A Quick & Easy Guide to Sex & Disability

A Quick & Easy Guide to Sex & Disability
The illustrated cover depicts a person in the foreground smiling with brown hair that is long on top and short on the sides. They are wearing a t-shirt and a scar shows at the nape of their neck. In the background, a large group of people of different sizes and ethnicities, with different disabilities stand together smiling.
AuthorA. Andrews
IllustratorA. Andrews
Cover artistA. Andrews
LanguageEnglish
SeriesQuick & Easy Guides
Release number
3
SubjectPeople with disabilities, sexual instruction
PublisherLimerence/Oni Press
Publication date
5 May 2020
Publication placeUnited States
Media typePrint
Pages70
ISBN9781620106945
OCLC1124305504
Preceded byA Quick & Easy Guide to Queer & Trans Identities 
Followed byA Quick & Easy Guide to Consent 
WebsiteOfficial website

A Quick & Easy Guide to Sex & Disability is a non-fiction comic book written and illustrated by A. Andrews. The book shares information on how to communicate and navigate sex for disabled audiences. It was published by Limerence/Oni Press in May 2020.

Synopsis

The comic book is about "sex, gender identity and communication in a way that's practical and honest, illustrated by bodies of all shapes, sizes, colors and abilities."[1] Narrated by A. Andrews, A Quick & Easy Guide to Sex & Disability is written for disabled audiences. It shares information on the basics of disability, how to communicate with sexual partners, and practical tips on how to have enjoyable sex that accommodates for different disabilities and bodies.[2]

Background

Cartoonist A. Andrews wanted to write a book that would fill the dearth of resources about sex that centered disabled people, and kept in mind what would have been useful to them when they were younger.[1] They used the theme of communication as the primary mechanism for navigating sex as a disabled person.[3] Andrews intentionally incorporated illustrations with myriad body sizes, disabilities, and skin tones.[4] The book is the third book in Oni Press's Quick & Easy series.[5]

A. Andrews is a queer disabled incomplete paraplegic cartoonist based in Minneapolis.[1] They have a background in art therapy and wrote a comic series, Oh Hey It's Alyssa, for the website Autostraddle.[1]

Publication

Reception

Critical reception

A Quick & Easy Guide to Sex & Disability received positive reception. Win Wiacek of Now Read This! described the book as "a chat session led by a person who's lived some of those difficulties and who uses passion, humour, common sense and earnest language to cope. Think here not about achieving sex, but rather making your version of sex better, if not best."[6] In a 5/5 star review, Holly Scudero of Seattle Book Review asserted that American society "refuses to even admit that disabled people have sexual feelings, much less discuss ideas about how to make sex more safe and accessible for them" and stated that the book "tackles these misconceptions with lighthearted humor and straight-talking accuracy."[3] Douglas Rednour of Library Journal referred to it as a "fun and informative guide, with clean, expressive art [that] delivers body positivity messages and nonmedical advice with a sense of mischievous, contagious fun."[2]

Publishers Weekly praised Andrews' narrative tone as "frank and enthusiastic" and "canny, appropriately explicit visuals, such as when laying out a variety of ways to use furniture to make sex more physically comfortable."[7] Johanna Draper Carlson of School Library Journal stated "throughout, A keeps a realistic but encouraging and optimistic attitude that's a great model for everyone, no matter their physical body, in how to deal with sex and intimacy."[5] Alaina Leary of Booklist called it "an important resource for both disabled people and allies that bridges gaps left in traditional sex education."[8]

Accolades

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c d Brown, Gretchen (2020-07-09). "Talking About Sex and Disability With Cartoonist A. Andrews". Rewire. Archived from the original on 2020-07-10. Retrieved 23 March 2021.
  2. ^ a b Rednour, Douglas (2020-05-02). "A Quick & Easy Guide to Sex & Disability". Library Journal. Archived from the original on 2020-09-18. Retrieved 2021-03-23.
  3. ^ a b Scudero, Holly. "A Quick & Easy Guide to Sex & Disability". Seattle Book Review. Archived from the original on 2020-10-01. Retrieved 2021-03-23.
  4. ^ McDowell, Princess (2020-12-17). "A Disability Graphic Novel That Makes Sex A 'Quick & Easy' Convo". Rebellious Magazine. Archived from the original on 2020-12-17. Retrieved 2021-03-23.
  5. ^ a b Draper Carlson, Johanna (2020-06-26). "Review: 'Quick and Easy Guides' From Limerence Press". School Library Journal. Archived from the original on 2020-07-06. Retrieved 2021-03-23.
  6. ^ Wiacek, Win (2020-05-30). "A Quick & Easy Guide to Sex & Disability". Now Read This!. Archived from the original on 2020-12-13. Retrieved 2021-03-23.
  7. ^ "Comics Book Review: A Quick and Easy Guide to Sex and Disability by A. Andrews". PublishersWeekly.com. 2020-02-26. Retrieved 2021-03-23.
  8. ^ Leary, Alaina (June 2020). "A Quick & Easy Guide to Sex & Disability". The Booklist. 116: 58–59 – via ProQuest.
  9. ^ "Best Books for Teens 2020". The New York Public Library. Retrieved 2021-03-23.
  10. ^ ALAM (2021-01-05). "2021 Great Graphic Novels for Teens". Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA). Retrieved 2021-03-23.
  11. ^ "Great Graphic Novels (#GGN2021) Nominees Round Up, August 20 Edition". YALSA The Hub. 2020-08-20. Archived from the original on 2020-10-21. Retrieved 2021-03-23.