I’m Taking My Eggs & Going Home – A Book Review

Cheers, dear readers,

I have had the great fortune of befriending some amazingly wonderful women in my life, some as recently as this year. In Vancouver back this past June, I had the great pleasure of meeting five other vivacious, daring, wonderfully intelligent and empathetic woman of the Global Sisterhood. On my flight over across this nation and into our sister nation to the north, I decided to read a book written by one of the very women I was going to meet: “I’m Taking My Eggs and Going Home” by Lisa Manterfield. How I have gotten to a place in my life where I am hanging out with award winning authors, I have no idea. But gosh I am so grateful! Rubbing elbows with Lisa, Pamela Tsigdinos (author of the book and blog “Silent Sorority”), Kathleen Guthrie-Woods (co-author of the “Live Without Baby” blog with Lisa), Sarah Chamberlin (author of the blog “Infertility Honesty”), and Andrea Rose (guest blog poster) was nothing short of amazing, cool, and incredibly inspiring. Thank you yet again to Conceive Hospital for giving me the platform to speak about issues in regards to dealing with an infertility diagnosis, and thus putting me on the radar to meet these fantastic, courageous and outspoken woman. Without this blog, these connections I am making would not exist.

left to right, it’s:

Back:
Kathleen-Guthrie Woods, Lisa Manterfield, Andrea Rose, Sarah Chamberlin
Front:
Pamela Tsigdinos, Cathy Broadwell (me!)

This week, I want to focus on Lisa’s book. Here is the overview of the book for your reference:

Lisa Manterfield was a sensible 32-year-old when she met The One – a man who sparked a passion for tango, an urge to break down closed doors, and a deep-rooted desire to reproduce. Five years later she was a baby addict, hiding her addiction, plotting a maternity ward heist, and threatening anything that got in her way, including her beloved husband and his pesky practicality.

In this gritty, award-winning memoir, Manterfield traces her spiraling route from rational 21st century woman to desperate mama-wannabe. She examines the siren song of motherhood, the lure of the fertility industry, and the repercussions of being childless in a mom-centric society. But this isn’t just another infertility story with another miracle baby ending, nor is it a sad introspective of a childless woman; this is a story about love, desire, and choices and ultimately about hope. It is the story of a woman who escapes her addiction, not with a baby, but with her sanity, her marriage, and her sense-of-self intact. 2012 Independent Publishers Book Awards winner.

Way to go, Lisa, on the fantastic achievement of completing this book – no small feat on any topic, but on a touchy, taboo and often private subject such as infertility, that is incredibly brave. The amount of courage that you must have mustered up to push, and struggle to make this piece become a reality on bookshelves and Kindles is incredibly admirable. As we discussed back in June on our trip to Vancouver, we all feel it is our duty, part of our legacy, to be a voice for women and men everywhere who have struggled with trying to conceive and bring life into the world. The biological and human right and desire to reproduce is something that we are all naturally born with deep inside us. When that doesn’t happen easily or ever, it hits us deeply and unpleasantly (to put it mildly) in our very core.

In her book, Lisa does an incredible job of interweaving humor, passion, humanity, and eloquent descriptions of an extremely challenging experience. I immediately felt like I knew her, wanted to give her a hug, and say “Me too, Lisa, me too!” as I read chapter after chapter. I had to pinch myself to remember that I literally could scratch that itch quite literally in a few short hours when I met her in person for the first time at our hotel. When we met spontaneously at the elevator, I knew within seconds it was her. I gave her a big hug, told her I loved her book, and could not wait to read the last 30 pages before I nodded off to bed later that evening. What a blessing to be able to have that very personal moment, look her in the eye and say “your book, your words, they really moved me and comforted me.” I feel much gratitude as not everyone gets to enjoy such a wonderful exchange as that.

Now I am incredibly proud to count Lisa as one of my dear friends, not just because of our shared experience as infertility survivors, but because she is one awesome lady with a big heart, a brilliant mind, and a strong desire to help make the world a better place. I am honored to include Lisa as a cherished confidant, colleague, friend, and someone I can’t wait to give a huge “bear hug” again – perhaps at our next Global Sisterhood gathering.

I cannot stress enough, dear readers, how important community is. Get on that plane, pick up that phone, and go reach out to someone that can support you on your journey. Do it now! Don’t procrastinate. Maybe the person on the other side of the phone is dying to hear from you and needs a virtual hug. Maybe if you get in that car and meet a new friend, you will be surprised at how much your very soul feels better, nourished, warm and bright. Go get what you need. And as always, feel free to reach out to us if you need an ear and someone who understands what you are going through. You are not alone on your path to family creation.

Please join us next week to hear more about our personal journey down the infertility path. I look forward to speaking with you. And I wish you the best on your journey.

Warm regards,
Cathy

P.S. If you have the good fortune of reading Lisa’s book, please consider rating it and reviewing it on Amazon. Having reviews helps people find books such as this written on “taboo” and not easily spoken of topics. A recommendation via an Amazon review would be greatly appreciated by Lisa and myself.