Books to Inspire: March 2026

Unwell Women: A Journey Through Medicine and Myth in a Man-Made World

By Elinor Cleghorn

Unwell Women is a riveting and necessary history of women’s health told through centuries of medical misunderstanding, cultural myth, and systemic dismissal. Cleghorn traces how women’s bodies have long been treated as mysterious, unstable, or untrustworthy, revealing how those narratives shaped diagnoses and care in a “man-made” medical world. What makes this book powerful is not only the history itself, but the space it gives to women’s lived experiences—pain, illness, trauma, and ultimately resistance.

Unwell Women shows how knowledge becomes agency. By naming the biases and myths that still linger in today’s clinics, Cleghorn encourages modern readers to advocate for themselves, trust their own bodies, and support one another through every stage of womanhood. This is a vital, eye-opening read for anyone interested in women’s wellbeing, equity in healthcare, and the reclamation of power through truth.

Unwell Women: A Journey Through Medicine and Myth in a Man-Made World by Elinor Cleghorn was published in the United Kingdom by Weidenfeld & Nicolson in 2021. Cleghorn is a writer, researcher, and academic whose work explores the intersections of feminism, medicine, and cultural history. A copy can be found in the non-fiction section of Neilson Hays Library.

Bodies Are Cool

Written and illustrated by Tyler Feder

Bodies Are Cool is a joyful, celebratory picture book that invites young readers to see bodies of all kinds as normal, wonderful, and worth appreciating. Through bright illustrations and rhythmic text, Tyler Feder showcases a wide spectrum of skin tones, body shapes and sizes, hair textures, disabilities, scars, birthmarks, and gender expressions. What makes this book genuinely special is how it centers representation without making it feel like a lesson—it’s simply a party where every body is welcome.

Bodies Are Cool supports foundational body literacy and self-esteem. For young readers, seeing diverse bodies portrayed confidently encourages early acceptance of variations in bodies, reduces shame, and builds a sense of belonging. This is a warm, inclusive read that empowers children to notice differences with curiosity rather than judgment and to recognize that their own body, exactly as it is, is cool.

Bodies Are Cool by Tyler Feder was published by Dial Books in 2021. A hardcover copy is available in the Children’s Corner of Neilson Hays Library. 

Prepared by Kit Lang @mskitlang. The Neilson Hays Library is Thailand’s premier English-language library. The Children's Program offers Saturday Story Time, a cozy Children's Corner, and special holiday events. Adult Programs include concerts, art exhibitions, book clubs, and book sales. Located in a UNESCO-awarded historic building with a garden and cafe on site: 195 Surawong Road, Bangkok 10500, Thailand. Follow us on Instagram and Facebook.