Twins

Twins and their implications are illuminated by a staff reporter for the New Yorker in this compelling, well-researched overview. Anchoring the reader in the historical mystique of twinship, Wright (Remembering Satan) documents humanity's low point in studying the special nature and possibilities of twins by recapping the horrific experiments of Josef Mengele. Wright proceeds to outline the newest research being conducted regarding twins, describing how separated-twin studies have thrown open the door on the nature-vs.-nurture debate. This is tricky ground fraught with political and social-policy land mines, but Wright does an admirable job of sorting through the differing research in a well-reasoned, clearheaded manner.

 He also provides a plethora of anecdotes of eerie similarities between twins separated at birth, such as personal habits and choices in spouses and careers. One notable British pair who were reunited later in life shared such puzzling traits and life events as frugality, marriage to men they met at local dances at age 16 and an avoidance of voting, except for a single instance when they worked as polling clerks. They even shared the habit of pushing their noses up, which they inexplicably called "squidging." Clear and compulsively readable, Wright's slim book sheds light on the allure of twinship:

 "The fantasized twin that we carry about in our minds is not only an idealized partner in the experience of being who we are, he is also a means of escape from the life we are living." Informative if brief, it shows us that even in identical lives there is no escape from the solitary experience of selfhood. For those seeking more information, Wright's extensive bibliography offers a treasure trove of leads. 
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From School Library Journal
YA-Twin girls are given up for adoption. One is doted on, the center of her upper-middle-class family's existence, the other is subtly rejected by her mother, and is not the center of her lower-class family's life. Which would most likely be the one described as, "tense, demanding...clinging to her blanket...crying when left alone"? Surprisingly, the description aptly describes both girls.

 Wright presents the conflicting, and often confounding results from twin studies done primarily over the last 50 years. Most people have heard the stories of separated twins (and one well-publicized case of triplets) being reunited as adults only to find astonishing similarities in their habits and personalities.  The "nature versus nurture" debate has yet to be settled; if anything the studies add confusion to the mix.

 Wright offers summaries of research and the stories of researchers themselves; conclusions reached and discarded, and describes why twin studies fascinate us. The "shared" and "nonshared" environments of identical twins, and the differences in development that result from these experiences, offer new insight. The book serves up questions such as: "Do our genes determine our personality?" "How much, if any, effect do parents have on the personalities of their children?" These questions are not answered; readers are left to ponder the possibilities and draw their own conclusions.
Carol DeAngelo, Garcia Consulting Inc., EPA Headquarters, Washington, DC
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.