Any Body - A Comic Compendium of Important Facts and Feelings about Our Bodies
This engaging book offers a delightful blend of information and humour, exploring the intricacies of the human body. It examines the myriad of emotions and experiences that we, and our bodies, may encounter throughout our lives. Written by Katarina von der Gathen, who has a long career in sex education, one might assume that she has written a book with this as its central theme, however, together with illustrator Anke Kuhl, she has created a book that is extends much further.
This book discusses everything from body image to gender identity, disability, mental illness, beauty standards, puberty, growing old and so much more. The more difficult conversations, especially concerning consent and peer pressure are softened by the interjection of comedy and colourful illustrations. Concluding with two interactive activities for the reader; the first is a tick-the-box quiz and the second is a colouring exercise where the reader is encouraged to think about what parts of their body they especially like and what parts of their body are particularly strong. We are so quick to criticise the parts of ourselves we perceive as flawed, these editions to the book solidify it as not only educational, but an uplifting and encouraging read also.
An excellent resource that explains our bodies, the ways in which they are similar and how they may differ in a light-hearted but honest manner. Given the extensive range of topics covered, this book is most suitable to teen readers.
