Have you ever felt like your sex education was less than adequate?

Or perhaps that your gender or sexual identity wasn’t even acknowledged?

Did it feel more like you were taught about the dangers of sex and the logistics of heterosexual reproduction rather than pleasure?

Or perhaps you have a young teen asking you some hard to answer questions about anatomy, sex, pleasure or masturbation and want to be a good resource for them but don’t know where to start. If any of these things are jumping out at you, then Girl Sex 101 might be the perfect book for you.

This masterpiece that was written by Allison Moon and illustrated by KD Diamond is educational, funny, cute, deep and gentle, especially after the gross under-education most of us received from high school sex ed. It is mostly directed towards queer women and trans women but is accessible for everyone. Although it is a sex education book, there is no age limit in order for this book to be highly insightful. The book is set up to be a road trip from Vancouver to San Diego, and every chapter is a stop along that drive. We start out with the basics, things like puberty, anatomy and so on. However, what separates this book from most others in the genre is that it is inclusive of trans bodies and identities within the process of puberty. This is a big win for people whose identities fall within the LGBTQIA+ community, as we are often ignored in mainstream sex education.

Other areas that are ignored by the mainstream but made up for in this book are consent and communication. Which, let’s be honest, are pivotal in having good sex and healthy intimate relationships, but unfortunately are skipped over a lot of the time. Girl Sex 101 not only teaches you how to understand yourself but also how to understand others. Things like inclusive language, how to communicate your feelings or past experiences. How to feel connected to your sensuality after sexual abuse and how to communicate and be intimate with someone who has a history of sexual abuse. The list goes on and on. For me, this book was a healing experience, no judgement, no rights or wrongs, no feeling excluded or left out of the conversation, this book puts you right in the driver’s seat of your body and your pleasure.

As well as being deep, gentle and highly educational it is also cheeky and fun. You’ve got little illustrations to assist you in giving yourself and others pleasure. How to use your hand or your mouth in giving pleasure. There are tutorials on lubes and sex toys, using strap-ons, sex toys for transgender people. In all honesty, this book covers all the important things that most of us wish would have been covered for us in earlier sex education. There is no criteria that you need to meet in order for this book to be highly insightful and resourceful. So if you’re looking for a re-education of sex education, this is where you start.

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