cover image Does This Happen to Everyone? A Budding Adult’s Guide to Puberty

Does This Happen to Everyone? A Budding Adult’s Guide to Puberty

Jan von Holleben and Antje Helms, trans. from the German by Jan Metcalf. Little Gestalten (Prestel, dist.), $24.95 (160p) ISBN 978-3-89955-521-9

Taking an empathetic and respectful approach to sex education, Von Hollenben and Helms blend humor, factual information, and candid advice (“It’s entirely up to you whether you want to say vulva, coochie, vag, or anything else that sounds good to you”). Photographs of boys and girls hanging out are augmented with plants, fruits, and vegetables (seeds and grasses represent stubble, pairs of fruit suggest varying breast sizes and shapes). Common questions (“I heard sex is the best thing in the world. Is that true?”) receive thoughtful and funny responses (“Bonobo apes probably think so. They have sex about every 90 minutes”) along with thorough discussion. A valuable resource that normalizes and affirms sexuality while suggesting that puberty is a time of both physical and intellectual growth. Ages 12–up. (Aug.)