Overall an interesting book, but some chapters are better than others. The one on the brain really drags and honestly the one on menopause adds nothing. The last chapter is a bit all over the place and really has a lot of conjecture in it, I felt. Worth it for the early chapters, which were quite informative.

A really fantastic book about how evolution has shaped the female body. The author doesn't shy away from difficult questions - are men smarter than women? Stronger? Are we made to be monogamous?- but dives headfirst into the research in order to find an answer, whatever it may be. 

The stories about the various Eves were so vivid and touching, and even with the earliest, four-legged mammal, I felt a connection and an admiration for the little animal that came before us. It was interesting to note that when discussing our ancestors, the author used "Eves" or feminine pronouns- you don't notice how strongly the lens is on the male body until the narrative shifts and it feels out of the ordinary. 

The book relates mainly to genetically XX and XY individuals, but the author is careful to point out that 1) sex is not the same as gender, and 2) there are more biological sexes than the XX and XY "norm". She includes any relevant research on queer bodies when available, but notes the lack of research available and the need for further study into different types of bodies. 

I learned some seriously gross body facts, but was hooked the whole way through. 

Enjoyability  ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Impact ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

I liked it, an informative book. Only gripe is the way the author inherently uses men as the default, i.e. “women do x just as good as men”, as if men are the gold standard.