Inheritance: A Memoir of Genealogy, Paternity, and Love

Paul is Shapiro’s Orthodox Jewish father. He descends from an illustrious family that includes the founder of Lincoln Square Synagogue, the president of the Orthodox Union, and other pillars of the observant Jewish community in the US and Israel. Paul was married three times. His first marriage was an arranged union that yielded one child, Susie, and ended in divorce. He married his second wife, the love of his life, knowing she was dying of non-Hodgkin lymphoma. His marriage to his third wife, Irene, was unhappy and marked by secrets. Paul underwent fertility treatments with Irene and chose to keep the truth from Shapiro. He died in a car accident when Shapiro was 23 years old.

Jacob is Shapiro and Michael’s teenage son and a budding filmmaker. He reacts with love and compassion when his mother tells him about her father.

Susie is Paul’s daughter from his first marriage. She and Shapiro grew up thinking they were half-sisters, but they do not have a close relationship.

Michael is Shapiro’s husband. He is a journalist, screenwriter, and director. His curiosity about his own lineage prompted him to order DNA tests, which precipitated the shocking revelations about Shapiro’s father. Michael supports Shapiro emotionally, in addition to helping her uncover the truth about her origins.

Irene is Shapiro’s mother. She was eager for a child by the time she married Paul and had several miscarriages before seeking fertility treatments at the Farris Institute for Parenthood in Philadelphia. Shapiro describes her mother as a cold, formal woman with a penchant for drama. Susie calls her a narcissist with a borderline personality disorder. Irene and Shapiro’s relationship was fraught and contentious. Shapiro largely blames her mother for keeping her true identity secret.

Dr. Farris is a fertility doctor and the founder of the Farris Institute for Parenthood. He pioneered a method to pinpoint ovulation. He treated Paul and Irene in the 1960s, using donor sperm to help the couple conceive.

Ben is Shapiro’s biological father. He is a thoracic doctor from Portland, Oregon. Ben donated sperm at the Farris Institute when he was a medical student at the University of Pennsylvania. Although he is initially reluctant to engage with Shapiro, the two eventually meet and forge a close relationship.

Pilar is Ben’s Brazilian wife. She warmly accepts Shapiro the moment the meet, but she expresses concern that other donor-conceived children will disrupt her family’s life.