up for other Jews has been carved into the DNA of what it means to be Jewish. It is my dream that queer people develop the same ideology—what I like to call a Global Queer Conscience.” He details his own isolating experiences as a queer adolescent in an Orthodox Jewish community and reflects on how he and so many others would have benefitted from a robust and supportive queer community. The rest of the book outlines 10 principles based on the belief that an expectation of mutual care and concern across various other dimensions of identity can be integrated into queer community values. Eli’s prose is clear, straightforward, and powerful. While he makes some choices that may be divisive—for example, using the initialism LGBTQIAA+ which includes “ally”—he always makes clear those are his personal choices and that the language is ever evolving.
Small but mighty necessary reading. (resources) (Nonfiction. 14-18)Pub Date: June 2, 2020
ISBN: 978-0-593-09368-9
Page Count: 64
Publisher: Penguin Workshop
Review Posted Online: March 28, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2020
Though not the most balanced, an enlightening look back for the queer future.
An adaptation for teens of the adult title A Queer History of the United States (2011).
Divided into thematic sections, the text filters LGBTQIA+ history through key figures in each era from the 1500s to the present. Alongside watershed moments like the 1969 Stonewall uprising and the HIV/AIDS crisis of the 1980s and 1990s, the text brings to light less well-known people, places, and events: the 1625 free love colony of Merrymount, transgender Civil War hero Albert D.J. Cashier, and the 1951 founding of the Mattachine Society, to name a few. Throughout, the author and adapter take care to use accurate pronouns and avoid imposing contemporary terminology onto historical figures. In some cases, they quote primary sources to speculate about same-sex relationships while also reminding readers of past cultural differences in expressing strong affection between friends. Black-and-white illustrations or photos augment each chapter. Though it lacks the teen appeal and personable, conversational style of Sarah Prager’s Queer, There, and Everywhere (2017), this textbook-level survey contains a surprising amount of depth. However, the mention of transgender movements and activism—in particular, contemporary issues—runs on the slim side. Whereas chapters are devoted to over 30 ethnically diverse gay, lesbian, bisexual, or queer figures, some trans pioneers such as Christine Jorgensen and Holly Woodlawn are reduced to short sidebars.
Though not the most balanced, an enlightening look back for the queer future. (glossary, photo credits, bibliography, index) (Nonfiction. 14-18)Pub Date: June 11, 2019
ISBN: 978-0-8070-5612-7
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Beacon Press
Review Posted Online: March 12, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2019
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