CHS grad promotes ‘self-breast-eem’ in new book

Susan Bondaryk was a junior at Suffolk University when she had a conversation with two female friends that made her think about how women view their bodies. The two women were in their mid 20s and were discussing breast enhancement.

Susan Bondaryk (Oliver Parini photo)

“They couldn’t wait to change their bodies,” Bondaryk recalled.

The discussion inspired Bondaryk to write a book titled A Perfect Pair. She has also created a page on kickstarter.com and is currently seeking $5,000 in funding to publish and market the book. Her fundraising deadline is November 18, 2013.

A 2004 graduate of Canton High School, Bondaryk is a freelance writer now working in education outreach for the National Gardening Association in Williston, Vermont. She began to work on A Perfect Pair in 2008.

“I think that young girls, especially these days, see body images that are impossible to live up to,” she said, “that are shoved in their faces on TV and in magazines. Women have never been pleased with their bodies. That’s what I fear and that’s what I’m trying to prevent.”

Bondaryk wrote a poem about what she calls “self-breast-eem” because she wants young girls and women to realize that every woman’s body is beautiful, no matter the size of her chest. The book has a couplet of the poem on each page along with a pen-and-ink illustration. The drawings were done by Jess Polanshek, an illustrator and artist from Jericho, Vermont. Bondaryk met Polanshek when she was working as an arts and entertainment reporter for a community newspaper in Vermont.

Bondaryk has sprinkled interesting facts about breasts at the bottom of some of the pages of A Perfect Pair. One page features the number of women between the ages of 20 and 29 who had a breast enhancement procedure done during 2011. Another fact tells readers that in times of tension, breasts are known to sag.

On Monday, Bondaryk headed to Red Barn Books of Vermont to submit her manuscripts. She estimated that it will take six to eight weeks for her book to be printed. She hopes to have copies of the book available for purchase by the upcoming holiday season. People who pledge at least $20 will receive a free copy.

“A Perfect Pair will appeal to all women — regardless of age,” Bondaryk wrote on her kickstarter page. “The message of self-confidence is timeless, and the text’s humor breaks the ice when it comes to a slew of subjects: hormones, men, bullying, and of course, loving oneself.”

Bondaryk thought a great deal about what to call the book and finally used part of a line from the middle of the poem: “Each of us is blessed with a perfect pair.”

“It doesn’t matter if they’re big or small or if one is bigger than the other,” she said. “[The title] plays on that myth that everybody’s perfect, but nobody is.”

For more information on A Perfect Pair or to make a pledge, go to http://tinyurl.com/perfect-pair-book.

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Posted by Mary Ann Price on Oct 24 2013. Filed under News. Both comments and pings are currently closed.