Womb

Leah Hazard, a midwife and writer whose work has drawn acclaim, turns her attention to the uterus, an organ about the size of a fist and shaped like a light bulb, yet capable of far more than its dimensions suggest. Everyone alive first developed inside one, but most of us know surprisingly little about it.

Blending medical history, scientific findings and on-the-ground reporting, Hazard seeks answers about this organ, which has been both a source of wonder and a subject of fierce debate. She introduces the people who have shaped how we relate to it: doctors and doulas, sellers of yoni steam treatments and herbal teas marketed for fibroids, lawmakers who would govern whether it can exist at all, and researchers pushing the limits of the field. Her approach is warm and often funny, as you would expect from a midwife.

The book takes on a series of pressing questions. Is the uterus linked to the brain? Can small pockets in the cervix hold sperm? Does removing the uterus change sexual pleasure? Could smart tampons improve health care? Why does endometriosis take so long to diagnose? Might birth outside the body become possible within our lifetimes? How do hormone treatments for gender transition affect the uterus? And why does medical racism shape reproductive health care?

An inclusive, clear-eyed look at the cultural prejudices and assumptions that have left the uterus poorly understood for centuries, the book presents an organ that brings both pain and pleasure, a small part of the body with a far larger influence than most people expect.