Manhood: The Bare Reality

A refreshing approach to dealing with a fairly taboo subject, with a wide variety of flaccid penises (penii?!) presented, along with the views of their owners.In criticism, compared with Laura's previous work on women's breasts, the format & presentation of this book is not so polished - paperback book, slightly smaller size & the photos seem more like snaps, rather than the well presented photos in her previous work - these all tend to make it feel a less open presentation. Also, the text is not so structured as the women's contribution, which I think is a disappointment. There could well be an argument for the presentation of an erect penis photo alongside the flaccid one, given that this is a normal state for the penis; perhaps there is too much taboo around this - as well as the censors pen, to make it a viable proposition though.Similarly to the breast book, the participants seem to be largely white & British? Contributions from other nationalities, cultures & people of colour would be desirable.Good, but could be more bold!

There are one hundred pictures of willies in this book - each with two or three pages written by its owner. At first I started reading the book cover to cover but I found that a bit too much due to the unfamiliar nature of the material. Now I am reading it a bit at a time - a Willy a day! The flaccid state of all the willies is said to represent the vulnerability of the people opening up with their stories. I think people need to understand that if men really open up to others about their deepest things then this is what it will often look like - like they are opening up about sex.

I'm not even halfway through this book but I'm quite happy to give it five stars! To read about these men's relationships with modern masculinity, other people, friends, lovers and family, as well as with their own bodies, is a truly enlightening look into what it is to be a man in the 21st century. I would urge anyone reading this review to look past the 'eww!' factor that a book containing 100 pictures of full frontal male nudity, and actually read what these men have to say. Some of them will make you laugh, some will make you cry. If you are a woman, some of it will make you question your beliefs and perceptions about the inner world of men, and of how certain ideologies portray us. If you are a man, all of it will make you realise that no matter how you feel about your body, and what it is to be a man, that you are not alone.Laura Dodsworth, I salute you! Thank you for giving us such a wonderfully eye-opening book!

Really good. Should be issued to all men so they can see that erectile dysfunction is just part of life, and lots of us women don’t mind. There’s more to a loving sex life than an erection, that’s more the icing on the cake 😊 Also all chaos seem to want a bigger penis, no matter how big the one they have is! Again, not all women want something huge, we want the whole man involved, not just a few , inches

Very interesting to read how men feel about their 'manhood'. What a fascinating range of both pictorial and written views of the penis. I felt sad about the way some men have been victimised either by parents or friends or even lovers. As a woman, I wonder if women feel the same about their 'lady bits'? I know this writer has done a book about breasts, but would she consider another book about women's relationship with their most intimate parts? Good value for money.