Vaginas: An Owner's Manual

by Carol Livoti, Elizabeth Topp

An engaging, thorough, and much-needed explanation of the working vagina, Vaginas is a book of accessible facts written by down-to-earth authors whose only agenda is female education. The authors (the mother is an ob/gyn, the daughter a writer) avoid the flowery language and feminist agenda of other books on the subject. They take readers from the mood swings of puberty to the hot flashes of menopause with warmth, humor, and candor. Subjects include the lowdown on hymens, a word on waxing, tips on retrieving lost items, heavy periods, working out the vagina, significant problems (STDs, ectopic pregnancies, fibroids, yeast infections, herpes), ways to keep an aging body performing, and the fun stuff — sex.

Genres: Nonfiction, Health, Feminism, Sexuality

256 pages, Paperback

First published August 16, 2004

Reviews

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent book for women of all ages and understandings of vaginas. It's an obstetrician/gynecologist and her 28-year-old daughter working on this project together. It's definitely a labor of love filled with good information, fun tidbits, historical nuggets and even some tough personal experiences. It's real and really good.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dr. Livoti and her daughter have really caught the right balance between informative women's health title and an engaging conversational book about women's issues. The book is pretty comprehensive in the range of women's issues covered, starting with basic issues of anatomy, periods, and visits to the gynecologist, and continuing on to separate chapters about sex, contraception, STDs, abortions, reproduction, and menopause, and finishing with a few chapters on medical problems of the various parts of the female genitalia.

This not your one-stop for all the gynecological information you could ever need, but it really does live up to the owner's manual subtitle, providing information on all the issues you should be aware of as the owner of a vagina, with directions for getting more information when you need it. While men are clearly not the target audience of this book, it is written so accessibly that my husband quickly found himself reading through the first few chapters one night when I left the book laying around within his reach.

[Janelle]

Hands down the most amusing non-fiction book about anatomy that you will ever read. This book tells you facts that you honestly would never know about the female nether region, on a number of topics from abortion to STDs. All of this is occasionally interjected with humourous anecdote from one of the authors of the book, who practiced gynaecology. If you're looking to figure out your own body, or just want some lulz, read this.

[Andrea · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted to love this book. Sadly, it was not my favorite. In many sections, it felt like an endorsement for hormonal birth control without offering the updated and pertinent information regarding the long-term side effects of BC. Other parts were very informative around the vulva, vagina and sex organs.

[Ana Widia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I still remember the first time I found this book was in our university's library. What made me intrigued with this book was, to be honest, the cover itself, hahahaha. I know, it's silly. But hey, don't judge me! the cover is so colourful and has a big title imprinted on that which says "VAGINA" and I was like "Hey, I think this book would be exciting to read!" because, you know, usually in university's library, the books you'd see are those kind of books which cover look so dull and lame and boring. So, that day I asked myself why not to try to read this one and I, honestly, made a good decision because, wow, this book, is not like those boring text-book which your professor demands you to read to.

This book, suprisingly, is easy to read. It doesn't have many kind of medical-terms which you can't understand. If it's there the author will generously make a note and translate it in words that amateurs can grasp. What makes it more intriguing is the author herself is an obstetrician/gynecologist who has had many experiences in her field. You'll find many notes in this book which contents her experiences as obgynist (?) (cmiiw) and sometimes it's so freaking hillarious, hahahaha. This book will also change you prespective about vagina and unfold things about that thing which you, women, never ever know before . About what vagina exactly is,how you should treat it, how it works etc.

This era isn't a period where you're being shy when 'this thing' mentioned because it's taboo and too vulgar. That era has long gone and today, be open-minded, a modest woman isn't judged by that again. Because honestly, it irks me to death, that whenever I showed this book to my friends they thought this book is a book which an adult can only read and us as a new adult doesn't fit to read that kind of book and I think they are simply narrow-minded. Don't be like that--ever! It's time to know everything about your body has and how to manage it carefully in order to protect your body from whatever that screams harmful.

[Su · Rating 2 out of 5]

Nunca se sabe lo suficiente sobre vaginas, y este libro me lo demostró. Una ginecóloga y su hija escritora de treinta años crean esta propuesta que informa, entretiene, educa y sensibiliza de una forma sencilla y sin moralizar. Es un libro versátil que podría regalar a unas cuantas amigas, discutirlo con mis hermanas, y proponerlo para la biblioteca de una escuela.

Puede leerse de manera lineal, al azar, o eligiendo temas de interés desde el índice. Los capítulos recorren todo aquello que una propietaria de vagina (de cualquier edad) y su pareja deberían saber: desde las características físicas, la primera visita al ginecólogo detallada paso por paso para aquellas sin la experiencia de alguien más, hasta los principales mitos alrededor de las vaginas y la ginecología. Por supuesto también hay capítulos detallados sobre los distintos tipos de enfermedades, métodos anticonceptivos y opciones para lidiar con la menstruación, todo esto aderezado con notas, anécdotas de una madre ginecóloga, y datos interesantes según el tema.

Aún contando con una basta red de información virtual, jamás había encontrado en Internet un tratamiento de información sobre vaginas tan ameno y conciso, por lo que lo considero una adquisición valiosa, más si se cuenta con adolescentes o mujeres alrededor con lagunas de información sobre su propia vagina.

[Vicky · Rating 4 out of 5]

So this book is pretty much alot of my beliefs. It makes abortion looks like the best option in all situation and praises masturbation (im not against it this I just dont do it). It is very feminist driven so if you are offended easily you may not want to read this. I am pretty open-minded so when my sister gave this to me I read it and found it very insteresting becuase it was half written by a gynocologist so the imformation is pretty accurate. Just a note: This book made me want to vomit when it wrote about aborition as taking "waste contents" out of your body and made me firmly believe that I am pro-life, so good job pro-choice book! It has a lots of good info about vagina related things like yeast infections and such.

[Christina E · Rating 4 out of 5]

This mother and daughter team offer useful information in an informal and friendly way. I found it a fascinating and informative book that I think every female should read. And heck, guys will probably find some of the information interesting as well. More often than not I found myself interrupting my fiance to tell him some tidbit I'd just read.

There's quite a bit here that I already knew, but felt it a nice sex ed refresher. There is also a lot that can go wrong with the vagina, but the information is presented matter-of-factly and helpful preventative measures are provided.

Do your kegels!

[Whitney · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you have a vagina, you should read this book. It talks about everything from sex to pregnancy, cancer, infections, menopause, and what to expect from your gynecologist. It is written by a gynecologist and her adult daughter, with lots of witty stories and commentary throughout. Another one I thought should be give to all women everywhere.

[Louann · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mine tho is a black cover.

I saw this and I just HAD to pick it up.. and it is amazing. It's basically a health book but it is like Vaginas 101 that your mum and school never taught you.

Definately a good read.

[Crytle Creki · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is good for both men and women who have experienced sex ed united states style! It could be much more informative but it does what it can for a reader who may have a short attention span. Generally it sends good messages. Plus, who doesn't like a good read up on vaginas here and there.

[Rob · Rating 4 out of 5]

Something that should be on every girl's bookshelf. Refreshing to find a book aimed at younger women that is pro positive sexual experiences for women. (Though there are a few dated shots at men that seem out of place).

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you have a vagina, you should read this. If you frequent a vagina, or hope to one day, you should read this too.

[Ellen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Do you have a vagina? Read this book.

[Megan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent. Everyone with a vagina should read it. But be prepared because the cancer section is freaky.

[cjbt57 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Who knew our vajayjays were so fascinating! Seriously, though, you must read this if you want answers to a lot of the weird questions about your body that you've never asked your doctor.

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

amazing. informational and funny, every girl needs to read this!

[Ashley Holstrom · Rating 4 out of 5]

I want to give this book to every woman I know. Witty and informative and chock full of little tidbits of gynecological history.

[Alyisha · Rating 2 out of 5]

Somewhere between 2 & 3 stars -- closer to 3, I suppose (but only because it was informative, not because it was entertaining).

I found this book to be much less humorous than it was touted to be. Sure, Livoti & Topp are blunt and modern - but that doesn't automatically equal "funny."

I learned some interesting factoids (humpback whales go through menopause; pregnancy tests involved rats up through the 60's) and some useful information (everyday panties should really be cotton. While cotton panties aren't the sexiest, synthetic materials heighten vaginal temperature which promotes fungus growth (yuck!)) -- but honestly, I couldn't wait to be done reading.

This wasn't a useless book...but I found it to be a bit (ahem) "dry." I have to imagine that similar books have been written since 2004, with a narrative voice I'd appreciate more.

[Meg · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was just ok. As our book club discussed, if you are a teenager or a preteen this book might provide useful and important information. The author team used some questionable vocabulary terms, and possibly too many mixed metaphors in sections, leaving me annoyed with the choices. The book is not very balanced either, they are very upfront about being biased a certain way in certain issues. Some of the information is also outdated at this point.

There were also some weird formatting issues: numerous spelling and grammatical mistakes, and the way that it was published leaves the pages looking grainy as if the copier had problems. Apparently this carried over to the Kindle version, but why?!

[Rachel · Rating 2 out of 5]

Two stars because, while informative, this book was not as entertaining as I had expected. I did learn some new, useful information. However, the book was riddled with typos and some odd word choices.