This is my first (and I think only?) non-fiction read of 2019 so far. Hannah's a Youtuber that I've been following for quite a few years now, and when she released her first book I knew I wanted to get my hands on it. Her Youtube channel focuses on breaking down taboos and talking about sex in a positive and inclusive way, which is pretty much what the book covers too.
The book isn't really what I'd expected, though I don't think that's a bad thing. Every couple of pages includes bold designs to break up the text so that visually, the book doesn't end up being a whole mass of text and information. Working in publishing makes me wonder though whether this was done more to bring the book up to the length of a full book, rather than it being a bit on the short side. Sceptics aside, it's a nice touch for teens who might feel overwhelmed reading masses of small text on a topic they may be struggling to completely come to terms to.
I really feel as though the book is aimed at teens rather than being young adult or adult fiction. Though this meant that it erred on feeling a bit too 'young' for me, you'd also hope that by my mid-twenties I'd have most period/sex ed things figured out by now. I do think it's better that it's aimed at a younger audience, as it includes a lot of topics not covered by most sex-ed curricula (and 100% definitely not covered by the one I experienced at a Catholic school). It's important that it is written in an accessible style for teens, so whilst it wasn't something that I completely enjoyed, I feel as though that sort of made it better.
My favourite thing about the book is how inclusive it is. Hannah uses inclusive language in terms of gender and sex, as well as information on LGBTQA+ relationships and safe sex. The book features chapters from others (including Juno Dawson who is just FAB) on topics that Hannah wouldn't necessarily know about, including what it's like to be a man with a porn addiction, and being uncomfortable in your sex during puberty. I think it's so important that she's decided to have these chapters in the book written by people who have experienced things that she could only talk about in a more abstract way.
I'm giving this 3 stars, because although I think it would be a great book for teens, I found myself skipping through a few bits, and found the format with all of the bold patterns separating things a little jarring.
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