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Gr 7-Up This collection of 12 stories is something of a mixed bag. Pat Brisson's opening selection, in which Carly, 16, runs a hilarious obstacle course through her high school to get to the girls' room, is lighthearted and entertaining. It is followed by a survey of depressed premenstrual young women from around the world. Alice McGill's "Moon Time Child" is a slave narrative in which Salome, 13, dreads her first period because it will render her a breeder. All is well, however, when a kind older woman finds a way for her ...Log In or Sign Up to Read More

Menstruation has made regular appearances in adolescent literature ever since Judy Blume's Margaret sent her false, wishful claim on a postcard: "I Got IT!!" Recent handbooks, such as Mavis Jukes's The Period Book, dispense useful information in a frank, breezy style that, thankfully, leaves the sterile fifth-grade health class behind. This fresh, original anthology, aimed at older readers, not only shoots straight about the perils and pleasures of monthly bleeding but downright glories in it. By way of introduction, Michelle Martin supplies "Snapshots in Blood," short takes of memories, from her first disg...Log In or Sign Up to Read More