A cat named Schuster

By OBOS — February 8, 2011

Submitted by: Margie Sved

Happy Anniversary!! Rubies and Red dresses!!

I found my second edition, which I dated as having bought in July 1978. I have no idea what’s happened to my first edition; I thought I had kept it. And, I first saw that first printing, before the first book, sometime around 1972, while in college.

The funny story around when the first edition came out, I got two kittens from the same litter, and wanted to give them “paired” names. I ended up calling them “Simon” and “Schuster,” since they had published OBOS. Simon died young, Schuster lived for

years, and I loved telling the story when people asked me how I chose that name!!

“Our Bodies, Ourselves” came out about when I came out, so I have always tied the two together. I became involved in the women’s health movement in 1974, when I was one of the founding mothers of the Durham Women’s Health Cooperative (Durham, NC).  And from those women’s health beginnings, I decided to go to medical school (1975-1979). Still seems like just yesterday. And in so many ways OBOS was my guide, and still is!

In this series, readers tell their stories about their experiences with the book and its impact on their lives. View more stories.

Comments are closed.