The more I explored the darkness, the more I realized that the forest only looks impenetrable.

Conceptually and visually, this collection is darkly gorgeous: poems and photos that retell the stories we think we know so well. (Just saying, the in-class revelation that Little Red Riding Hood’s story is loaded with sexual innuendo was shocking yet made sense.) It’s feminist and feminine, a brutally honest reminder that while girls are human just like boys, we face additional perils — I particularly loved “If Tampons Were for Guys” because it was so ridiculous and so true.

Coming of age and learning to love yourself are difficult (and often simultaneous) journeys with many branches and detours, and Heppermann does a great job exploring quite a few of them. The poems span a wide spectrum, from the different settings of our stories (gym class, road trip, one’s bedroom) to the different faces of our would-be and actual victimizers (teachers, parents, princes charming, ourselves).