Non-Fiction Books:

The Genius Factory

Sorry, this product is not currently available to order

Here are some other products you might consider...

The Genius Factory

The Curious History of the Nobel Prize Sperm Bank
Click to share your rating 0 ratings (0.0/5.0 average) Thanks for your vote!

Format:

Paperback / softback
Unavailable
Sorry, this product is not currently available to order

Description

From the former editor of Slate and CEO of Atlas Obscura comes the unbelievable story of "the Nobel Prize sperm bank" and the children it produced-"a superb book about the quest for genius and, ultimately, family" (Malcolm Gladwell, author of The Tipping Point and Talking to Strangers). NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY ROCKY MOUNTAIN NEWS It was the most radical human-breeding experiment in American history. The Repository for Germinal Choice-nicknamed "the Nobel Prize sperm bank"-opened to notorious fanfare in 1980, and for two decades women flocked to it from all over the country to choose a sperm donor from its roster of Nobel-laureate scientists, mathematical prodigies, successful businessmen, and star athletes. But the bank quietly closed its doors in 1999-its founder dead, its confidential records sealed, and the fate of its children and donors unknown. Crisscrossing the country and tracking down previously unknown family members, award-winning Slate columnist David Plotz unfolds the full and astonishing story of the Nobel Prize sperm bank and its founder's radical scheme to change our world. Praise for The Genius Factory "[David] Plotz's wonderful history of the Nobel sperm bank is filled with wit, pathos and insight. . . . [He acts] as narrator, ethnographer, historian, social critic and even go-between, brokering reunions between children and their genitors."-Chicago Tribune "Perfectly pitched-blithe, smart, skeptical, yet entranced by its subject."-The New York Times "By turns personal, confounding, creepy, defiant of expectations and touching . . .The Genius Factory isn't merely curious, it's useful."-San Francisco Chronicle "Tense, hilarious, and touching . . . wonderfully readable and eye-opening."-The Wall Street Journal "Terrific . . . [a] lively account."-The Washington Post Book World

Author Biography

David Plotz is deputy editor of the online magazine Slate. He lives in Washington, D.C., with his wife and two children.
Release date Australia
October 10th, 2006
Author
Audience
  • General (US: Trade)
Country of Publication
United States
Illustrations
Chapter-Opening Photos
Imprint
Random House Trade Paperbacks
Pages
288
Publisher
Random House USA Inc
Dimensions
132x203x16
ISBN-13
9780812970524
Product ID
3600486

Customer reviews

Nobody has reviewed this product yet. You could be the first!

Write a Review

Marketplace listings

There are no Marketplace listings available for this product currently.
Already own it? Create a free listing and pay just 9% commission when it sells!

Sell Yours Here

Help & options

Filed under...