Ladies! When was the last time you were accused of being “hysterical”? If you’re anything like me, it was recent, and you’re still so angry about it that you’re grinding your teeth right now. That anger is felt, understood, and reflected in this jaw-dropping new book from Gabrielle Jackson, Pain & Prejudice. Braiding together memoir and science, she explores the ways in which social structures—particularly the medical system—have underserved and oppressed women, keeping them sick and in pain, for far too long. Allen & Unwin was kind enough to send me a copy for review.

Jackson is a journalist; in 2001, she was diagnosed with endometriosis, and then, in 2015, adenomyosis. She has spent years researching these conditions, and the broader medical system in which they are studied and treated. In this book, from Plato’s wandering womb to the present day, she unpicks the complex social history that has got us to this point. “Women are socialised to believe their pain is normal,” she says, and she’s writing this book to give voice to the silent suffering of centuries.

An extended review of Pain and Prejudice is available for subscribers at Keeping Up With The Penugins.