Uprooted: Family Trauma, Unknown Origins, and the Secretive History of Artificial Insemination

Readers' Favorite Book Awards Honorable Mention in Nonfiction Social Issues
2023 National Indie Excellence Awards Winner
2023 IPPY Gold Medalist in Nonfiction Audiobooks
2022 Best Book Awards Nonfiction Narrative WINNER

How a journey of self-discovery unearthed the scandalous evolution of artificial insemination
By his forties, Peter J. Boni was an accomplished CEO, with a specialty in navigating high-tech companies out of hot water. Just before his fiftieth birthday, Peter’s seventy-five-year-old mother unveiled a bombshell: His deceased father was not his biological father. Peter was conceived in 1945 via an anonymous sperm donor. The emotional upheaval upon learning that he was “misattributed” rekindled traumas long past and fueled his relentless research to find his genealogy. Over two decades, he gained an encyclopedic knowledge of the scientific, legal, and sociological history of reproductive technology as well as its practices, advances, and consequences. Through twenty-first century DNA analysis, Peter finally quenched his thirst for his origin.
In Uprooted, Peter J. Boni intimately shares his personal odyssey and acquired expertise to spotlight the free market methods of gamete distribution that conceives dozens, sometimes hundreds, of unknowing half-siblings from a single donor. This thought-provoking book reveals the inner workings—and secrets—of the multibillion-dollar fertility industry, resulting in a richly detailed account of an ethical aspect of reproductive science that, until now, has not been so thoroughly explored.


'Uprooted is a genetic whodunit, with all the twists and turns of a mystery novel, and the added bonus that it's all true. Boni's gripping story of his search for his roots and the identity of his biological father is poignant, bittersweet, and revelatory. Highly recommend.'
—Jacqueline Mroz, contributor, science/health section, The New York Times; author of Scattered Seeds: In Search of Family and Identity in the Sperm Donor Generation


'Peter Boni has managed to create a compelling read, a journey that includes personal struggles weaved into the fascinating science of early infertility treatment. His search for his genetic origins generously educates readers and keeps them engaged right up to the magical ending.'
—Alice D. Domar, PhD, executive director, Domar Centers for Mind/Body Health; author of Conquering Infertility


'Blending memoir and a deep dive into the shady history of the assisted reproduction industry, Uprooted exposes essential truths about the human condition, identity, and family. It is a worthwhile read for fertility practitioners, donors, recipient parents, and donor-conceived individuals alike. Now that we know better, we must do better.'
—Erin Jackson, founder, We Are Donor Conceived


'An intriguing memoir that presents an unusual and necessary perspective on sperm donation.'
—Kirkus Review


'An intimate and ambitious portrait of the search for self through understanding the past. Peter Boni deftly weaves history, culture, science, and law to reveal why it's hard to tell your life story without knowing how it started.'
—Dov Fox, author of Birth Rights and Wrongs: How Medicine and Technology are Remaking Reproduction and the Law; host of the podcast Donor 9623; professor of law and director of the Center of Health Law Policy and Bioethics at the University of San Diego


'Uprooted is enjoyable and extremely well-written, with all the elements of suspense, education, emotion, and self-reflection. Boni's journey sheds light on the experience felt by many of the couples I care for as well as the issues that their donor-derived children grapple with.'
—Michael Alper, MD, medical director and president, Boston IVF; associate clinical professor OBGYN, Harvard Medical School


'This is gripping, upsetting material, told with clarity . . . Readers interested in issues of genealogy will tear through the pages. What he eventually discovers is truly jolting, compelling evidenc