Books We Love

NPR Michel Martin, host Weekend All Things Considered

November 24, 2021

Roe v. Wade is one of the most talked about Supreme Court cases. But what about the woman behind Roe? It might surprise you to know she never actually had the abortion she sought; she gave birth to a daughter who reveals her identity here for the first time. This remarkable work of reporting explains why the daughter sought to keep her identity private. But it also explains the difficult roads all the women in this family – most especially the woman who became known as Jane Roe, Norma McCorvey – had to travel as well as the personalities and politics that have continued to make the abortion issue so toxic in American life. The scope is sweeping, the writing is beautiful. It’s an epic story worthy of the impact this one case has had on the American psyche.