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I sympathize with their mission. Not because I am ideologically pro-life (Im not). Only that I favour informed consent in all ethics-related decisions. And deplore any systemic dumbing down of such decisions gravity through pedagogical misdirection.

In an email exchange with the authors, they told me their organization is active on social media, where they have discovered that many young people believe an embryo is just a clump of cells. They have never heard, for example, of the 23 Carnegie Stages of embryology, the gold standard for accurate scientific facts in the sexual reproduction cycle of life, which in rudimentary form provide the plot line of When You Became You.

I favour informed consent in all ethics-related decisions

The book did not strike me as in any way controversial on a first, casual reading, but during a more focused re-read, the charged word human jumped out at me: It does not matter what you look like Or even if you arent born yet. You are a human being; And from the moment your life begins, you are the same human being throughout your entire life; Just like you used to be a toddler and an infant, before that, you used to be a fetus, and before that, you were an embryo; A human fetus is simply a special name that scientists call a pre-born human being from nine weeks until birth. Well, you can see why this book has ruffled some progressive feathers.

Stanton and West worked with their China-based, best-selling illustrator over a period of months, with her name on the cover throughout their collaboration. But when the author/publisher of her previous books got wind of the project, her American representatives told the authors they had to pull the illustrators name, as it was too controversial. Since they couldnt acquire the high-resolution images they needed otherwise, Stanton and West agreed. A shame because, as noted, the illustrations are magnificent.

The book launched in November. The first printing has sold out and a number of schools in the U.S. are using it. West informs me that only 34 per cent of Canadians believe life begins at conception. Hopefully, When You Became You will find its way to many Canadian homes (maybe even schools?) and help to nudge those numbers upward.

Email: kaybarb@gmail.com | Twitter: BarbaraRKay

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Barbara Kay: Following the science in the controversy over when you became you - National Post