The Family Roe

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Finalist for the 2022 Pulitzer Prize for General Nonfiction Finalist for the J. Anthony Lukas Book Prize Finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award for Nonfiction One of NPR’s Best Books of 2021 A New York Times Notable Book of 2021 One of TIME’s 100 Must-Read Books of 2021 “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.” ? Michel Martin, “Stupendous…. If you want to understand Roe more deeply before the coming decision, read it.” ? Peggy Noonan, A masterpiece of reporting on the Supreme Court’s most divisive case, Roe v. Wade, and the unknown lives at its heart. 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. Mr. Prager’s book is stupendous, a masterwork of reporting…. If you want to understand Roe more deeply before the coming decision, read it. Prodigiously researched, richly detailed, sensitively told.…like a fairy tale set in working-class America. [A]n honest glimpse into the American soul…a sweeping, granular, century-deep case for women’s sovereignty over themselves. Through rigorous reporting and sensitive portrayals, Prager animates Roe’s leading and supporting figures and remakes our understanding of them….interweaving in-depth biographical sketches to transform Roe from an abstract legal doctrine into an epic family saga. is a work of deep empathy without sentimentality, a recovery of fact over myth, a quintessentially American story. A prizeworthy masterpiece of poignant history, an emotionally compelling account of the profound issues that surround reproductive choice. Joshua Prager has humanized the story of how abortion came to be legalized in the United States— and how it came to shape the American culture wars…. The book reads like detective fiction. Journalist Joshua Prager offers a masterclass in reporting in his book , which weaves concentric rings of activists and Christian fundamentalists, lawyers and Harvard Medical School graduates—groups called to action in the fiery debates over the case—to reveal a rich tapestry of American life and values in the 20th-century. Prager’s book does more than educate the reader on legal history; it shows how one changes over a lifetime. It is a study of the human experience…. Prager reminds the reader that stances on abortion can be as fluid and complex as the generations-long battle over it. He offers no hint of his own political standing and ultimately leaves his complete history of Roe open to every reader. Deeply reported and beautifully written…. Prager powerfully refutes the idea that women should have to win a morality contest in order to “deserve” access to abortion. A stunning read. Prager’s book is not just a biography but also political history…. Prager excels in revealing the messy, complicated people at the heart of America’s abortion fight; their motives, he seems to say, are much more tangled than any of them would likely admit…. is a fascinating portrait of a woman whose life was shaped by the abortion debate. is a masterpiece of journalistic research…. Prager challenges readers’ presuppositions and refuses to fit the book’s messy stories into clear moral categories. Things (and people) are not always what they seem. Nearly all the people profiled in this book carry deep secrets that they refuse to reveal to others—but that Prager, as a master journalist, repeatedly succeeds in uncovering. Extraordinary reporting…. Prager’s narrative contains multitudes. is the definitive historical account of Roe v Wade and the human stories behind the headlines. Joshua Prager tells these stories with respect and backs his writing with stunning research. I write this as one who seeks to defend the unborn and end the abortion industry in America. But everyone who cares about abortion in America—on both sides—must read this book and then get back to the argument. is a remarkable achievement. is an eminently valuable read. With a novelist’s grace, Prager shows how the narratives we use to justify our personal decisions and our politics too often fail to make room for our own and others’ unresolved ambivalence, messy realities, and human frailty. US

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