"In this timely and necessary book, New York Times opinion writer Jessica Grose dismantles two hundred years of unrealistic parenting expectations and empowers today's mothers to make choices that actually serve themselves, their children, and their communities"--

"A memoir of motherhood, feminism, and family from a celebrated critic"--

Publisher Annotation: In the tradition of Random Family and Evicted, a gripping blend of rigorous, intimate on-the-ground reporting and deep social history that follows three first-time mothers as they experience pregnancy and childbirth in today's America. 384pp., 75K

"When Anne-Marie Slaughter accepted her dream job as the first female director of policy planning at the U.S. State Department in 2009, she was confident she could juggle the demands of her position in Washington, D.C., with the responsibilities of her family life in suburban New Jersey. Her husband and two young sons encouraged her to pursue the job; she had a tremendously supportive boss, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton; and she had been moving...

Examines the history of American ideas about motherhood, how those ideas have impacted all women whether or not they have children, and calls for changes in workplace policies, cultural norms, and personal attitudes about motherhood.

"The time for do-overs is over. Ever since she became a parent, Mary Louise Kelly has said "next year." Next year will be the year she makes it to her son James's soccer games (which are on weekdays at 4 p.m., right when she is on the air on NPR's All Things Considered, talking to millions of listeners). Drive carpool for her son Alexander? Not if she wants to do that story about Ukraine and interview the secretary of state. Like millions of parents...

"Filled with dry humor, sharp wit, and motherly care, Karen Duffy offers timeless pearls of wisdom. When she was diagnosed with a life-threatening neurological disease, she decided that to survive, she had to learn to laugh. In adulthood and motherhood, she has found that she has earned more than her fair share of wisdom and wisecracks to offer her teenage son. These are her stories, advice, and insights that have helped her embrace all that her whirlwind...

"In this inspiring memoir, the award-winning playwright and bestselling author of What Looks Like Crazy on an Ordinary Day reminisces on the art of juggling marriage, motherhood, and politics while working to become a successful writer. In addition to being one of the most popular living playwrights in America, Pearl Cleage is a bestselling author with an Oprah Book Club pick and multiple awards to her credit. But there was a time when such stellar...

"A powerful decade-long study of adoption in the age of Roe, revealing the grief of the American mothers for whom the choice to parent was never real. Adoption has always been viewed as a beloved institution for building families, as well as a mutually agreeable common ground in the abortion debate, but little attention has been paid to the lives of mothers who relinquish infants for private adoption. Relinquished reveals adoption to be a path of...