Inheritance: A Memoir of Genealogy, Paternity, and Love (Unabridged)
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4.2 • 173 Ratings
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- $12.99
Publisher Description
An Instant NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
A LOS ANGELES TIMES, BOSTON GLOBE, WALL STREET JOURNAL, and NATIONAL INDIE BESTSELLER
A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR according to Elle, Real Simple, and Kirkus Reviews
“Memoir gold: a profound and exquisitely rendered exploration of identity and the true meaning of family.” —People Magazine
“Beautifully written and deeply moving—it brought me to tears more than once.”—Ruth Franklin, The New York Times Book Review
From the acclaimed, best-selling memoirist, novelist—“a writer of rare talent” (Cheryl Strayed)— and host of the hit podcast Family Secrets, comes a memoir about the staggering family secret uncovered by a genealogy test: an exploration of the urgent ethical questions surrounding fertility treatments and DNA testing, and a profound inquiry of paternity, identity, and love.
What makes us who we are? What combination of memory, history, biology, experience, and that ineffable thing called the soul defines us?
In the spring of 2016, through a genealogy website to which she had whimsically submitted her DNA for analysis, Dani Shapiro received the stunning news that her father was not her biological father. She woke up one morning and her entire history--the life she had lived--crumbled beneath her.
Inheritance is a book about secrets--secrets within families, kept out of shame or self-protectiveness; secrets we keep from one another in the name of love. It is the story of a woman's urgent quest to unlock the story of her own identity, a story that has been scrupulously hidden from her for more than fifty years, years she had spent writing brilliantly, and compulsively, on themes of identity and family history. It is a book about the extraordinary moment we live in--a moment in which science and technology have outpaced not only medical ethics but also the capacities of the human heart to contend with the consequences of what we discover.
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
When novelist Dani Shapiro decides to take a DNA test on a whim, she uncovers a life-altering family secret. Reading her own memoir, she really communicates the intensity of her journey and how it led her to reevaluate her upbringing and beliefs. She makes us feel all the emotions—shock, pain, confusion, and, ultimately, acceptance. Navigating the question of who she really is, Shapiro turns an intimate discovery into a universal story about the experiences that make us who we are.
Customer Reviews
Inheritance
This was a real and very personal sharing of a situation that many people have encountered or may encounter. Dani’s complete selflessness and specific attention to details has made a situation I just uncovered at 56 become somewhat bearable. Her sharing of both personal experiences as well as hard core clinical facts make this book a very personal and overall general understanding of many individuals personally touched by close experiences. Reading this at the same time I received unexpected news that has or will change the way I feel about my past and future life has proved invaluable. I really enjoyed this book and I know it has and will continue to help me navigate through this difficult journey ahead.
Inheritance ♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️
I love her book version so much & Dani’s podcast, “Family Secrets”…so, I had to experience Dani’s impactful story via audio. It’s wonderful to hear her personally read this profoundly articulate & thoughtful book, about a rather taboo subject; with a reassurance & relatability that lets readers know she is a kindred companion on an otherwise isolating reproductive frontier.
Thank you for sharing!
As a young woman I was always ask “what are you?” I look nothing like my siblings, my mother first marriage resulted in 1 red haired freckled child, her second marriage resulted in 3 blond hair blue eye fair skin children. I was born between those marriages.... my mother swears she doesn’t know who my father is... my sister was only four months old when I was conceived... as woman and mother myself I don’t know how that is true... listening to you tell your story and perhaps the story of others with donor fathers...has helped me feel less alone in my fatherless existence.