Undo: The Poetry and Story of Her

Who taught you how to be a woman?

Before we ever choose who we will become, we inherit instructions.

Be beautiful. Be good. Be desirable. Be grateful. Be smaller. Be more.

Undo: The Poetry and Story of Her traces the construction of womanhood—and one woman’s attempt to recognize and unravel what was constructed.

Through poetry and personal narrative, Cheryl Cowtan explores girlhood, beauty, sexuality, desire, marriage, motherhood, shame, aging, longing, and the powerful experience of seeing ourselves through other people’s eyes.

This isn’t a prescription for the right way to be a woman. It is an excavation of the stories, expectations and identities women absorb—and an invitation to notice them.

What did you choose?

What were you taught?

And if you began to undo the difference, what would remain?

Goodreads 5 Star Review:

"This book is not for the faint of heart. Its pro-women empowerment theme appealed to me. I didn't realize the levels of hell I'd need to go through to get there. The poems and brief essays contained within the pages of this book are eye-opening, painful, and all too real. They are so real, in fact, I'm afraid anyone who has not experienced any of this would find it hard to believe. ...
At first, I thought, Oh, this is good! I'll have to reference that in my review. The more I read, the more I realized there was simply too much to mention. It was all good. It was all disturbing, and sadly, accurate. ...