2005 book 65

david plotz's the genius factory: the curious history of the nobel prize sperm bank
well, this book was pretty friggin' fascinating. it raises discussions of eugenics, racism, genetic engineering, and the issues faces by the children of sperm donors--and their mothers, all through the lens of an analysis of the california sperm bank that purported to only use the sperm of nobel prize winners. plotz, an editor at slate, wrote a series of articles on the bank, through which he was contacted by some of the children produced by the bank and by their mothers. he focuses mainly on a few families and donors, but there's plenty of historical background on sperm banks in general, this one in particular (and its bizarre founder and its first notable donor), and their cultural significance. i don't generally read much non-fiction but plotz is a really great writer and really brings these people and their somewhat unusual situation to life.