Rating: - Wonderful in 1975, and still is
My parents read both this book and "Where did I come from?" to me when they were first published in the mid-seventies (I was born in 1970). I don't remember feeling awkward or embarrassed about the books. I was at an age where everything was pre-sexual. I had no social hang-ups about my body parts. I remember very clearly starting elementary school about this time and I was able to understand what all the innuendos were about. Yes, sexual innuendos by many other children that couldn't have been older than nine. I remember other kids laughing at the girl who really believed that children came from the cabbage patch! I remember one of my friends crying and running to her mother when she caught our friend Kenny using the toilet while standing up. She though he had a horrible tumor.
Rating: - I loved this book...
I think I'll make it a tradition in my family! My mom gave me this book when I was growing up, and I swear I read it cover to cover each day!! I loved the illustrations; I thought they eased the transition from Uncomfy-with-the-whole-puberty-thing to Yay!-I'm a Woman!! :P I'd recommend it.
Rating: - Excellent resource for fifth grade up
I read this book last night with my almost 11-year-old son. I felt we needed to cover the basics before the fifth grade covered it later in the school year. We'd read Mayle's Where Did I Come From a few weeks ago and he and his third-grade brother cracked up all through that. This time I caught him alone, let him stay up late with me and it was a great mom-son start. I read it out loud and we editorialized (we're a pretty liberal family but there's still parent editorializing to be done on this subject for everyone). When I got to the girl questions, I asked if I should read those or skip them and he said "read them, I guess" so I think my timing was right and the material was accessible to him. I've got my husband primed to jump in as well but I think two parents and the book all at once would have felt like an FBI raid. Good coverage of the subject, not too scary. I do think there's an unmet market need for a book for the 12-15 crowd, this book is too young for that age and most of the other books I've found are too old.
- Wonderful in 1975, and still is