Life's Work

A Moral Argument for Choice

By: Dr. Willie Parker, Lisa Miller

Narrated by: Caz Harleaux

In Life's Work, an outspoken Christian reproductive justice advocate and abortion provider (one of the few doctors to provide such services to women in Mississippi and Alabama) pulls from his personal and professional journeys as well as the scientific training he received as a doctor to reveal how he came to believe, unequivocally, that helping women in need, without judgment, is precisely the Christian thing to do.

Dr. Willie Parker grew up in the Deep South, lived in a Christian household, and converted to an even more fundamentalist form of Christianity as a young man. But upon reading an interpretation of the Good Samaritan in a sermon by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., he realized that in order to be a true Christian, he must show compassion for all women regardless of their needs. In 2009 he stopped practicing obstetrics to focus entirely on providing safe abortions for the women who need help the most - often women in poverty and women of color - and in the hotbed of the pro-choice debate: the South. He soon thereafter traded in his private practice and his penthouse apartment in Hawaii for the life of an itinerant abortion provider, focusing most recently on women in the Deep South.

In Life's Work, Dr. Willie Parker tells a deeply personal and thought-provoking narrative that illuminates the complex societal, political, religious, and personal realities of abortion in the United States from the unique perspective of someone who performs them and defends the right to do so every day. He also looks at how a new wave of anti-abortion activism, aimed at making incremental changes in laws and regulations state by state, are slowly chipping away at the rights of women to control their own lives. In revealing his daily battle against mandatory waiting periods and bogus rules governing the width of hallways, Dr. Parker uncovers the growing number of strings attached to the right to choose and makes a powerful Christian case for championing reproductive rights.

©2017 Dr. Willie Parker (P)2017 Simon & Schuster, Inc.

Brilliant and irrefutable

Beautifully articulate. Especially in these terrifying times where women’s rights are under fire yet again.

Career changing book

Dr Parker is an inspiration and puts into words many of my thoughts as a Christian OBGYN.

Every woman should read or listen to this book!

This is as informative, inspirational as it is entertaining. Reproductive rights are women's rights. We shouldn't in this day in age still be fighting to not be property. This doctor was raised in the Bible belt and his perspective on women's reproductive rights are inspiring and helpful when navigating the morality of this particular subject.

well done

I respect and admire Dr. Parker for his commitment to community and his introspective approach.

Great read!

I respect and understand Dr. Parker's perspective. Our God is ever merciful not hateful or discriminatory towards us. God looks at the intention of the heart not just the words or actions.

well done 👏

Extremely compelling and thoughtful book. Dr. Parker is amazing, I would recommend this book for everyone to read.

Unbelievable!!

This book was tremendous. It explains the ins and outs, the actual backstory of what it truly means and what happens when a woman gets an abortion and how many circumstances there truly are for someone to get one. This is a book for pro choicers, pro lifers, anyone. Everyone deserves to give this a listen.

Just what we need

I refused to stop listening to this until I was done, then went out and bought a hardback copy to keep for both personal reference and sharing.
I know many people would frown at this choice of word, but Dr. Parker is my hero.

Amazing!

I love everything about this book! My only issue is that once or twice during the book the audio very obviously changes. As if they had to re-record certain paragraphs and it was just very odd to hear for a few seconds.

Great book!

This is a very bright and articulate man who has traversed some remarkable social/cultural/personal territories in his 50+ year life. I think everyone should hear/read this book, and especially those interested in our reproduction.