Conceiving Histories by Isabel Davis - ISBN: 9780262049481
Hardcover
Conception struggles, past and present: history, memoir, and stunning illustration.

Conceiving Histories

Trying for Pregnancy, Past and Present

$82.85

  • Hardcover

    360 pages

  • Release Date

    25 March 2025

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Summary

A fascinating and beautifully illustrated account of trying to conceive in both the past and the present.

Inspired by the author’s own experiences, Conceiving Histories brings together history, personal memoir, and illustration to investigate the culturally hidden experience of trying to conceive. In elegant, engaging prose, Isabel Davis explores the combination of myth, fantasy, science, and pseudo-science that the (un)reproductive body encounters in pursuit of a viable preg…

Book Details

ISBN-13:9780262049481
ISBN-10:0262049481
Author:Isabel Davis, Anna Burel
Publisher:MIT Press Ltd
Imprint:MIT Press
Format:Hardcover
Number of Pages:360
Release Date:25 March 2025
Weight:567g
Dimensions:254mm x 178mm
What They're Saying

Critics Review

“Davis resists a chronological narrative or overarching argument. She wants to reject the idea that the story of conception has a predictable plot. The dreamy, associative nature of the book sinks the reader into the uncertain and indeterminate state of trying to conceive, of early pregnancy, of miscarriage.” – London Review of Books

About The Author

Isabel Davis

Isabel Davis leads a research theme on Collections and Culture at the Natural History Museum in London, and she is Honorary Research Fellow at Birkbeck, University of London, and Senior Visiting Research Fellow at the University of Reading.

Anna Burel is a London-based artist and illustrator whose artwork encompasses textiles, sculpture, drawing, photography, and collage. Her work investigates the female bodily experience through an exploration of history and traditional storytelling like myth and fairytale.

Isabel and Anna have worked together since 2015, holding an exhibition of their work in London in 2017.

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