English
MG & Up
Bodies
Menstruation
Nonfiction
Global Community
Tara Costello & Mary Purdie
summary
This book is awesome! All sorts of humans menstruate, NOT just women. I really appreciate how this book focuses on cold, hard, facts that aim to destigmatize and open up conversations about periods and menstruation into the open instead of accepting those run of the mill adverts on TV that use blue droplets to advertise period products.
I particularly enjoy the information about how periods can differ between folks in color, consistency, and frequency. The “Around the World in 30 Periods” section was also quite enlightening, and discusses menstruation culture around the globe. There are also direct quotes from different folks who menstruate, and how bringing up their experiences in a medical setting can be both helpful and harmful. We’re still very much in a society (in the US) where needed scientific and medically accurate information about menstruation is in short supply. I personally didn’t learn very much at all about what I could anticipate happening to my body in health class, and all of my health classes were very gendered. In the book is also a section about inclusive language, and appropriate linguistic shifts that we can start right away in order to be more mindful about gender inclusivity when discussing periods and menstruation. There is also a plethora of resources in the back, with a global lens. Overall, Red Moon Gang is absolutely fantastic and it will be my go-to educational gift for all the young people in my life.
Red Moon Gang was kindly sent by Prestel, but all opinions and decisions to review are my own.
Featured image for this post found here.
Tara Costello
Writer and influencer Tara Costello (she/her) has been writing about menstruation for more than a decade. In 2015, she was one of the people who led the viral response to the controversial Protein World advertising campaign in tube stations, which received a lot of media coverage and was the subject of various university lectures, as well as leading to a spot on Stylist’s ‘Fearless Feminists of 2015’ list. It also prompted the London mayor to ban all body-shaming media from the London Underground. She has since gone on to found and manage a number of award-winning (and -losing) blogs; in 2015, she was shortlisted for ‘Best Relationship & Sex Blog’ at Cosmopolitan’s Blog Awards and shortlisted again the following year for ‘Best Sex & Relationships Influencer’. In 2016, at the UK Blog Awards, a blog she co-founded was highly commended within the ‘Education’ category.
Although the blogs have come and gone, Tara has continued to write and tackle more difficult topics. She’s known for her ability to make information rightly more accessible and inclusive. She has been published by Metro, Playboy and more. Her debut book Red Moon Gang came out in 2021 and through her work she hopes to inspire people from all walks of life to view periods differently.
Mary Purdie
Mary Purdie is an illustrator based in Los Angeles, California. She draws inspiration from her personal experiences to create art that amplifies discussions around topics like grief, healing, personal growth, and mental health. Mary’s mission is to continue creating heartfelt artwork that resonates, comforts and creates a community where vulnerable conversations are welcomed and embraced. Mary recently worked on “She Rises: Uplifting Words for Anxious Girls”, an illustrated poetry book written by TED Speaker, Katie Zeppieri, that takes readers on a mental health journey from darkness to light.