Vagina Obscura; an anatomical voyage

Title of the book: Vagina Obscura; an anatomical voyage 

Author: Rachel E. Gross

Publisher: Norton

Publishing Date: 2022

ISBN: 9781324006312

Summary:

A scientific journey to the center of the new female body.

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.

Author Info:
(From goodreads)

Rachel E. Gross is an award-winning science journalist based in Brooklyn, New York. A 2018—19 Knight Science Journalism Fellow and former digital science editor of Smithsonian magazine, she writes for the BBC Future, the New York Times, and Scientific American

Personal Opinion:

Before I begin to gush on and on about the book, I have a question: where was it when I was developing my identity as a future woman? Seriously, I wish I could have had it growing up because this is a book that all young women need in their lives, especially if they are learning about themselves as I have; that women in power are bad, that being smart is bad, and that women have little to no mobility, or very limited destiny. I was taught we are passive, and must wait, wait before something happens. Instead, the author, Rachel E. Gross literally flips the narrative as she brings us the wondrous beauty of our inner organs, from clitoris to uterus, even including a chapter for LGBTQIA+ folks. In addition to discussing the female reproductive system, she also mixes in history and introduces us to women scientists who dared to dream and to achieve beyond their assigned roles. If you are a woman in any shape or form and has been feeling down or hopeless or if you have a budding daughter, I would highly advise for you to buy this book and help her as well as yourself feel powerful and valued. Narrative matters. 

This was given for review 

5 out of 5
(0: Stay away unless a masochist 1: Good for insomnia 2: Horrible but readable; 3: Readable and quickly forgettable, 4: Good, enjoyable 5: Buy it, keep it and never let it go.)