Inconceivable

February 12, 2024
Newsweek reporter Bauman’s bemusing debut memoir doubles as an investigation into the world of alternative fertility treatments. After deciding she wanted a child in 2020, a single, 38-year-old Bauman researched her options with a journalist’s tenacity. Focusing first on traditional sperm banks, Bauman found that, while some donor profiles included medical histories, DNA analyses, and successful fertility rates, most were far skimpier. Dissatisfied, she turned to Google for other options, stumbling into a Wild West of Facebook sperm donor groups and Tinder-like apps that catered to people who, for financial, personal, or bureaucratic reasons, sought help beyond traditional fertility clinics. Interweaving the details of her own path to motherhood and interviews with doctors, donors, and expectant parents, Bauman builds a captivating and often humorous portrait of DIY pregnancy. Unregulated donors arrive to donation sessions equipped with their own kits, including menstrual cups to deposit their samples; some insist to clients that the “natural” method of sexual intercourse is their preference. Many operate under self-imposed guidelines, wishing only to impregnate a limited number of women, while others compete for the most conceptions. Through it all, Bauman’s rigorous curiosity keeps the pages turning. It’s a wide-ranging portrait of contemporary motherhood that entertains and informs in equal measure.

February 9, 2024

Newsweek investigative reporter Bauman's book is about her desire in her late 30s to have a child and as a single person. Traditional fertility clinics and sperm banks are expensive and unwelcoming--many have discriminatory practices--so she explores the world of unregulated online sperm donation. Her story provides a window into a little-known world on Facebook and Craigslist, where men offer their sperm. She describes how potential parents vet potential fathers and negotiate the donation and insemination protocols while considering the ethical, legal, psychological, and political implications of their choices. She says many aspects--STDs, parental rights, and more--may be problematic. Not only does she interview donors and people who employ them, she also recounts her own story and experiences, including detailed depictions of self-insemination and self-reflection. VERDICT This book reveals a little-known aspect of one route to becoming a parent. For health sciences consumer health collections.--Barbara M. Bibel

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