A review by katyrochelle
Womb: The Inside Story of Where We All Began by Leah Hazard

2.0

We can take one look at mainstream politics and can tell that women's health is already pretty much overlooked, and what is available or understood is generally dictated by men and ultra-conservative politics. It was exciting to find this book based on the premise that it would delve into more of the medical research and history of the female reproductive system. The author describes her fascination with the womb and women's health with genuine passion, and goes far to tell stories relating to the womb by doctors, scientists, midwives, etc. who are doing their best to get their research funded and respected. But, it was about the third or fourth chapter where I started to realize that the questions posed at the start of every chapter weren't necessarily answered - it was perhaps around this time that the author herself admitted that the chapter or book should come with a disclaimer that we just don't know the answer to what was being posed in the book. It started leaning more towards women's personal opinions and the social context for how they have those opinions than laying out historical or scientific research of what goes on in the women's body during the various stages of our lives. For what the book does offer or explores is eye-opening - but it also falls really short.