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The G Ring: How the IUD Escaped the Nazis

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An epic untold true story at the intersection of WWII and the history of reproductive freedom—as the inventor of a controversial form of contraception struggles to escape Nazi Germany.

Dr. Ernst Gräfenberg was among the most sought-after gynecologists in pre–World War II Germany. The creator of the first IUD, known as the Gräfenberg ring, he was posthumously credited with identifying the eponymous “Gräfenberg spot” or G-spot. He was also a Jew in Nazi Germany, and by 1938 he had been stripped of his practice, his possessions, and his freedom and was languishing in a Nazi prison. After being allegedly ransomed from confinement by Planned Parenthood founder Margaret Sanger, Gräfenberg fled to America, where he eventually became the only male doctor at Sanger’s birth control clinic.

In this bracing essay, Rebecca Tuhus-Dubrow rescues from near obscurity the pioneering inventor of a contraceptive device that unleashed decades of controversy. And as we see efforts to roll back reproductive rights, it is also a cautionary tale as relevant today as it was nearly a century ago.

48 pages, Kindle Edition

First published February 27, 2020

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Rebecca Tuhus-Dubrow

3 books6 followers

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Displaying 1 - 30 of 46 reviews
Profile Image for Teri.
763 reviews95 followers
December 30, 2022
This short story details the invention of the IUD by German gynecologist Dr. Ernst Gräfenberg and his imprisonment as a Jew in pre-WWII Germany. After two years in prison, he was released and emigrated to the United States, where he continued his practice with support from Margaret Sanger, who was a pioneer in birth control in the US.
Profile Image for TL *Humaning the Best She Can*.
2,341 reviews166 followers
May 5, 2023
*read for free with Kindle Unlimited *

3 stars 🌟 Interesting history, writing was a little dry at times but not boring.

Would recommend for history and non history buffs
Profile Image for Two Readers in Love.
583 reviews20 followers
March 25, 2020
I listened to this on Audible during my solo runs during the COVID-19 pandemic. Listening to how Dr. Ernst Gräfenberg faced first the uncertainty and hyperinflation of the libertine Weimar Republic, then imprisonment an co-option by the Nazis, and finally readjustment in America gave me some perspective while I was jogging through the pandemic-emptied roads. The shifting medical opinions on both the IUD and the G-spot also was good food to thought during a time when public health doesn't seem to leave much room for nuanced conversation.

The extended essay left me with a better view of a complex time, a dedicated physician, and a huge -- and still debated -- legacy.

The Audible narrator for the book was solid, which is always a bonus.
Profile Image for Sophia M.
463 reviews5 followers
July 11, 2020
I received this book as a free eARC through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
-
I found this text enjoyable and engaging, but I struggled to take seriously the casual tone it took when discussing both the legacy of both World Wars in Germany, as well as the Nazi imprisonment and eugenics of minority groups. Further, I found it irresponsible of the author to not discuss the harmful and violent history of gynecology as a practice while heralding the positive achievement of IUDs.
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বছরের সর্বোচ্চ RTP স্লট গেম: উচ্চ প্রত্যাশার শুরু
“বছরের সর্বোচ্চ RTP স্লট গেম” বলতে সাধারণত এমন এক বা একাধিক স্লট গেমকে বোঝানো হয়, যেগুলোর RTP (Return to Player) হার বর্তমানে বাজারে খুবই উচ্চ মান নিয়ে গিয়েছে — অর্থাৎ খেলোয়াড়দের প্রত্যাবর্তন সম্ভাবনা তুলনামূলকভাবে বেশি। MCW77-এ যখন এই ধরনের গেম চালু হয়, তখন তা অনেক গেমপ্রেমীর দৃষ্টি আকর্ষণ করে, কারণ এখানে গেম নির্মাতা, বিন্যাস, বোনাস ফিচার, উঁচু রিটার্ন সহকারে আকর্ষণীয় বিনোদন এবং জয় করার সম্ভাবনা একসাথে পাওয়া যায়।
এই প্রবন্ধে আমরা হাইলাইট করব — বছরের সর্বোচ্চ RTP স্লট গেম হিসেবে কোন গেমগুলো মানুষের নজর কেড়েছে, কেন সেগুলো জনপ্রিয়, MCW77 এ কিভাবে সেগুলো উপস্থাপন করা হয়েছে, এবং গেম খেলোয়াড়দের জন্য কিছু কার্যকর টিপসও তুলে ধরা হবে।

উচ্চ RTP স্লট গেম কি ও তার গুরুত্ব
RTP বা খেলোয়াড় প্রত্যাবর্তন হার হল গড় হিসেবে সেই শতাংশ যা একটি স্লট মেশিন (বা গেম) দীর্ঘ মেয়াদে খেলোয়াড়দের ফিরিয়ে দেবে। উদাহরণস্বরূপ, একটি স্লট যদি 98% RTP থাকে, তাহলে গড়ভাবে প্রতি 100 ইউনিট বাজি করার পর 98 ইউনিট খেলোয়াড়দের ফিরিয়ে দেবে (নাটকীয় দামে নয়, তবে গড় হিসেবে)।
উচ্চ RTP স্লট গেম কেন গুরুত্বপূর্ণ?
খেলোয়াড়দের সম্ভাব্য ক্ষতি কম রাখতে সাহায্য করে।


বাজি ও লস ম্যানেজমেন্টে সময়মতো সহায়ক হয়।


গেম হিসেবে বিশ্বাসযোগ্যতা বাড়ায় — কারণ গেম নির্মাতারা ভালো গুণমান ও ন্যায্যতা প্রদর্শন করে।


প্রচারণা এবং আকর্ষণ বৃদ্ধির জন্য ক্যাসিনোগুলো এই গেমগুলোকে প্রাধান্য দেয় — যেমন MCW77 এ।


সাধারণত, বাজারে স্লট গেমগুলোর গড় RTP ~ 95%–96% এর আশেপাশে থাকে। তাই যেসব গেম 97%, 98% বা তারও বেশি RTP দেয়, সেগুলো “উচ্চ RTP স্লট গেম” হিসেবে বিবেচিত।

MCW77 এ বছরের সর্বোচ্চ RTP স্লট গেম প্রবণতা
MCW77 একটি জনপ্রিয় অনলাইন গেম প্ল্যাটফর্ম, যেখানে স্লট গেম বিভাগে সময়সাপেক্ষে নতুন ও আকর্ষণীয় গেম যুক্ত করা হয়। এখানে “বছরের সর্বোচ্চ RTP স্লট গেম” একটি কৌশলগত শব্দবন্ধ হিসেবে ব্যবহৃত হয়, যা নতুন গেম বা আপডেটেড গেমগুলোর বাজারজাতকরণে ব্যবহৃত হয়।
গেম নির্বাচন ও প্রকাশ প্রক্রিয়া
MCW77 এ যখন একটি গেম প্রকাশ করা হয়, বিশেষ করে যদি সেটি উচ্চ RTP সহ আসে, তখন তা প্রচারণায় “বছরের সর্বোচ্চ RTP স্লট গেম” হিসেবে ডাকা হতে পারে। গেম প্রোভাইডার এবং প্ল্যাটফর্ম উভয়েই গেমটির বৈশিষ্ট্য যেমন:
RTP হার


ভোলাটিলিটি (উচ্চ/নিম্ন ঝুঁকি)


বোনাস ফিচার ও ফ্রি স্পিন


গ্রাফিক্স ও থিম


বাজি সীমা ও পেআউট গঠন


এই সব বিষয় মেধাবীভাবে বেছে নেয়। গেমের পূর্ণাঙ্গ পরীক্ষা ও RNG (Random Number Generator) অডিট নিশ্চিত করার পর সেটি লাইব্রেরিতে যুক্ত করা হয়।
ব্যবহারকারী আকর্ষণ ও বিপণন
MCW77 প্রচারণায় বছরের সর্বোচ্চ RTP স্লট গেম ট্যাগ ব্যবহার করে গেমকে হাইলাইট করে। এটি একটি আকর্ষণমূলক নামচিহ্ন হিসাবে কাজ করে — কারণ উচ্চ RTP মানে মুনাফার সম্ভাবনা বেশি, এবং গেমপ্রেমীরা সাধারণত এই সুযোগ অনুসন্ধান করে।
স্লট গেম বিভাগে গেম তালিকা সাজাতে অধিক কাস্টম ফিল্টার থাকে — যেমন "নতুন", "উচ্চ RTP", "জনপ্রিয়", ইত্যাদি। তাই গেমপ্রেমীরা সহজেই সেই গেম খুঁজে নিতে পারেন।
কিভাবে খেলা শুরু করবেন MCW77 এ উচ্চ RTP গেম
নিবন্ধন ও লগইন
MCW77 এ একটি অ্যাকাউন্ট খুলুন। প্রাথমিক তথ্য ও পরিচয় নিশ্চিত করার পর লগইন করুন।


ডিপোজিট / বাজি যোগ করা
নির্ধারিত মেথড (ব্যানক ট্রান্সফার, ই-ওয়ালেট ইত্যাদি) ব্যবহার করে অর্থ জমা করুন।


গেম খুঁজুন
স্লট বিভাগে যান, ফিল্টার অপশন থেকে “উচ্চ RTP” বা “নতুন” সিলেক্ট করুন।


গেম চালু ও বাজি নির্ধারণ
পছন্দ অনুযায়ী বেট সাইজ নির্বাচন করুন এবং স্পিন স্টার্ট করুন। গেম ফিচার, বোনাস রাউন্ড, ফ্রি স্পিন ইত্যাদি সম্ভাব্য সুবিধা কাজে লাগান।


বাজি ও লাভ ম্যানেজমেন্ট
বাজি সীমা নির্ধারণ করুন, লস কাট অফ সেট করুন, এবং ধৈর্য বজায় রাখুন।


এভাবে, MCW77 প্ল্যাটফর্মে আপনি সহজেই “বছরের সর্বোচ্চ RTP স্লট গেম” উপভোগ করতে পারবেন।

কৌশল ও টিপস — জেতার সম্ভাবনা বাড়ানোর উপায়
খেলা আগে ডেমো বা ফ্রি মোডে অভ্যাস করুন
গেমটির বৈশিষ্ট্য, বোনাস রাউন্ড ও পেআউট টেবিল বুঝে নিন।


কম বাজি দিয়ে শুরু করুন
দীর্ঘ খেলার জন্য বাজি সীমা ছোট রেখে গেম চালান।


বোনাস ও অফার ব্যবহার করুন
MCW77 প্রায়ই ডিপোজিট বোনাস, ফ্রি স্পিন অফার দেয় — এগুলি কাজে লাগান।


গেম বৈচিত্র্য বজায় রাখুন
একটি গেমে থাকবেন না — মাঝেমধ্যে নতুন গেম ট্রাই করুন।


লস কাট অফ ও লাভ রূপান্তর পরিকল্পনা রাখুন
একটি সীমা নির্ধারণ করুন — সেটি পার করলে খেলাটিকে বিরতি দিন।


স্লট গেমের RNG এবং গেমলজি সম্পর্কে সচেতন থাকুন
গেম ফল পূর্বনির্ধারিত নয়, তবে ��েম নির্মাতা ও প্ল্যাটফর্মের বিশ্বস্ততা নিশ্চিত করতে হবে।



উপসংহার: সেরা নির্বাচন ও প্রতিযোগিতার অগ্রগামী ধারা
“বছরের সর্বোচ্চ RTP স্লট গেম” শব্দবন্ধটি একদিকে গেমপ্রেমীদের আকর্ষণ করে, অন্যদিকে ক্যাসিনো платформগুলিকে এগিয়ে থাকতে সাহায্য করে। MCW77 এ এই ধরণের গেমগুলি বিশেষভাবে হাইলাইট করা হয় — কারণ তারা ব্যবহারকারীদের যন্ত্রনা কমিয়ে, বিনোদন ও সম্ভাবনা বাড়াতে পারে।
যারা গেম খেলার মাধ্যমে বিনোদন ও উত্তেজনা চান, তাদের উচিত উচ্চ RTP স্লট গেমগুলোর দিকে নজর দেওয়া — তবে দায়িত্বশীল বাজি ও সচেতন খেলা অপরিহার্য। MCW77-এ আপনি “বছরের সর্বোচ্চ RTP স্লট গেম” খুঁজে পাবেন, খেলতে পারবেন, এবং আপনার গেমিং অভিজ্ঞতা কে আরও মজবুত করতে পারবেন।

1,192 reviews8 followers
January 8, 2025
Nonfiction essays are not my favorite genre, but this freebie medical short kept me entertained while making dinner. It takes a straightforward approach and stays surface level. Despite the content touching upon human sexuality, family planning, disease prevention, forced sterilization, and eugenics, the tone stays light. It introduces rather than explores the shifting gynecological practices and how they were affected by things like hyperinflation, war, classism, and liberation movements.
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Summary: Dr. Ernst Gräfenberg was a sought-after gynecologist in Germany until anti-Jewish sentiment crested pre-World War II. He published several papers and engineered an intrauterine device for contraception before being stripped of his practice, possessions, and freedoms in 1938. After two years in a Nazi Prison he was ransomed and emigrated to America with the assistance of Planned Parenthood founder Margaret Sanger. He resumed offering the Grafenberg ring now made of rounded metal, but the IUD remained controversial. Posthumously he was credited with identifying the eponymous “Gräfenberg spot” or G-spot.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Susan Baranoff.
895 reviews11 followers
November 16, 2020
Well written and well researched

Dr. Ernst Gräfenberg, currently best known for his work on researching what we now call "The G-Spot", was the most well regarded gynecologist in Germany between the wars. In most of Europe, unlike in the U.S., human sexuality was not a verboten topic. Doctors all over Europe specialized in helping women with family planning and disease prevention. This well written and well narrated lengthy essay tells the story of one of the preeminent physicians working in this field. The essay also touches on the 1920s Berliner views toward sex positive culture, eugenics, and a host of other topics related to human sexuality and women's reproductive health and sexuality satisfaction.
Fascinating and highly recommended.
24 reviews1 follower
August 15, 2020
As a gynecologist, albeit, retired, Intra uterine contraceptive devices were a favorite tool of mine for planning pregnancies in Indian women, particularly those from the lower socioeconomic strata.
In my life time of practice, I only came across one patient who had had the Gräfenberg ring. She had come to me from the mMiddle East. Her husband wanted to undergo a vasectomy and thus the ring has to be removed. I had never done such a procedure before, but it turned out to be quite easy.
It was interesting to learn about the history of the ring and also about it's inventor and his trials and tribulations.
A good short read.
Profile Image for Barbara.
830 reviews1 follower
December 8, 2020
Dr. Ernst Grafenberg was a German Jewish gynecologist who specialized in contraception and studied female sexuality. He invented one of the first IUDs (the G ring) and identified the G spot. He was imprisoned by the Nazis in the late 1930s for such work. Grafenberg supported eugenics and considered some women “lazy and stupid” for failing to take an interest in protecting themselves from pregnancy. The author could have explored these views further but didn’t. Margaret Sanger, early birth control advocate, assisted Dr. Grafenberg’s immigration to the U.S. after he was released from prison.

3.5 stars, rounding up.
Profile Image for Melissa.
1,149 reviews1 follower
February 16, 2023
A very quick read

I also borrowed this short novella from Prime Reads. It was very easy-to-read, but rich in details. There are some photos, as well as a complete bibliography. I found it interesting, and I was chagrined to realize that the current GOP is setting this country back 80-90 years to Hitler's Germany as far as a woman's sexual autonomy is concerned. Also the antisemitism of the far-right can be compared as well. In addition, this little book details the major impact Jewish ob-gyns have had on the IUD...and when speaking about Dr. Grafenberg very specifically, female sexual enjoyment in regard to the discovery of the "G-spot." I recommend this book.
Profile Image for Penny.
21 reviews1 follower
July 25, 2021
Short history for all women

A quick read on Ernst Grafenberg and his invention of the ring IUD. Historically important for women to provide background on the subject of birth control. Easy to read but hard to reflect upon the treatment of Grafenberg by a nascent Nazi Germany. Also a short history of the resulting intrauterine devices since Grafenberg's ring. Short aside; I had an IUD in the late 70's (thank God not a Dalkon shield) and never had a moment of trouble. And it worked!
2,080 reviews18 followers
March 23, 2021
This was an enjoyable short audiobook that looked at the history of Dr. Grafenberg, and his research into the IUD and related topics around the time of WWII. It is a limited topic, and mostly a biography that focuses on some of the resistance to it at the time. This only goes into fairly light detail, but it's also brief, so it's more of a bite-size history than a deep dive into the topic, but not everything needs that level of detail, and this works well.
Profile Image for Laura.
9 reviews2 followers
August 27, 2021
Interesting, quick read. The author seemed to lose focus in the second half of the book going from specific details to wide, generalized, loosely connected information. And the Nazis, which they were a part of the book, their role was much different than what I expected from the title. Nonetheless, if you are interested in women's rights, birth control, and how people like Margaret Sanger were involved at an international level, this book is an interesting, quick read.
Profile Image for Kerry.
1,737 reviews76 followers
September 6, 2020
Unbelievable--yet totally believable--that women had access to reliable birth control free of health effects and inconvenience as early as the first half of the 20th century but it wasn't until 2003 that IUDs began to be promoted as such. The creation of the IUD was an incredible service to women and it seems in the right doctor's hands it was also the best option for decades.
Profile Image for Topher.
1,603 reviews
March 21, 2021
This was not a bad book, but the best part of it is the title. I expected something very different than a biography of Graefenberg - or at least a very focused, very short biography of one aspect and period of his life.

On the other hand, it did a good job of reminding me just how different 1920s and 1930s Berlin were.

A quick read, and possibly worth the time.
207 reviews7 followers
Read
June 13, 2021
It’s both fascinating and horrifying to me that we not only continue in our pursuit of sin, but we use the same tired excuses for justifying it. Nothing new under the sun.

As a story of what happened with the invention of the IUD, it was good, and not something I was familiar with. It led me to a number of other primary sources that I’ve now looked up and read or watched, so that was good.
Profile Image for Erika.
157 reviews
March 30, 2023
Short read of Dr. Grafenberg, his research and push towards IUD’s that led to modern day brands you may know, like Mirena. Posthumously credited with the discovery of the G-Spot! “Grafenberg Spot”.
(Of course, a woman’s body spot is named after a man-most women would’ve been too timid to admit discovering her own body part)
Profile Image for Dona's Books.
1,313 reviews272 followers
August 4, 2020
Reading The G Ring was an absolutely surreal experience. All I can say is if you decide to read this book, prepare yourself for an interesting read, as in, "Hm, that's interesting," and as in, "Hmmmmmm, that's...interesting..."

The history of the IUD itself is fascinating. Like many women's health technologies, its existence has been constantly threatened, even by the very establishment that created it. That information to me is interesting. Tuhus-Dubrow, in utilizing her journalistic traditions, provided a well-researched history of this technology.

But she also presented to us, Dr. Grafenburg, the eugenicist, without a whisper of the moral quagmire that represents. It may be the journalistic tradition to remain unbiased, but when one writes a book, one is not acting as a journalist. And Tuhus-Dubrow was not, at least not in regards to any other aspect of her subject.

I expect her to at least invite the reader to consider the implications of a doctor who invented birth-control holding the belief that some people shouldn't be born. Did she not have the courage to present that question? Or did she not think that question deserved to be asked? Either way, the absence is glaring. As Gary Provost says, "Don't hide behind your words...[Climb] onto the page when your presence will strengthen what you have written" (143), such as explaining or at least questioning how Dr. Grafenburg could be a women's hero when he was, the whole time, a eugenicist.

I still give this book three stars because of the excellent research. I'm honestly not sure who I recommend this book for, except people like me who really like nonfiction.

Stay safe out there bookish people, wear your masks and protect your hands! <3

Provost, Gary, 100 Ways to Improve Your Writing. Berkley, NY, 2019.
Profile Image for Kaycee O'Daniel.
217 reviews1 follower
October 9, 2025
Honestly pretty informative little book. I think the title could use some work though, as it doesn’t necessarily apply. Tempted to take a star off because of what the man said about women but that wasn’t the author and he got shut down for it so boo him
Profile Image for Kent Winward.
1,801 reviews68 followers
March 15, 2020
Didn't know Graffenberg did the IUD or that he escaped the Nazis.
Profile Image for Lori.
44 reviews
April 2, 2020
A controversial topic, but a good short biography of Dr. Ernst Gräfenberg.
370 reviews4 followers
June 9, 2020
Very interesting

It was a very brief essay but extremely informative story about the founder of the IUD and how early it had been used.
Profile Image for Lisa.
1,395 reviews8 followers
June 26, 2020
Interesting piece of history

Interesting piece about the German doctor who escaped from the Nazis to become a part of the early days of Planned Parenthood.
Profile Image for Bec Sachse.
38 reviews2 followers
January 13, 2021
While it was an interesting little read into the history of the creation of the IUD and the 'discovery' of the G-spot, something left me a little unsettled.

How the hell did this male gynaecologist notice the 'triggering' of the G-spot in the first place? What type of internal exams was he doing to woman? Kinda creepy if you ask me... yet I still gave it 3 stars... maybe I need to reassess my rating system :|
Profile Image for Lauren McNally .
45 reviews3 followers
June 25, 2021
Very informative
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Ryan Waldon.
63 reviews1 follower
June 26, 2022
This was a totally engrossing and thoroughly informative story. The perfect length, perfect performance as well.
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