Without Child

The ``rejection of parenthood,'' as the author of this carefully researched study found, ``is a delicate and even dangerous topic.'' Lisle (Portrait of an Artist: A Biography of Georgia O'Keeffe) speaks for herself and the generation of women who came of age in the 1970s who are childless for a variety of reasons, but often by choice. Intertwining the account of her own tortured decision to choose childlessness and the views and experiences of women past and present, Lisle pierces some of the myths and stereotypes that surround non-mothers. She reveals a long and laudable history of women without progeny, and indicates that there has been ambivalence in mothers and non-mothers alike about their roles. As an advocate for a misunderstood minority, she points to the many ways a woman's childlessness, often perceived as selfish, can promote and nurture life-enhancing relationships. Author tour. (Mar.)