The Making of You

A quirky and inspired guide to your very own origin story.

This enlightening and irresistible book for adults explains how you were made—not with the standard euphemisms told to us as children, but with vivid, exacting prose that unveils all the complex processes we never knew produced human life.

With a brilliant talent for thoughtful, charming science writing, Katharina Vestre takes us from cell to human and shares surprising facts along the way—such as that sperm have a sense of smell and that hiccups were likely inherited from our ancient, underwater ancestors. She also shows why gender is more complicated than we think and reveals the questions scientists still ponder about how we came to be.

A miniature drama of cosmic significance, this is the incredible story of you.

Katharina Vestre is a doctoral research fellow at the Department of Biosciences at the University of Oslo, Norway. The Making of You is her first book.