The secret sex lives of animals are not so secret anymore, thanks to this brilliant, punchy illustrated guide to how the other 99.99% get it on.

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  • “Who wouldn’t want to read a comic book for adults about animal sex? Author and artist Perrin Roosevelt Ireland takes us on a wild journey through the animal kingdom, from matriarchal hyenas to pregnant male seahorses to snake clitorises. Chock full of facts I never knew I was missing, this book is a very rare perfect blend of fascinating and just plain old fun.”

    Liz Greene, Nautilus magazine

  • “Sign me up for the Society to Save Slap and Tickle! With humor, thoughtfulness, and cheeky watercolor comics, Perrin Roosevelt Ireland makes the colorful case that sexual diversity is biodiversity, and that protecting how all critters poke the squid is one pleasurable way to get ourselves out of this mess!”

    Lucy Cooke, author of The Truth About Animals: Stoned Sloths, Lovelorn Hippos, and Other Tales from the Wild Side of Wildlife

  • “Poking the Squid is a kaleidoscopic tour through the weird and wonderful diversity of animal sex. With juicy illustrations and thoughtful text, Perrin Roosevelt Ireland reminds us that humans occupy a narrow band of all possible experience. Multiplicities, not binaries, are the norm in nature. This book is a celebration of biological diversity and a call to challenge our prior assumptions: Relationships are at the center of all life, but they might not look how you’d expect.”

    Zoë Schlanger, author of New York Times bestseller The Light Eaters

  • “Remarkable. Perrin Roosevelt Ireland takes us to the bottom of the matter—and has a blast doing it. Philosophically incisive and incredibly up-to-date on its science.”

    Eliot Schrefer, author of Queer Ducks

  • “A deeply researched, politically astute, and brilliantly penetrating (in all senses) work that wildly expands our understanding of the natural world. When you’re done blushing, you’ll find your mind has been blown.”

    Peter Kuper, author of Insectopolis

  • “Thoroughly entertaining, this first book by artist and environmentalist Ireland—a great-granddaughter of Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt—is written and illustrated in graphic-novel form by someone who sees science as a storytelling medium. By using animals as a way to address readers directly—an ape, for instance, educates us about Charles Darwin—Ireland invites curiosity and opens up new ways of thinking. Jettisoning old tropes that infiltrated animal research for over a century—such as how females supposedly avoid sex and submit only as a last resort to save their species—she illuminates the complex realities of gender and sexuality. Humorous and educational, a book as much about animals as it is about ourselves.”

    Starred Kirkus review

  • "Ireland’s winning debut offers a surprisingly humorous graphic analysis of animals, sex, and how badly science has failed to understand the nuances of gender and sexuality within the animal kingdom…The result is a sharp and accessible blend of sociopolitical commentary and scientific rigor."

    Starred Publisher’s Weekly review

  • “The sex puts the graphic in her graphic novel, and her watercolors and hand lettering add whimsy. Underneath all the bumping and grinding is an important message: hetero, homo, solo, whatever your bent, it’s all natural. A happy ending!”

    Adventure Journal

Society to Save Slap and Tickle

What does it mean to be a member?

Start a Squid Squad (a book club, but bawdier, probably) to read the book with your pod, and a fun reading guide! If you preorder 10+ copies for the club and submit that information, I'll join your club and give you a light spank over Zoom!

Conserve Kink Lords. Choose your favorite animal from Poking the Squid and do something every day, week or month to support their ongoing kink lordery. They 're trying their hardest not to go extinct- they need all the help we can give them to get laid right about now!

Join the Society