Reviews tagging 'Medical content'

Butts: A Backstory by Heather Radke

6 reviews

kelly_e's review

informative reflective medium-paced

3.25

Title: Butts: A Backstory
Author: Heather Radke
Genre: Non Fiction
Rating: 3.25
Pub Date: November 29, 2022

T H R E E • W O R D S

Interesting • Thoughtful • Cheeky

📖 S Y N O P S I S

Whether we love them or hate them, think they’re sexy, think they’re strange, consider them too big, too small, or anywhere in between, humans have a complicated relationship with butts. It is a body part unique to humans, critical to our evolution and survival, and yet it has come to signify so much more: sex, desire, comedy, shame. A woman’s butt, in particular, is forever being assessed, criticized, and objectified, from anxious self-examinations trying on jeans in department store dressing rooms to enduring crass remarks while walking down a street or high school hallways. But why?

💭 T H O U G H T S

Butts was never on my TBR until it was selected as one of the featured curated titles for the A-Z challenge in my online book club. Would I have read it otherwise? Probably not. Did it make me pause and offer up moments of reflection? Absolutely.

This cultural history covers a lot of ground - nearly 200 years of cultural, evolutionary, political and anatomical history of the butt, particularly the female butt. I don't think I have ever really took such significant time to reflect on everything the female butt has come to symbolize. I enjoyed getting an in-depth look into how trends have changed over time and the aspects that have helped changed these standards over the eras. There are quite a few pop culture references and talk about the butts that have defined modern generations.

Butts is definitely a unique look into one specific body part, and I would highly recommend the audio, which reads like an in-depth report. I am not sure if I would be able to get through eye-ball reading such a book. It may have been a step outside of something I would normally read, yet it has sparked a different kind of awareness into the sexualization of butts that I think will stick with me.

📚 R E A D • I F • Y O U • L I K E
• cultural history
• investigative reporting
• butts

⚠️ CW: racism, cultural appropriation, body shaming, fatphobia, misogyny, sexism, classism, colonization, slavery, eating disorder, sexual assault, medical content, medical trauma 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cultural appropriation, Misogyny, Sexism, Fatphobia, and Body shaming

Moderate: Racism, Slavery, Racial slurs, Classism, and Colonisation

Minor: Eating disorder, Medical content, Sexual assault, and Medical trauma

chloemakesbooks's review against another edition

informative fast-paced

4.0

Well written, good for fans of Fish Don't Exist. Abso utely fantastic introduction. Overall pacing was off in a way that I can't quite put my finger on yet; possibly, not enough time with those voices reacting to the dominant culture being examined. Gems like fart clubs and man vs horse are worth reading for! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Slavery, Medical content, and Colonisation

bookobsessedmommy's review

informative reflective sad medium-paced

4.5

I saw Butts on the GRCA, and was intrigued by the title.  Radke takes us on very interesting history lesson with tons of intersectionality. I was pleasantly surprised by how much scientific and sociological research was presented, and how well it all tied together. There were a lot of stories I'd heard in part before, like Sara Baartman, but getting more of the details brought into stark relief how long female bodies, especially black female bodies, have been objectified and moralized and how it never stops. The reality is sobering but also freeing in a way. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Body shaming, Medical content, and Misogyny

Moderate: Drug use, Eating disorder, and Fatphobia

zombiezami's review

emotional funny informative lighthearted reflective medium-paced

4.25

This was very thoughtfully researched, organized, and written. I learned a lot and enjoyed this so much. My one suggestion that would have taken this from good to great would be if the author had included a chapter on trans women on HRT, and the range of feelings they have about estrogen changing their bodies. It could also cover queer beauty standards and how transphobia impacts body shaming, including butt shaming.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual harassment, Colonisation, Sexual violence, Sexism, Racism, Kidnapping, Slavery, Fatphobia, Misogyny, Religious bigotry, Body shaming, and Classism

Moderate: Bullying, Cursing, Rape, Medical trauma, Injury/Injury detail, Gaslighting, Genocide, Grief, Infidelity, Pregnancy, Sexual content, Medical content, and Mental illness

Minor: Eating disorder, Homophobia, Biphobia, and Lesbophobia

dexkit10's review

funny informative lighthearted medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cultural appropriation, Medical content, Racism, and Body shaming

princessdana36's review against another edition

adventurous funny informative inspiring lighthearted reflective fast-paced

5.0

Everyone should read this book. There definitely needs to be a part two to this book. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Fatphobia and Medical content

There is a bunch of topics in here that can be triggering but they are so well done that it’s almost empathetic instead of triggering.