A review by bluenicorn
The Big Bath House by Kyo Maclear

4.0

I really liked this. It's basically depicting a childhood memory of the author, so it's sweet and celebrating family, but in a way that also casually embraces body positivity. All of the women and children in the book are nude for most of it, but that's because they're in the big bath house. The tone is in no way prurient; the casual nudity really brings home how western society conditions us to feel shame and self-consciousness about our bodies. These are just family members catching up and relaxing, without the shape or size or condition of their bodies having anything to do with anything. That's a pretty great message to me.