This anthology, edited by MK Czerwiec, aka, The Comic Nurse, takes up the rarely discussed theme of menopause. Outside of last year's Flash Count Diary by Darcey Steinke and 2014's The Madwoman in the Volvo: My Year of Raging Hormones by Sandra Tsing Loh, I can't think of anything else I've seen on the topic, which for me and many women I know, is a, uh, a hot one (sorry).
MK has assembled a diverse and talented group of comics artists to explore questions like, just what exactly is going on with our bodies, why, and what does it all mean. What does it mean for someone who doesn't connect with femininity, or never felt at home in a female body? Some, like MK, have a background in healthcare as practitioners and/or teachers of healthcare practitioners who are involved in the burgeoning field of graphic medicine. The collection includes some of my favorite cartoonists--Linda Barry, Mimi Pond, and Carol Tyler. Barry's long meditation on the experience of coming back to the person she was before she started menstruating was funny and poignant, and articulated something I have felt, too. And Mimi Pond has a hilarious take on the shedding of all last fucks that lies on the other side of the rollercoaster ride. I discovered some new to me artists whose work I loved for its visual style, visual storytelling and writing, among them, Emily Steinberg and Dana Walrath. It's a beautifully produced book with lots of full-color pages, well worth the $26.
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