Scarlet A: The Ethics, Law, and Politics of Ordinary Abortion Review In this brilliant new book, Watson draws on legal proceedings, bioethics literature, and personal experience; offers cultural and literary analysis; and uses her unique vantage point as a lawyer, bioethicist, and medical educator to develop a thought-provoking and thoroughly fresh perspective on one of the most divisive moral issues of our time. (Mara Buchbinder, Hastings Center Report)[E]xcellent ... Watson has a gift for explaining complex arguments in a simple, easy to understand manner. ... Watson's book is an important contribution to the growing literature on abortion stigma and the moral case for abortion, and its accessible language will make it an excellent text for classrooms and book clubs. Watson's writing style is personal and engaging, making the book a pleasure to read. The ideas it contains are complex and subtle, but the writing is direct and honest. (Anu Kumar, Conscience)A timely reminder about the importance of rational, non-emotional debate around the rights of the individual. (Emerald Street)At last, a new, important, and powerful effort to improve the national abortion debate. Bioethicist and lawyer Katie Watson initiates a rich conversation about the morality of ordinary legal abortion in the context of unwanted pregnancy. This illuminating book builds on the narratives and vocabulary of women's lived experience in deciding about abortion, and it will captivate anyone willing to attend to the complexity and ambiguity of such decisions. (James F. Childress Ph.D, University Professor Emeritus, University of Virginia)Katie Watson is not afraid to acknowledge the moral complexities of abortion, even as she affirms the legal right to access it. Her writing is lively and clear, but she never underestimates readers' ability to engage in serious moral thinking. Watson will make you think about abortion in new, unforgettable ways. (Lisa H. Harris M.D., Ph.D, University of Michigan)In this refreshingly accessible book Katie Watson, invites readers to a conversation about 'ordinary abortion'―that is, the vast majority of abortions that take place in the U.S. With immense intelligence and sensitivity, and considerable wit, Watson offers new ways to think about this complex issue, and urges readers to continue this conversation with their neighbors and friends. (Carole Joffe Ph.D., University of California, San Francisco)I would encourage anyone regardless of their current view of abortion to read this book. Watson provides an important perspective of abortion that isn't regularly shared, abortion as a 'routine' and commonly performed procedure, and she deftly explores why the many women who have this procedure rarely speak of it openly. The more perspectives we explore and the more we open our minds to various ways of looking at this topic the more readily we can come to a meaningful understanding. (Louise P. King M.D., J.D., Harvard Center for Bioethics) 				    	 					 About the Author Katie Watson is an award-winning professor who has taught bioethics, medical humanities, and constitutional law for fifteen years at Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine. She has been elected a Board member of the American Society for Bioethics and Humanities, Chair of the Ethics Committee and Board member of the National Abortion Federation, and Bioethics Advisor to and Member of the National Medical Council of the Planned Parenthood Federation of America. In 2017, she began practicing law again, and she now splits her time between Northwestern and the ACLU of Illinois, where she is Senior Counsel for the Women's and Reproductive Rights Project.