Laid by Shan Boodram: A Book Review

Shan Boodram, also know as Shan Boody, is a clinical sexologist, relational counselor, wedding photographer, online sex educator, YouTuber, and an author.  Truthfully, I have no idea how she balances all of it, but she somehow manages to master everything she takes on.  I've adored Boodram for years now; despite how misunderstood her video on open relationships was, it helped me figure out what I wanted from a relationship.  Her work on promoting happy and healthy relationships can be largely attributed to why I just celebrated my two year anniversary.  With how long I have admired her work, it was only a matter of time before I got my hands on her book.

"Laid: Young People's Experiences with Sex in an Easy-Access Culture" was published in 2009, and made Boodram a Canadian Bestselling Author.  "Laid" solely featured the voices of young adults in order to share their stories in regards to sexually transmitted infections, virginity, sexual assault, and hookup culture.  There is also a section of her book dedicated to those that had positive experiences of love and sex to share, as well as a section for those that turned down sex, knowing full well that they were making the right decision for themselves.  Each chapter closes off with a Q&A section in which the contributors of the section answer frequently asked questions relating to their story or experience.  Each chapter also closes with an interactive check point to make sure you are following along and retaining the concepts the chapters are touching upon.

Boodram has always been wonderful at including other people's voices in her work.  She knows when to use her own voice as it is pertinent, but she also understands the value of hearing a variety of different experiences.  "Laid" contains dozens of submissions from young adults, aged 18-25, scattered across North America.  The collection of so many stories and experiences in one 300 page book provides perspective, clarity, and hopefully a bit of community.  Sex is something that has affected everyone, at least in some way.  While everyone's experiences are different, hopefully there are elements of these stories that can be found relatable, at least in some aspect.

The checkpoints at the end of each chapter are really the only educational sections of Boodram's book, and even then it is much more informative than educational.  For instance, the checkpoint at Chapter 3, which was the chapter about sexually transmitted infections, contained a myth or reality quiz about sexually transmitted infections.  Likewise, the checkpoint at Chapter 2, which was the chapter about positive sexual encounters, briefly mentioned what the G-spot is and where it's located in the vagina.  Most of the chapters have brief informative sections like that.  This book, however, is not meant to be educational; it's meant to cultivate a sex positive environment to learn about other people's sexual experiences.

Ultimately, I found "Laid: Young People's Experiences With Sex In An Easy-Access Culture" by Shan Boodram to be a well put-together and informative book.  I loved the way that Boodram showcased the voices of young adults and how she cultivated a welcoming and shame free environment for youth to share their stories about sex.  This book was not meant to be educational; it was meant to shed a little light into the darkness of sexuality and hopefully help some people feel that they are not alone in their experiences.  I feel like this book has accomplished just that.

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Would you like to know more about Shan Boodram?  Check out her website:

https://www.shanboodram.com/