William and Wilber, fraternal twins, grew up near the tiny village of La Paz, Colombia, without electricity, running water and the other conveniences most of us take for granted. But that was the life of all those around them. They didn’t feel deprived, except that William longed for an education, something that none of his relatives seemed to need. Jorge and Carlos, another set of fraternal twins, were raised in Bogota, lived the life of city kids. They went to school, to college. They were your ordinary urban professionals. And then the lives of these four young men were changed forever when they learned that their twin brothers were not their twins, were not even their brothers. Somehow, at the hospital, one twin in each pair was switched with a twin in the other pair. Psychologist, Dr. Nancy Segal, and social worker Yesika Montoya, used this unique opportunity to carefully research the old question of nature or nurture, looking at the impact life events have in shaping personalities. I found the story of the brothers lives before and after they learned the truth, and the findings of the authors about the role of genetics in personality, very interesting. But the book could have used some editing. Events seemed to jump around and much information was repeated.

eGalley review                                               Publication date 4.17.18