About: Dive into my October TBR with nine thrilling books, including my long-awaited read of House of Blood and Earth and continued exploration of the thriller genre.
(more…)26 Reasons to Get Excited: My Ultimate Summer Book Haul
About: Checkout my summer book haul of 26 exciting books, including a few perfect fall transition reads. I’m not just summarizing plots but digging into why I bought each book.
(more…)7 Books on My September TBR
About: My September TBR includes 7 books that I hope will get me in the mood for autumn. Included in my TBR is a recent Pulitzer Prize winner and a fun YA novel about a soccer prodigy I can’t wait to jump into!
(more…)March Wrap Up: 37 Books Read
About: My March Wrap Up unpacks my best reading month yet, and extracts a quote from each of the 37 books I read.
(more…)Book Review: You’re the Only One I’ve Told: The Stories Behind Abortion by Dr Meera Shah
Series: Standalone
Release Date: September 1, 2020
For a long time, when people asked Dr. Meera Shah, Chief medical officer of Planned Parenthood Hudson Peconic, what she did, she would tell them she was a doctor and leave it at that. But when she started to be direct about her work as an abortion provider an interesting thing started to happen: one by one, people would confide that they’d had an abortion themselves. The refrain was often the same: You’re the only one I’ve told.
This book collects these stories as they’ve been told to Shah to humanize abortion and to combat myths that persist in the discourse that surrounds it. A wide range of ages, races, socioeconomic factors, and experiences shows that abortion always occurs in a unique context.
Today, a healthcare issue that’s so precious and foundational to reproductive, social, and economic freedom for millions of people is exploited by politicians who lack understanding or compassion about the context in which abortion occurs. Stories have the power to break down stigmas and help us to empathize with those whose experiences are unlike our own.
A portion of proceeds will be donated to promote reproductive health access.
• Written by a Gujarati Indian American author
• Racism
• Medical content
• Discussion of…
– miscarriage
– late-term pregnancy abortion
– grief
– parents deciding to end their pregnancy due to medical complications
– medical trauma
– r@pe
– child abuse
– gender-based violence abuse
• See Ending for HEA status.
• See Possible Triggers for Abuse and OTT sad parts.
Format: Hardback
Rating: 5-stars
I put off reading this book for a long time despite knowing it would be a 5-star read. It’s a hard-hitting topic that I think readers need to be in the right headspace to absorb (see Possible Triggers above). The content on reproductive justice is particularly relevant now, with the wave of abortion bans occurring in the USA. Even in Canada, some politicians have raised wanting to repeal abortion access from our Human Rights Charter.
You’re the Only One I’ve Told: the Stories Behind Abortions is impactful because it demystifies abortions. The book affirms that abortion is a medical procedure that should be contextualized within a healthcare framework rather than the moralizing typical of most abortion conversations. Dr. Meera Shah’s decision to weave facts about (the lack of) abortion rights with anecdotes from her patient’s experiences with abortion was effective. The reader came to understand how these laws and regulations around abortion – especially its moralizing – have led to material consequences for patients.
I appreciated that Dr. Meera Shah’s approach to analyzing reproductive justice in the USA applied an intersectional lens. The patient anecdotes explored how gender, race, religion, income and more impacted their access to abortion and their decision to proceed (or not) with the procedure. The author also highlights how some patients decided to terminate an unwanted pregnancy, whereas others were compelled to have an abortion for medical reasons. What struck me in the latter cases was the importance of doctors being able to put aside their personal beliefs to protect the mental and physical health of their patients (to note, this is not always the case).
The most shocking aspect of You’re the Only One I’ve Told: the Stories Behind Abortion is how the author makes clear to the reader how abortion as a medical procedure has been politicized. Dr. Meera Shah is an abortion provider who is given – depending on the state – a specific script of information she must tell the patient, most of which is medically incorrect information used to scare patients away from the procedure (e.g., the fetus will feel pain). Also, if doctors do not follow this script, they can be disbarred. The fact that politicians with an agenda (i.e., re-election) are writing these scripts and not doctors is unfathomable to me.
In Conclusion
You’re the Only One I’ve Told: the Stories Behind Abortion has a lot to offer readers well- and not versed in the reproductive justice fight in the USA. The book is informative but avoids being dry by grounding its research in patient experiences. I loved how Dr. Meera Shah decided to conclude the book with a chapter on how the reader can get involved in the reproductive justice movement! This included easy ways people can make a change and a list of non-profit and activist groups they could support.
Buy You’re the Only One I’ve Told
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18 Books on My May TBR
About: My May TBR includes 18 books that I want to read in May, including four books by AAPI authors to celebrate AAPI Heritage Month!
(more…)17 Books on My March TBR
About: My March TBR includes 17 books that I want to read in March. I will finally read Babel by R.F. Kuang and get started on my Diverse Reading Challenge.
(more…)14 New Books: My Hiemal Book Haul
14 new books make up my Hiemal Book Haul and includes books I’ve purchased from August to November. The most prevalent themes are fantasy and (as always) romance.
(more…)12 New Books: Maytime Book Haul
12 new books comprise my Maytime book haul! I’m so excited that so many of these books have feminist themes.
(more…)Powerful and Motivational: The Body Is Not an Apology by Sonya Renee Taylor
Series: Standalone
Release Date: February 9, 2021 (2nd Edition)
Humans are a varied and divergent bunch with all manner of beliefs, morals, and bodies. Systems of oppression thrive off our inability to make peace with difference and injure the relationship we have with our own bodies.
The Body Is Not an Apology offers radical self-love as the balm to heal the wounds inflicted by these violent systems. World-renowned activist and poet Sonya Renee Taylor invites us to reconnect with the radical origins of our minds and bodies and celebrate our collective, enduring strength. As we awaken to our own indoctrinated body shame, we feel inspired to awaken others and to interrupt the systems that perpetuate body shame and oppression against all bodies. When we act from this truth on a global scale, we usher in the transformative opportunity of radical self-love, which is the opportunity for a more just, equitable, and compassionate world–for us all.
• No overly sad parts
**Note: the book does talk about racism, fatphobia, homophobia, ableism and eating disorders. I don’t think any were talked about in a triggering way; if I’m wrong please let me know through the comment section or send me an email via my contact page.
Format: eARC
Rating: 3.75/5 stars
Note: I received The Body Is Not an Apology through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. My thanks to FSB Association for the opportunity. (more…)