From actor, comedian, co-creator of Marcel the Shell, and New York Times bestselling author of Little Weirds, Jenny Slate, a wild, soulful, hilarious collection of genre-bending essays depicting the journey into motherhood as you’ve never seen it before. What happened was this: Jenny Slate was a human mammal who sniffed the air every morning hoping to find another person to love who would love her, and in that period there was a deep dark loneliness that she had to face and befriend, and then we are pleased to report that she did fall in love, and in that period she was like chimes, or a flock of clean breaths, and her spine lying flat was the many-colored planks on the xylophone, but also she was rabid with fear of losing this love, because of past injury. And then what happened was that she became a wild-pregnant-mammal-thing and then she exploded herself by having a whole baby blast through her vagina during a global plague and then she was expected to carry on like everything was normal—but was this normal, and had she or anything ever been normal? Herein lies an account of this journey, told in five phases—Single, True Love, Pregnancy, Baby, and Ongoing—through luminous, laugh-out-loud funny, unclassifiable essays that take the form of letters to a doctor, dreams of a stork, fantasy therapy sessions, gossip between racoons, excerpts from an imaginary olden timey play, obituaries, theories about post-partum hair loss, graduation speeches, and more. No one writes like Jenny Slate.

A Mystery That Can Finally Be Told! After her father, Dr. George Hodel, a prominent Hollywood physician was acquitted in a sensational incest trial, 16-year-old Tamar gave birth to a blue-eyed, white skinned baby girl. She insisted that the father was "Negro." Outraged by the audacity of their daughter and the stigma attached to a mixed-race child within their midst, her mother quickly arranged to have the baby permanently given away to Jimmie Lee, a black maid in a Nevada casino. Overwhelmed by the problems of raising a white-skinned baby in her black community, Jimmie spent the next twenty years struggling to secretly raise Fauna. Together they endured extreme poverty, alcoholism, starvation, sexual abuse, pregnancy and death, hopelessly bound and knotted together by relentless bigotry. Fauna survived this difficult world with a vow to find the one person who knew her beginnings, her biological mother, Tamar, the woman of her dreams. Fauna sets out to discover the truth, only to uncover her family's notorious secret: her extraordinary grandfather and the murder of the Black Dahlia. ."haunting, poignant and heart-wrenching." The stuff of which movies are made." --Cliff Rothman, Contributor, Vanity Fair ..".laughter, sass, spirit and tears leaves the readers awash in hope." --Alfre Woodard, Actor

In Misconceptions , bestselling author Naomi Wolf she demythologizes motherhood and reveals the dangers of common assumptions about childbirth. With uncompromising honesty she describes how hormones eroded her sense of independence, ultrasounds tested her commitment to abortion rights, and the keepers of the OB/GYN establishment lacked compassion. The weeks after her first daughter’s birth taught her how society, employers, and even husbands can manipulate new mothers. She had bewildering post partum depression, but learned that a surprisingly high percentage of women experience it. Wolf’s courageous willingness to talk about the unexpected difficulties of childbirth will help every woman become a more knowledgeable planner of her pregnancy and better prepare her for the challenges of balancing a career, freedom, and a growing family. Invaluable in its advice to parents, Misconceptions speaks to anyone connected–personally, medically, or professionally–to a new mother.

From the international bestselling author of Black, White, and Jewish comes a "wonderfully insightful" ( Associated Press ) book that's destined to become a motherhood classic. Now in trade. Like many women her age, thirty-four-year-old Rebecca Walker was brought up to be skeptical of motherhood. As an adult she longed for a baby but feared losing her independence. In this very smart memoir, Walker explores some of the larger sociological trends of her generation while delivering her own story about the emotional and intellectual transformation that led her to motherhood.

"One baby is a miracle. To be given two at once is a gift beyond words." Two at a Time If having a child is one of the most joyful -- yet at times maddening -- experiences in life, what's in store for you if you're pregnant with twins? Plenty! Let celebrated actress Jane Seymour and author Pam Novotny -- both mothers of twins -- use their firsthand knowledge to guide you along the road of twin pregnancy and newborn care. In this warm, insightful resource, full of sound advice and personal anecdotes, they'll tell you exactly what you can expect: First trimester: why morning sickness is more prevalent in mothers of twins, and what you can do about it; tests you'll need to take; symptoms you may experience Second trimester: detecting physical changes in your body; mood swings Third trimester: the importance of paying attention to your contractions and keeping track of your blood pressure; why you may need full bed rest Birth: will you have a cesarean or vaginal birth? What you need to do when labor begins After the birth: the challenges of two as opposed to one; juggling your nursing and bonding schedules Life at home: how to prepare for the arrival of two newcomers. Each chapter includes a handy checklist to keep you organized throughout your pregnancy, advice on keeping your spirits up, suggestions for dressing smart, and a note to dads from James Keach -- Jane's husband -- on how to be supportive and helpful. A straightforward yet comforting guide to all the overwhelming emotions and physical changes during those amazing months, Two at a Time is a double helping of invaluable advice that will make you fully appreciate the fortune of being twice blessed.

The popular actress offers a guide to twin pregnancies, describing the physical effects of pregnancy, signs of potential problems, birthing options, preparing for a multiple birth, and how to juggle schedules to accommodate two newborns.

"The raw and untold secrets of pregnancy, miscarriage, childbirth, and mothering are revealed in this true story of motherhood for the twenty-first century. A playwright writes an exposé of modern motherhood full of her own darkly funny confessions and taboo-breaking truths. One of her real-life friends, an actress, performs the piece, and through it her own experiences of motherhood start to surface. These mothers are not the butts of jokes, the villains, or the perfect angels of a household. This empowered and relatable play was written collaboratively between award-winning theatre artists Hannah Moscovitch, Maev Beaty, and Ann-Marie Kerr, with co-creator Marinda de Beer. Uplifting and full of love, Secret Life of a Mother is a generous and powerful act of truth-telling for anyone who has thought about, been, loved, known--or come from--a mother."--

The birth of a child can provoke profound change in a woman-in her health, career, emotions, sex life, and relationships with friends, husband and family. Pregnancy and childbirth radically alter a women's body and metabolism--it's virtually impossible to "bounce back" quickly after childbirth. And many new moms discover that their sex lives and social lives--and with them, their self esteem--evaporate with a new baby, who they somehow seem to have been made wholly responsible for. Life After Birth doesn't cloak the truth in pastel colors, but explores the actual physical, psychological and emotional consequences of giving birth. Through extensive research and interviews, Figes tackles the tough realities of a new mother's life. What she discovered can help a new parent face some of the most difficult decisions she'll ever have to make.

"In Alicia Jo Rabins' second collection, Fruit Geode, the terrifying power of maternal love coexists with sorrow for the loss of one’s younger self. In lyrical, unflinching poems, Rabins investigates the passages of pregnancy, birth, and early infancy through a constellation of ancient and modern experience: Sumerian storm demons, astronauts, herbal medicine, Neanderthal DNA, Jewish mysticism, climate change. In tracing the ritual mysteries of motherhood, Fruit Geode examines what it means to be transformed, to leave behind our certainties and walk into the unknown. "I regard my former life / With a distant affection, / As an astronaut / Looks through a porthole / At the small green planet / Where she used to live," writes Rabins. This is a book about what it means to live in a human body, how love changes us, and what we pass on from one generation to the next."--

This diary of acclaimed psychologist and radical feminist icon Phyllis Chesler was a pioneering work when it was first published in 1979. A look into the second wave of feminism and the era's changing attitudes toward motherhood and pregnancy, With Child--now with an updated preface from her son--remains relevant for mothers today.