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Vagina Obscura
Vagina Obscura: An Anatomical Voyage | Rachel E. Gross
5 posts | 7 read | 25 to read
The Latin term for the female genitalia, pudendum, means "parts for which you should be ashamed." Until 1651, ovaries were called female testicles. The fallopian tubes are named for a man. Named, claimed, and shamed: Welcome to the story of the female body, as penned by men. Today, a new generation of (mostly) women scientists is finally redrawing the map. With modern tools and fresh perspectives, they're looking at the organs traditionally bound up in reproduction--the uterus, ovaries, vagina--and seeing within them a new biology of change and resilience. Through their eyes, journalist Rachel E. Gross takes readers on an anatomical odyssey to the center of this new world--a world where the uterus regrows itself, ovaries pump out fresh eggs, and the clitoris pulses beneath the surface like a shimmering pyramid of nerves. Full of wit and wonder, Vagina Obscura is a celebratory testament to how the landscape of knowledge can be rewritten to better serve everyone.
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julesG
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A book I didn't buy, but was tempted due to #CoverCrush

Might put it on my wishlist.

willaful It was pretty interesting. 14mo
julesG @willaful That definitely bumps it onto the wishlist 14mo
55 likes1 stack add2 comments
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monalyisha
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It feels important to catalog the ONLY note I took while reading (not that the shocks didn‘t keep on coming)!

BUT REALLY.
Tell your friends.

Bookwormjillk Not even the ducks? 2y
monalyisha @Bookwormjillk The ducks thank you for your service. 🦆 2y
dabbe @Bookwormjillk 🤣🤣🤣 2y
See All 8 Comments
Soubhiville This was a great book! I loved hearing about the ducks. 2y
ravenlee The ducks say, “Mind your own ducking business.” 2y
Graves SPOILER ALERT!!!! SHEESH 2y
monalyisha @Graves 😂💀😂 2y
Meshell1313 🤣🤣🦆 2y
60 likes1 stack add8 comments
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monalyisha
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Pickpick

I finally finished my March book club selection…two weeks too late. 😅 Like many of my nonfiction reads, “this book is about different ways of looking.” As Gross reminds us, “You can‘t see what you aren‘t looking for.” It just so happens to also be about vaginas — and everything we *don‘t* know about them. A blurb on the dust jacket flap calls Gross‘s writing “lyrical.” With that in mind, I‘d like to draw your attention to the following sentence:

monalyisha 1/1: “Like eating a Reese‘s Cup, there‘s no wrong way to have a vagina.” Listen, I WAS looking for lyrical — and I did not find it. However, what I did find was informative, inquisitive, and open. This isn‘t the first book I‘ve read about vaginas (that particular distinction belongs to Vaginas: An Owner‘s Manual by Livodi & Topp) but it was definitely the most intersectional, well-researched, and well-written. (edited) 2y
78 likes3 stack adds1 comment
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Soubhiville
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Pickpick

I don‘t remember how I heard about this book, but I was immediately interested. I looked at it in a bookstore because I assumed it would have a lot of pictures, but it really didn‘t have many so I opted to borrow the audio instead.

I found it engaging and informative, and really enjoyed it! It follows the study of anatomy through history, touching on early misogynistic lack of interest and assumptions, gender biases, cultural myths, and more!

Soubhiville Highly recommend! 2y
ShelleyBooksie @DinoMom - This one feels like something that would interest you! 2y
DinoMom @ShelleyBooksie yes it does … I guess I know what my next audio book will be !!! 2y
Kimberlone The title is hilarious 😆 2y
94 likes8 stack adds4 comments
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Shievad
Pickpick

I learned a lot of interesting facts about a variety of vaginas and penises across the animal kingdom with which to regale dining companions 😂 Early chapters focus on 1) old timey fixes for women who think too much for their own good and 2) reproductive anatomy of a variety of insects and animals. Later chapters focus on advances in IVF and gender affirmation surgery.