Bel Olid

A woman’s life is different. This is clear when a stranger’s catcall makes her feel targeted in the street. When politicians make off-the-cuff sexist remarks. When media commentators wade in with their condemnation of free, unrestricted abortion. When a father is praised to the skies for attending parents’ evening while the mother’s attendance is taken for granted. When they fire...

Following our desires and sharing pleasure sounds easy, right? Yet, our sexualities are conditioned by expectations, prejudices, and taboos that make it difficult to listen to our own bodies, let alone anyone else’s. Bel Olid clears away the taboos and invites readers to explore pathways to more connected sexualities and more pleasurable relationships. Because perhaps the first thing we need...

Razors, tweezers, wax, and hair removal creams: these are the tools for the initiation rites that signal the passage from girl to woman. Today, the only acceptable places for a woman to have hair are on her head (preferably long), her eyebrows (not too wild), and eyelashes (not too sparse). All kinds of cosmetics are sold to achieve the desired...