A well-researched tome of a book for sure! It's a lot to absorb and I'm not sure it isn't just too much for the average reader. Who is the target reader? Should this be a reference book in every library in America? Yes, perhaps that is its place. It's very hard to read a book like this for many reasons. But I am glad that it exists.

Thank you to NetGalley for an advance copy of this book. It's vital for this history to be preserved so I am grateful to the author.

This is a great, chunky historical account of the work activists did in New York to defend abortion rights decades ago. Kornbluh's own mother was an activist, her insights are invaluable.

The sections about sterilization, and how this was sometimes forced upon those seeking abortion, were incredibly eye-opening.

It is obviously incredibly depressing to see the same fights continue to this day, but I always find it motivating to read about how hard others fought for the rights of women.

Kornbluh's style makes this book easy to read. However, I found the pace is a little slow, but I guess that's probably reflective of progress in general.

If you're interested to see how far women have fought to get to where we today, this is an ideal book for you.

I struggled to engage with this book but don't know for sure whether the fault lies with the book or myself or perhaps both. Given recent national (and local) events in the United States, I found myself interested in this incredibly well-researched book. Kornbluh lays it on thick with tons of relevant details, most of which if I knew anything about, I knew only the vaguest of details. I appreciated her focus on the broader context of the struggle for reproductive freedom over a history of the court case which so many others have told. Perhaps I will give this book another chance in a different format such as audio and hope for an improved experience.

Thank you NetGalley and Grove Atlantic for an eARC of this book.

A Woman's Life Is a Human Life is an overview of the history of American abortion laws - an important topic in every historical instance, but especially in our current reality. It takes us through all the individual efforts that were made in order to make abortion as accessible and kind as possible, and the merging with the fight against forced sterilization.

Despite how much I am interested in the topic, I found the book too technical. I connected with the personal stories and would prefer if there were more of them. As it is, it is sometimes hard to read and hard to catch all the details.

The description of this book says, “Published to coincide with the fiftieth anniversary of Roe v. Wade, this urgent book from historian Felicia Kornbluh reveals two movement victories in New York that forever changed the politics of reproductive rights nationally.”

Given the recent legislative changes governing abortion access in the US, this book is even more harrowing, important, and rage-inducing. In crisp prose, Kornbluh maps the work of grassroots activists who fought for reproductive rights before and just after Roe v. Wade. This read does an excellent job of broadening the conversation to think about reproductive justice and often centers the voices of women of color who pushed back against forced sterilization and the targeting of their communities. A timely read, and one I will be recommending to many people.

Thanks to the publisher and to NetGalley for an early copy of this book.

This book was an incredible read. It was very informative and moving.
Can be harrowing at times, but I think it is a book that everyone should endeavour to read, as it does have some very important information and moving messages, especially with the current political climate in America.
5/5 stars from me