Customer Reviews

Getting Simon: Two Gay Doctors' Journey to Fatherhood

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GETTING SIMON is a gripping odyssey following one man's obsession to create a family. Not just a "gay" book, this is a profoundly human, universal story. A must-read for anyone considering adoption or surrogacy. The book just keeps getting better and better, chapter by chapter. GETTING SIMON is a great, edge of the chair suspense thriller. Two men are turned away by the woman who promised to give them her baby in the delivery room. Out of the ashes of their despair rises a man obsessed with one thing only - finding the baby he names, "Simon." A ragtag parade of potential birthmothers flows in and out of their lives, raising our hopes, then dashing them when they leave. Even though we know the ending, wanting to find out how they get there makes this book so difficult to put down. I read it in two sittings. A script literally writes itself from this book and I can't wait until the movie comes out

For gay men considering adoption or surrogacy (I am one), this book was extremely informative and useful. It provides a sense of the obstacles to expect and issues to think about during the journey to fatherhood, and for that I am grateful.
However, as a book, it's merits do not extend much further. I found myself annoyed by the author's obsessiveness, almost to the point of mental illness, even though he is a psychologist himself. His partner's voice is completely absent -- it may have been a balancing factor. The story seemed to alternate between being a cold telling of the facts, and being over-emotional and personal.
The letters written to Simon before he was born were a redeeming factor, and the happy ending made the book bearable, even though I thought I was never going to get there. (I guess that's how these two men felt, too, come to think of it.)