This Common Secret : My Journey as an Abortion Doctor

Let me begin by saying I am a feminist. I am pro-choice. This was a difficult read because it talks about the lengths people will go to infringe on the rights of women like me to make that choice. Dr. Wicklund goes into detail about the dangers she personally has faced as an abortion provider – from stalking, to assault, to arson and death threats. The murders of Dr. Hill and Dr. Britton are mentioned, and the attempted murder of Dr. Tiller. (An attempt on Dr. Tiller's life was successful two years after the publication of the book.) She resorted to wildly varying routines, different methods of transportation, elaborate disguises, as well as hiring private security guards, none of it really alleviating her fear that she could be next.

Running throughout the entire book is Dr. Wicklund's concern for her patients. She is a dedicated, compassionate woman who wants nothing but the best for the women in her care. In many cases, that's not actually abortion. One of the things that makes her an excellent doctor is ferreting out what is really in her patients' best interests.

The book is mercifully short; I have no doubt she had many more stories she could have told, but the topic is brutal and hard to read, and keeping it concise and on-message was well done. I still had to set it down and play some mindless video games when I was done, as it was a little overwhelming.

This Common Secret also touches on why people keep it a secret. Why people don't talk about their abortion. And why people should. If more people realize that the women that get abortions are your neighbor, your sister, your grandmother – not just that “w—- that slept around” – although she, too, deserves an abortion if that is the right choice for her. Maybe they would rethink their opposition to it.

I'm honestly probably not giving this book justice – it's a decade old, but could have been written yesterday. And I am infuriated by anti-choice idiots.

You can find all my reviews at Goddess in the Stacks.