Women’s Health Month 2026
Posted on 2026/05/12 , tagged as
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May is Women’s Health Month and a time to encourage women and girls to prioritise their physical and mental health – through medical screenings, informed care, and positive habits.
We want to mark the occasion with a series of non-fiction reading that dives into all areas of health, covering women, transgender, and non-binary people. From the food we consume, to the femtech revolutionising our lives, forming families, facing life’s troubles in the water, and understanding the reality of chronic pain, you’re sure to find something that sits with you in our recommendations.
Processed: How the Processed Meat Industry is Killing Us with the Food we Love by Lucie Morris-Marr (10th April 2025)
Why our love affair with processed meat is killing us. The chilling exposé the food industry doesn’t want YOU to see.
We love crispy bacon with our eggs for breakfast, and ham sandwiches for lunch. Lucie Morris-Marr’s family was no different, ordering pepperoni pizzas on Friday nights and putting salami on their summer picnic platters.
But when the Walkley Award-winning investigative journalist was diagnosed with advanced bowel cancer, she learned the chilling truth about our love affair with processed meats. With tips on making the transition to healthier foods, Processed is essential reading for anyone who cares about their health.
The Vagina Business: The Innovative Breakthroughs that Could Change Everything in Women’s Health by Marina Gerner (paperback 25th September 2025)
From periods and childbirth to menopause, female pain has been normalized, as society shrugs and says ‘welcome to being a woman’ instead of coming up with better solutions. But it doesn’t have to be this way. In The Vagina Business, award-winning journalist Marina Gerner takes an eye-opening look at the innovators challenging the status quo to deliver the healthcare solutions women need.
From a life-saving bra to non-hormonal contraception and new takes on fertility and menopause, it shines a light on innovation that matters. Women should not be denied solutions to health issues just because people are embarrassed to talk about vaginas. We deserve much better.
Pregnancy and Birth: A Graphic Guide by Laura Godfrey-Isaacs, illustrated by Lilly Williams (6th November 2025)
This accessible and approachable book is the perfect guide for expectant parents, as well as anybody interested in knowing more about how we are brought into the world.
Covering everything from contractions and fetal positioning to feeding and postnatal care, Pregnancy and Birth: A Graphic Guide emphasises the importance of the physical and mental health of mothers and babies while offering a clear and concise insight into the many issues that surround this exciting, but sometimes overwhelming, stage of life.
The Year I Lay My Head in Water: Swimming Scandinavia in Search of a Better Life by Laura Hall (15th January 2026)
Living in Copenhagen had been a dream for Laura Hall and it was working out – until it wasn’t. She discovered that the trials of life will follow you anywhere and felt herself disintegrating into stress and burn out. She was unmoored and unsure of how to find her place in the world.
What followed was a year swimming the cold seas of Scandinavia in search of answers and meaning. She swam in iceberg-filled seas in Greenland, experienced Viking spas in Iceland and visited beaches and piers all over Norway, Denmark and Sweden.
A love letter to the sea and the people of Scandinavia, this book is also a clarion call for anybody stuck in a rut who needs to rekindle their lust for life. It’s time to reconnect with the natural world. It’s time to lay your head in the water.
Chronic: Understanding Pain by Gillian Best (12th March 2026)
Chronic pain is one of the great public health crises of our age – virtually no one is untouched, either living with it themselves or seeing their loved ones suffer. Yet it is a topic that remains in the shadows, too often brushed aside or treated as an afterthought.
In this fascinating investigation, Gillian Best seeks out researchers carrying out the cutting-edge work that could be the key to finally understanding and effectively treating this debilitating condition. Shining a light on the groundbreaking investigations being carried out around the world, Gillian searches for answers and wonders whether, one day, she may feel truly well again.
Breaking Waves: Discovery, Healing and Inspiration in the Open Water by Emma Simpson (paperback 23rd April 2026)
A warm, reflective and uplifting memoir about healing wounds, reclaiming a voice and discovering freedom through the open water.
The open water. To the uninitiated, it represents the unknown, an expanse of mystery and uncertainty. But to those who brave the wild waters, it is so much more. A space to heal. A place of communion. A balm to quieten the mind, soothe the soul, and allow you to reconnect with the world and yourself.
Emma Simpson discovered wild swimming after a period of immense pain. Lost in grief, disillusioned with life, and feeling increasingly untethered from the world, she instinctively felt the pull of the water. There she found an unexpected source of hope and strength, a profound sense of connection, and a glorious sisterhood of women – each with their own remarkable stories to tell.
