The Nightingale and Inheritance

I finished two books within 24 hours this weekend, one as an audiobook and one as a printed copy. These books were both excellent but have little in common on the surface, so why would I review them together? I'll let you know when we get to spoilers, I promise.

First, The Nightingale. This is the story of two sisters and their involvement in World War 2 in Paris. It's dramatic, spans several years, and includes love in addition to tragedy. Every review I read of it is raving, and I have to say that while I really liked it, it didn't pain me to have to stop listening to go into work or the store like some other audiobooks. It was very detailed and Kristin Hannah does have a gift for placing the reader in a time and place (just as she did in The Great Alone). I don't know what the book was missing for me to make it just that much more compelling, but I still highly recommend it. I should tell you that if you are sensitive to sexual assault, this book might not be for you. It does bother me that so many books that are meant to be dramatic include the female protagonist being raped. This is especially upsetting with male authors. I know it happens and I know the rapist in this book is a literal Nazi, but still.

Now, Inheritance. This is the latest memoir by Dani Shapiro. On a whim, Dani takes an acestery.com DNA test because her husband is ordering one for himself and offers to get her one too. When her results come back, she is shocked to find out that her father isn't actually her father. Both of her parents had died by this time, but she does recall a conversation from years ago when her mother told her that she was conceived at an institution in Philadelphia that specialize in artificial insemination. Just 36 hours later, thanks to Ancestry's database and her husband's Google skills, she figures out exactly who her father is. This only leads to more questions. Did her parents realize that she wasn't actually her father's child? Did her parents understand what kind of "treatment" the clinic was actually performing? And did she have other half-siblings out there? This book is pretty gripping. I think I read it in 24 hours. (Pictured here with the baby cardigan I was crocheting during breaks from reading. OMG IT CAME OUT SO ADORABLE THAT I DO NOT WANT TO GIVE IT AWAY.)

Now for the spoilers. Stop reading now if you don't want them...

The reason I'm pairing them both is that they both ended with a different strong opinion on the same topic: Does everyone have the right to know what his or her paternity is?

Toward the end of The Nightingale, a Nazi soldier is staying at the house with Isabelle and her two children. He uses the power of the knowledge he uncovered about her son to manipulate her and make her allow him to rape her nightly. Predictably, she gets pregnant. She realizes this just before her husband returns from the war and is able to tell her husband that the baby is his without too much concern that he won't believe her. Whether he truly believes her or just doesn't want to think about other possibilities, he goes along with it and this son is never the wiser. At the end of the book, Isabelle tells the readers that while she is willing to finally tell her adult children about her involvement in the resistance in Paris, she will never tell them about Julian's birth. She says that some secrets need to remain hidden.

Dani Shapiro, on the other hand, says that everyone has the right to know where he or she came from. Everyone has the right to his or her origin story. Her story ended well. While she was shocked about her paternity and had to come to terms with the idea that her father wasn't her father, she did a lot of sorting out about what a father is and is not. The man who raised her and passed along his culture and loved her is indeed her father. The donor who was promised that he would never, ever, have to even know if any children came from his donations, is not. He does agree to meet with Dani and she does eventually meet his wife and her half-siblings. It does seem to be a promising beginning for new connections but to Dani, the man who raised her remains her dad. Still, she asserts, she had the right to this information.

I got to attend a discussion and signing with Dani Shapiro at RJ Julia in Madison, CT. If you're kicking yourself for missing it, don't worry. It will be broadcast on Roxanne Cody's Podcast, Just the Right Book. I was only halfway through the book at the time of the signing but the discussion was so interesting and Dani Shapiro was a great speaker.

So what's the answer? Is it one-size-fits-all? Does everyone have the right to know who his or her birth parents are? Are some facts best left in the past? This led to a great discussion on my facebook page. I'd love to know what you all think!