Tits Up: What Our Beliefs about Breasts Reveal about Life, Love, Sex and Society

A consciousness-raising romp around feminism' - Philippa Perry Boobs. Knockers. Jugs. Cans. Baps. Melons. Puppies. Fun bags. Bosoms. Hooters. In the English language there are over 700 expressions for female mammary glands – the majority of which are mostly used by men. In Tits Up, sociologist and former Economist chief art market correspondent Sarah Thornton asks how is it that we look at breasts so much, but reflect on them so little. It was after Sarah underwent a double mastectomy and reconstructive surgery that she found herself considering how we think about breasts, and what that tells us about ourselves. Across five chapters, she encounters strippers, plastic surgeons, bra designers, modern witches, lactation experts and donors to breast milk banks to create the ultimate biography of humanity's most culturally important body part. As Sarah Thornton powerfully argues, breasts mean many different things to many different people, and as the rise of feminism and LGBTQ+ movements have shown, they complicate our most basic understandings of identity, gender and desire. Tits Up explores our ideas of beauty, health, respect, self-esteem, self-determination, humanness and equality. It’s also a brilliant read – surprising, funny, tender and honest.