In the late'60s and early '70s sexual liberation was in the air. Many -- perhaps even most -- well-heeled Americans welcomed the loosening up of sexual restrictions that had been so oppressive during the postwar era. The sexual double standard was waning, young people were being told that they had the right to sensual experimentation before and outside of marriage,and making it all possible were the new miracle contraceptives: the iud and the pill. Times had changed for the better, and it was a new epoch of progress,right?

Wrong.

Journalist Barbara Seaman had the courage and insight to peer behind the happy facade that characterized the first wave of American sexual liberation,at some troubling realities. She asked simple questions -- the kind that annoy everyone,because they're unanswerable. Why was so much research being done on female contraceptives that were potentially harmful,with none being done on male contraceptives? (The condom STILL remains the only male option.) Since sexual intercourse is generally more pleasurable for men than women,why didn't men introduce harsh chemicals and dangerous contraptions into their systems? If the pill was so safe,why was it making women feel so sick? Why were patients who reported their symptoms told that it was all in their heads? Why were the physicians and chemists behind all these products male?

_The Doctor's Case Against the Pill_ compresses many of Seaman's findings and inaugurated her career as a lifelong whistle blower and advocate of women's health. Like her later work, _Free and Female_,it is a pathfinding book that exposes the ideology behind the health industry and the self-interest of so many medical practitioners. It reminds us how easily retrograde assumptions are recycled into the most seemingly progressive and forward-looking social initiatives. Like most pioneering works,its results still brace and shock; the expanded edition incorporates Seaman's more recent research. This is a must-read for anyone interested in women's health and women's history.

As many people know, because of this book,there are now warning labels on packages of birth control pills. Thirty years ago,Barbara Seaman had the courage to play that most thankless role:the party-pooper. In the swinging '60s and '70s, her findings met with a cold reception. But because of her work,women today lead healthier and safer lives.

A mere thirty years ago, the Pill's dosage of estrogen was dangerously high, resulting in side effects such as strokes, depression, obesity, blood clots, and heart attacks. Yet gynecologists at the time brushed off women's concerns, telling them that they were nothing more than "psychological." Enter Barbara Seaman, whose 1969 book The Doctors' Case Against the Pill warned women about the health risks and held doctors and pharmaceutical companies to task for their sexism -- as well as for their greed and incompetence. Her book prompted the Senate to hold hearings investigating the safety of the Pill. As a result, the Pill today is much safer, and each packet comes with a warning about potential side effects and contraindications.

Well, that was thirty years ago... why buy the book today? First, because it is an important historical record of the way female patients have been mistreated. And second, because Seaman has updated it to include new information about the Pill's pitfalls over the years as well as an excellent chapter about Norplant, a contraceptive used widely around the globe even though it causes its own host of health problems. No wonder Gloria Steinem has called Seaman "the first prophet of the women's health movement."

This book is really touchy... Made me cry in couple of places... Women and girls, this book is A MUST HAVE!!! It will explaine to you how you could be used by the ME and how to avoid it. Once again, after reading this touching book i admit - I'm proud to be a woman!

I went into reading this book with the little I know from my childhood, when my step mother and sister read "Valley" and all the others. Surprisingly enough, I kept finding myself riveted to every page; cheering on Jacki Susann. Now I'm so intrigued by this woman, This Jackie Susann, that I'm going to read her novels too. What a wonderful biography! Kudos to Ms. Seaman!

K.H.

LOVELY ME takes honors for being the most lurid bio I've ever read. It was great!

I recommend reading this book before you pick up VALLEY OF THE DOLLS, because once you read VOTD, you'll know from exactly which well Jackie drew these experiences. Just as VOTD was a roman a clef for life as Jackie knew it, LM is the real-life retelling of VOTD.

I admire Jackie Susann. Not only was she a Philadelphian and a writer, like me, but she had such tenacity. Even when cancer, a failed career, a mentally-ill son, and a dim future stared her in the face, she plodded on and closed her ears to the naysayers. She never once took her eyes off her dream of being a published author and bolstering VOTD to being the best-selling novel in history. We can all learn something from her.

Barbara Seaman's impressive biography of Jacqueline Susann, "Lovely Me", is, without a doubt, the BEST biography of a celebrity ever written! This book surpasses anything that Lovely Ms. Susann could ever have written by several thousand miles. After reading this amazing tome, I felt a deep respect for the creator of the "pot-boiler", and I admire her spunk and spirit, in the face of great adversity. If you are searching for a book that tells it ALL, from drug binges, extramarital affairs (both lesbian and heterosexual), rivalries, and hatred, and the indistinguishable love between Jackie and her husband, Irving Mansfield, then please, please, please, pick up this book. It just might be the best thing you'll read all year...

After reading "Valley Of The Dolls" I was an instant fan. I tend to lean towards the characters that are dramatic and ambitious. While reading "Valley..." I realized that I related a lot, Even with the pills,( even though I dont take any).
After Jaqueline cheated on her husband, She seemed very similar to Courtney love, Therefore changing my thoughts completely about the type of woman she was.
Her work is no doubt incredible, Creative, honest and heartfelt. I truly recommend anything written or influenced by Jaqueline Susann. I just wish I was alive to watch her every step of the way.

i have read and thoroughly enjoyed jacqueline susann's books since i was 13 (20 years), but i never really thought much about the woman who wrote them. it is safe to say that jackie susann was ahead of her time, as "valley of the dolls" and "once is not enough" would be thought of as very tame in todays jaded society. she was a breath of fresh air. Ms Seaman's book dug deep and got to the woman who was determined to be a star, one way or another!!! when jackie didnt make it as an actress, she picked up her pen and attacked the literary world as if it were hollywood itself. this is a wonderful read, and i loved it! enjoyable for even non-jackie fans.

Don't let the sexist title put you off -- this is an important book for women ... and the men (and women) who love 'em. Leading alternative health advocate Gary Null and Barbara Seaman have pulled together the first social history of its kind, a chunky, crammed-with-facts compendium that addresses women's health from a preventive/curative perspective as well as a historical/contextual one. It's as much a reference book as it is a hands-on activist's handbook, with advice, essays and interviews from the country's top alternative practitioners, thinkers, writers, doctors and sociologist. A weighty -- and welcome -- addition to everyone's library.

Barbara Seaman has done an excellent job collecting materials for her book FOR WOMEN ONLY. Topics range from breast cancer to domestic violence to pregnancy. There is also plenty of information about the women's movement, history and predictions for the future. Gary Null and Ms. Seaman, women's health advocate and author of such books as Doctors' Case Against the Pill and Lovely Me, the Story of Jacqueline Susann, have produced another informative and well written book. It's a must read for women of all ages!

"For Women Only" contains a wealth of information for women like myself who want to know their options.

When I face health problems or other dilemmas, I do not take the first solution presented because I have found by hard experience that many of the answers that the so-called experts offer do not work. I am grateful to the authors of this book for presenting so many valuable alternatives.