Sexuality: A Graphic Guide Review

"Sexuality: A Graphic Guide" by Meg-John Barker and Jules Scheele is a book that instead of trying to sell us a solution or an easy-fix to general anxieties and questions around sexuality and sex itself, focus instead on examining why those anxieties exist and giving its readers tools and information not to change themselves but be more comfortable with who they are.

General Impressions

I gotta be honest: this cover is beautiful and the only reason why I picked this book. By the time I realized this wasn't "The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina: The Teenage Witch" graphic novel, I was already hooked.

Although it's possible I may have come across some of this author's previous books (Queer: A Graphic History and Gender: A Graphic Guide) online, I went into this one completely blind and devoid of any expectations.

I thought that at the very least, this would act as a good companion to Netflix's Sex Education or any other sex-focused teen-friendly show by providing teens with an introduction to the concept of consent, some half-baked if well-meaning LGBTQ+ aimed chapters, anatomy lessons and some sex advice that went beyond a list of STDs.

Instead of focusing on the physical act, this truly is a book about sexuality, with sex being only a part of it. This guide touches on themes such as sexual orientation, gender identity, desire, libido, mental health, self-pleasure, class, race, privilege, history, science and a thousand different other things and how all of those intersect.

Practically every page has a cartoon of a psychologist, doctor, activist, philosopher or historian with an informative quote that is further expanded upon by the authors who are careful to support everything they write down with further sources, even providing an extensive "Further Resources" and bibliography pages at the end of the book. I also particularly liked how every one of these quotes was illustrated by a caricature of its author no matter if dead or alive because I liked seeing not only their diversity of race, creed and age but just to know their faces, which academics usually aren't afforded with rare exceptions to the rich or really famous (male) ones.

Conclusions

I like to read extensively about gender and sexuality in general and still left this book not only knowing more about others but myself. If you are LGBTQ+ particularly, books that don't treat your life and experience as an afterthought to the real problems facing straight/cis couples are still very hard to find, and this one makes sure to address not only that reality but makes sure to see themes from a non-white/cis/male perspective.

Throughout all the book I only have two pet peeves: that the illustrations, despite incredibly beautiful, informative and diverse were often hard to read in a digital medium and that there was no glossary at the end of it. I was ecstatic with the number of sexual orientations and gender identities portrayed in this book but a lot of those terms are still pretty new and known only to people inside a certain community.

Thank you to Edelweiss+ and Icon Books for this DRC.

Rating: 5/5