Based on a 2001 workshop at the U. of Sussex on Anthropology, Reproduction and Health Policy, 11 chapters consider the relationship between human reproductive processes--including attitudes toward fertility, pregnancy, childbirth, and the postpartum period--medical technologies, and state health policies in a variety of cultural contexts, particularly outside northern Europe and North America. The volume discusses the relationships between local and global ideas, practices, and policies concerning reproduction and health across the developing and post-industrial worlds, and seeks to understand the connections between biological and social reproduction--how the physical processes of childbearing are linked to the reproduction of social institutions and values. Annotation ©2004 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)