Common sense is a historical category - and none of our questions around sex and gender are really new
Category: gender
‘Just practising’? The history of Adam’s rib
What about that spare rib?
Talking about the book
(updated updated May 2025) Getting out the message about a new book mostly means podcasts, I've found. That's great because you can do the recording from your home, and also podcast hosts are generally very lively and so the level of energy is high. So here is a short list of the ones I've done… Continue reading Talking about the book
‘Trade’ books and ‘academic’ books – what’s that about?
I've been getting excited recently about the final stage before publication of my next book, Immaculate Forms, a history of women's bodies told through four parts: breasts, clitoris, hymen, womb. It's easy to remember the order of the chapters because it's alphabetical, but that wasn't why I did it this way: instead, I am going… Continue reading ‘Trade’ books and ‘academic’ books – what’s that about?
The moving clitoris
I've been thinking this week about the Ghana 'Family Values' draft Bill and its clause 23 which would "assist" (their word) parents in securing surgery for a child with variation in sex characteristics. Considering the amount of evidence out there on the danger of such surgery on children - the story of David Reimer is… Continue reading The moving clitoris
Mistaking histories 