Period Matters: Menstruation in South Asia [Paperback] Ahamed, Farah

This book is informative and eye opening. I like how the book took various forms of expression like art, dance, prose and poetry from different regions and compiled them to showcase an uniform picture. This book made me a more empathetic and grateful person, as I understood how privileged I am to have access to feminine hygiene products. Writing has been kept simple so everyone can read this book.

In Period Matters, Farah Ahamed has persistently gathered numerous such stories and situations of ladies who have been handling the feminine cycle. Similar to my own story, little kids are much of the time not taught about how bodies advance during adolescence and are left confused exclusively to be made sense of after it works out. Numerous nations follow comparative ceremonies, precluding ladies from entering the kitchen or even from contacting anything. She meets numerous ladies from various monetary foundations to understand what it means for them. Once in a while, it's difficult to accept that we are living in the 21st century, regardless of whether we practice such silly ceremonies.The book shows how our lived encounters as ladies, as individuals as they made, hardened sisterhood, not just during the period (as seen by how ladies share clothes in the jails), but additionally during menopause. The exceptional strings that go through every part have enhanced how I keep on understanding the feminine cycle and figure it out in my existence.Highly recommended!

𝐐𝐮𝐨𝐭𝐞:"A pathbreaking anthology on the diverse experiences of menstruation in South Asia."𝐏𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧:I really think that the book cover, which highly resonates with the content, could have been a little better. The title though, is very appropriate.The book comes along with relevant and artistic pictures and graphics.𝐍𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧:The write up is not limited to one language. The overall vocabulary used is lucid. The narration is fast paced in general. The book being an anthology, comes along with a diverse writing style and techniques.𝐎𝐩𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐨𝐧:What impressed me the most, is that this book stands against the stereotypes and bursts the myth that goes around periods.The content, clears out the air, explaining that it is not something to be ashamed about.The book also talks about menopause, which I feel, is much more needed. Nowadays, periods are something that people are gradually getting comfortable with, but menopause is still a topic kept in the dark.Further mention of authors like Elena Ferrante and Ismat Chughtai, made the book more interesting and inspiring.There are stories, write ups, poems and poetic verses. The content is very engaging.It can be a good pick for literally anyone. This is something that everyone, irrespective of gender, should be aware and comfortable with.

This incredible anthology contains stories, essays, interviews, poems, and art on menstruation. It was through this book that I got to know about Menstrala, which is art inspired by menstruation. I found it to be fascinating and powerful! This book has not only mentioned the steps that have already been taken in breaking the taboo around menstruation but has also mentioned the steps that can be further taken to provide menstrual education and resources for proper hygiene and health. I felt so happy and lucky when I first read this book a few weeks back. It gave me hope for a better future! I so wish to have read this as a teenager. It would have helped me a lot. When I read the stories and the poems, I felt seen. The shame you feel when you get a stain is very real and the very extreme measures one takes to just keep it a secret only do harm to both physical and mental health. This book is revolutionary and powerful, and I so wish that more and more people read it. Especially the teenagers who are still trying to figure out why there is so much shame and secrecy associated with a completely natural biological process.❤❤❤

This book provides a lot of information and is very illuminating. I admire the fact that it took various forms of expression such as art, prose, and poetry from various parts of the world and brought them together to create a coherent picture. Reading this book has made me more understanding and thankful because today I am 29 years old and I realize how lucky I am to be able to access all those sanitary pads as they used to call them when we were young. The style of writing is kept easy so that anyone can read and understand this book.There are paintings of menstrala, which is art inspired by menstruation. It ranges from an essay in pictures by Rupi Kaur, oils paintings by Anish Kapoor, neo-miniaturist art by Shahzia Sikander, to Sarah Naqvi’s embroidery. Young people’s wall murals in Jharkhand also have photographs in this book. The book also has a photo gallery of Sarah Naqvi’s embroidery. The works of Amna Mawaz Khan are seen through the choreography of her menstrual dance.Farah Ahamed engages, enlightens, and educates on a subject that is ‘taboo,’ in a book that makes its readers feel the lives of many people easily and attractively, a book you want to read while lying on the beach. This is the kind of interesting book that can make one understand about a thing where they do not even bother about it, something readers should watch. Reading Period Matters benefits everyone.