Doing It! Let’s Talk About Sex by Hannah Witton

Title: Doing It! Let’s Talk About Sex
Author: Hannah Witton
Genre: Identity, Non-Fiction, Sex Education
Publisher: Wren & Rook (6th April 2017)
Blurb:

Sexting. Virginity. Consent. The Big O . . .

Let’s face it, doing it can be tricksy. I don’t know anyone (including myself) who has sex all figured out. So I’ve written a book full of honest, hilarious (and sometimes awkward) anecdontes, confessions and revelations. And because none of us have all the answers, I’ve invited some friends to talk about their sexuality, too.

We talk about doing it safely. Doing it joyfully. Doing it when you’re ready. Not going it. Basically, doing it the way you want, when you want. So. Let’s do this . . .

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4 stars)
Review:

DOING IT! LET’S TALK ABOUT SEX by Hannah Witton is a book I have been curious about since I first heard Witton mention it on her YouTube channel. I’m in the same boat as Witton (and a lot of other people) in that I don’t think sex/sexuality/relationships/sexual health is talked about enough whether that’s at a school level or between friends/family members/partners. DOING IT! covers a wide variety of topics within this spectrum, though most are only briefly touched on, and serves as something of a handbook to point people in the right direction as well as expand (a bit) on SRE/PSHE lessons.

I thought DOING IT! was an interesting and informative read. The book is split into twelve chapters, has an introduction and a conclusion, as well as a list of resources and an index. I really enjoyed the interspersing of information with anecdotes – most from Witton herself, but also from friends/people she knows who have experience in the area. The book has a very chatty style, and it definitely feels like Witton is talking directly to you – as I was reading this book I could almost hear her voice as I read. The information is well presented, easy to follow and understand.

DOING IT! covers everything from body image to virginity to porn to lbgtq+ to STIs to consent, to name a few. The book itself is a little over three hundred pages, and whilst it touches on a lot of important things it doesn’t cover everything – as Witton admits in a video on her YouTube channel (Things I Would Do Differently) that there are things that she would have liked to cover have more on, or handle differently in the book. With that said, what Witton does cover I think she covers well both in terms of factual and anecdotal accounts.

As a basic introduction to sex ed I think DOING IT! does an okay job, but where I think it does best is as an adjunct to sex ed classes. I think DOING IT! would work well as an aid to expand reader’s knowledge after they’ve learnt a bit about the basics. It would be a brilliant, helpful book to those who just want to know more about sex and relationships and their body whatever their age. Although I am not the age this book is marketed at, and although nothing in it was particularly surprising, I did find it an interesting and enjoyable read regardless – especially some of the anecdotes in the book as some of the experiences are so different from my own.