Strange Bedfellows

Adventures in the Science, History, and Surprising Secrets of STDs

By: Ina Park

Narrated by: Ina Park

Length: 8 hrs and 55 mins

Publisher's Summary

This program is read by the author.

With curiosity and wit, Strange Bedfellows rips back the bedsheets to expose what really happens when STDs enter the sack.

Sexually transmitted diseases have been hidden players in our lives for the whole of human history, with roles in everything from World War II to the growth of the internet to The Bachelor. But despite their prominence, STDs have been shrouded in mystery and taboo for centuries, which begs the question: Why do we know so little about them? 

Enter Ina Park, MD, who has been pushing boundaries to empower and inform others about sexual health for decades. With Strange Bedfellows, she ventures far beyond the bedroom to examine the hidden role and influence of these widely misunderstood infections and share their untold stories. 

Covering everything from AIDS to Zika, Park explores STDs on the cellular, individual, and population level. She blends science and storytelling with historical tales, real life sexual escapades, and interviews with leading scientists - weaving in a healthy dose of hilarity along the way. 

The truth is, most of us are sexually active, yet we’re often unaware of the universe of microscopic bedfellows inside our pants. Park aims to change this by bringing knowledge to the masses in an accessible, no-nonsense, humorous way - helping listeners understand the broad impact STDs have on our lives, while at the same time erasing the unfair stigmas attached to them. 

A departure from the cone of awkward silence and shame that so often surrounds sexual health, Strange Bedfellows is the straight-shooting audiobook about the consequences of sex that all curious listeners have been looking for. 

A Macmillan Audio production from Flatiron Books  

"Ina Park is a seasoned expert with a finely calibrated sense of the absurd. In other words, she is exactly who you want writing a book about STDs. The science is here, but so too are the stories and people behind it. Park has a mission - to break down the stigma and clear the way for open conversation and wider funding. She's a hero and a hoot!" (Mary Roach, author of the New York Times best sellers Bonk and Stiff) 

“Strange Bedfellows - a book about how infections and viruses spread - is incredibly relevant to our time. But it is so much more than that: it’s about desire, it’s about history, it’s about humanity itself. Ina Park reveals the mystery and fascination inherent in STDs and, improbably, she does it while being laugh-out-loud funny.” (Peggy Orenstein, author of the New York Times best sellers Boys and Sex and Girls and Sex)

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

©2015 Ina Park (P)2020 Macmillan Audio

Informative but problematic

Most of it was well written, fun, and informative. However, the I found the chapter of syphilis so unbearable I almost didn't finish the book.

The author gives the infamous Tuskegee study two minutes of her time, but seemingly only so that she can explain studies that suggest it does not have a strong influence on whether Black individuals seek medical attention.

Another example of this is, when talking about the Terre Haute experiments, she says that the participants were prisoners who had volunteered to be infected with gonorrhea. Yet with a simple Google search I you can see that these prisoners were given a letter of recommendation for their parole if they participated. This is not consent and should have been addressed.

I understand the desire to keep things light, but ethical atrocities need to be properly explained.

Excellent!

This book is so informative and funny! The author did an amazing job writing and narrating. I highly recommend this book!

Entertaining and Informative

After hearing the author speak at a conference, I decided to listen to her book. It is witty and engaging, and as a clinical practitioner, the information is applicable to my daily life. For the non practitioner, it is written in a way that it provides information but is not so scholarly that it is boring. Ina is fun to listen to, both in person and throughout her delivery of her book.

poor narration

This book would have greatly benefited from a professional narrator. It was narrated by the author.
I was not able to finish this title.

Informative

I thought I knew a good deal about STDs. I learned a great deal primarily about the history.

Great Info, Great Delivery

This was a very entertaining way to learn about everything you ever wanted to know (or never wanted to know) about sexual health and STIs. She did a great job making it funny while giving facts and presenting interesting research.

Great Info I never knew

I learned so much from this book! I really appreciate her open and honest take on a delicate topic. Her research is spot on! This should be a mandatory read for policy makers.

Awesome!

Highly recommended. Engaging and informative. Addresses issues most impacting the care and treatment of STIs. Funny and sensitive.