Sex Is a Funny Word: A Book about Bodies, Feelings, and YOU

Cory Silverberg and Fiona Smyth have done it again! This book is so wonderful on so many levels. I highly recommend it for kids as young as 6 who are asking sex-related questions -- while they may not get all of the information, there are some great chapters on consent/touch, anatomy and masturbation that are helpful for younger kids, so you can go chapter by chapter depending on your child. I love the discussion format, with great prompts after each chapter so you can talk to your kids about what you just read, gage what they understood, and how they are feeling about it. It is truly inclusive, using language throughout the book that includes all kinds of kids, bodies and genders. This is so important to explain to all children, however they identify. Even cisgendered children need to know, or at least be reminded, it's really OK to break out of the relentlessly pink girls section and the blue boys section of every store you enter. Most importantly trust, joy, justice, and respect are themes woven throughout the book, laying the foundation for a healthy attitude towards bodies and sexuality. I am recommending this book to all the other parents I know! -Norene Leddy www.sexedproject.org *I also highly recommend "What Makes A Baby" for younger kids, it was one of my daughter's favorite books of all time. What Makes a Baby

When my 9-year-old came home and told me a “funny” joke that his BFF said at school, I knew it was time to start properly educating him about sex and sexuality. This book meant to be read with an adult, so some of the reading is above-grade-level. My son loved the drawings and comics. It all felt very relatable to him. We both enjoyed answering the questions posed, which helped me humanize myself and put our families values and mores into context. They repeatedly emphasize key words: trust, respect, justice, and joy. The book doesn’t take itself too seriously. My son and I had plenty of good laughs, and I was still provided the joy of grossing him out a couple of times. I was very impressed by the section on gender identity. They also reframe the idea of “private parts”, renaming them “middle parts”. The rationale is that any part of your body can be private.

For people looking for a non-book, this is about as awesome as it can get. Line drawings of kids and adults of every color, shape, size and even sexual orientation (including transgender child who isn't sure where to go!) Are just a few of the things that made this book my choice for my two sons, ages 9 & 12. I even live that the default penis is uncircumcised! I have been liking high and low for a book that offhand mentions circumcision and does not depict it as the norm. It doesn't get into the mechanics of sex, sperm, ova, uterus, tested and making a baby. It's 4 kids learning about their bodies and beginning to explore and talk together about their bodies and the divergent tours that exist in the world. It's a very colorful, friendly comic-style book that I actually had fun reading together with my dyslexic 12 year old, who has trouble with that comic written word (not type face though).HR was comfortable too. We have a very open/ "natural" house and pretty much of you come over, you're bound to find at least a naked 5 year old and maybe a roles mom (me). My boys just sleep in underwear and love to swim in the Caribbean au natural (who wouldn't?)... In other words we are already aware that my 12 year old is already on his journey and now he knows what to expect. It's great. Although I could and do explain anything to them at anytime (I'm a teacher... I'm good at that :) ) it's great to know that my children trust me. I want them to have access to everything they need. It opened the door for a discussion about condoms and why a boy should wear them every time they have sex (YouTube... The internet... They know something comes out of a penis and makes a girl pregnant). There are no STDs or anything. It is a very VERY good first book about sex. I think it would be a FANTASTIC first book in a serious about sex. This us about bodies. Two more books could nicely and imaginatively (while giving the facts) cover the rest. The fact that the children characters (4 main) in the book are talking about the information in different ways is brilliant. Props to the authors!

This book has lots of helpful interesting discussions about touch (touching yourself, secret touching (never good), hugs, gender, relationships, and some very basic information about what vulvas and penises look like. I think it was interesting for my son who is starting to be more curious and has graduated from What Makes a Baby. But honestly, he needed some more basic info about how sex works and what body parts are what and what is going on a puberty. I would highly suggest this book to families who want to allow for more flexible understandings of gender and be open with kids in talking about sex and relationships and not stigmatizing sex as bad or wrong or shameful. I think it is a really well done book. But I am giving it four stars because I don't think it would have been difficult to include some more specific information about body parts and how sex works in an age appropriate way. Also the colors are great, but it would be nice for there to be a few pictures of body parts with various human-colored drawings so that my son doesn't get the impression that penises can be green and vulvas can be blue. Overall I love this author and his approach and find it very helpful for our children, but there were just a few things missing that I think could have been helpful.

Although I see great value in this book and appreciate the openness and variety of sexual topics, I didn't feel 8 was the ideal age, did not feel appropriate yet. I'll be waiting a year before reevaluating if its the right time to crack it open with my child.

Great book as an introduction when your kids start to have questions. Bought for my 9.5 year old son. I would recommend reading with your child at their pace. I appreciate the cartoon examples of body parts. I was so glad to see intact male examples and foreskin mentioned! I also like the comic book style, as it keeps the kids interested. I love the discussion on consent, justice and respect through out the book. There is a section on questioning gender and talking about how everyone is beautiful and different. Transgender folks are a part of society that are here to stay, so I am glad different genders are mentioned. If you are concerned about a "political agenda" or "this book is pushing LBGTQIA+ agenda!!", this book is not for you, maybe try the christian bookstore.

Every kid deserves to have this book! Gave shared language and then main character kids asked lots of open-ended questions that spur easy conversations.

My 9-year-old son had been pelting me with questions about sex for a couple of months. I did my best to answer, but I could tell his curiosity was so extensive he didn’t know how to ask what he wanted to know. I combed through reviews of dozens of sex education books, eventually decided to take a chance on this one, and am so glad I did! This book tells kids the truth about the human body, including simple yet anatomically-correct illustrations. The best thing about how this book handles what can be a sensitive topic is that it is very inclusive, going to extensive lengths to assure the reader that every body is different, but every body is good. There’s also an admirable amount of content on the importance of consent. We had fun reading this together, and when he’d finished the book, my son displayed it front and center on his bookshelf 😂 I can tell not only that he’s extremely grateful that I took the time to answer his questions, but that his confidence has increased because he feels like he knows all about sex (and indeed he does...in an age-appropriate way!)