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Motherhood

Motherhood

Last updated: February 02, 2025

Books on motherhood provide invaluable insights into the multi-faceted aspects of motherhood, delving into the emotional, physical, and spiritual dimensions of this transformative role. From memoirs sharing personal experiences to practical guides offering advice on child-rearing, these books illuminate the joys, challenges, and complexities of motherhood.

    Deborah Levy on Motherhood in Literature

  • Read
    Deborah Levy on Motherhood in Literature - My Mother's House by Colette

    1

    My Mother's House
    by Colette

  • Read
    Deborah Levy on Motherhood in Literature - To the Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf

    2

    To the Lighthouse
    by Virginia Woolf

  • Read
    Deborah Levy on Motherhood in Literature - The Lover by Marguerite Duras

    3

    The Lover
    by Marguerite Duras

  • Read
    Deborah Levy on Motherhood in Literature - As Consciousness Is Harnessed to Flesh: Journals and Notebooks, 1964-1980 by Susan Sontag

    4

    As Consciousness Is Harnessed to Flesh: Journals and Notebooks, 1964-1980
    by Susan Sontag

  • Read
    Deborah Levy on Motherhood in Literature - All About My Mother (film) by Pedro Almodóvar

    5

    All About My Mother (film)
    by Pedro Almodóvar

  • Aristotle tells us that all politics starts in the family, and nowhere is that more obvious than in the infamously fraught relationship between mother and daughter. Here, the novelist, playwright and poet Deborah Levy chooses five books – or rather, four books and one film – that explore motherhood.

  • Deborah Levy on Motherhood in Literature - My Mother's House by Colette
  • Deborah Levy on Motherhood in Literature - To the Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf
  • Deborah Levy on Motherhood in Literature - The Lover by Marguerite Duras
  • Deborah Levy on Motherhood in Literature - As Consciousness Is Harnessed to Flesh: Journals and Notebooks, 1964-1980 by Susan Sontag
  • Deborah Levy on Motherhood in Literature - All About My Mother (film) by Pedro Almodóvar

Deborah Levy on Motherhood in Literature

Aristotle tells us that all politics starts in the family, and nowhere is that more obvious than in the infamously fraught relationship between mother and daughter. Here, the novelist, playwright and poet Deborah Levy chooses five books – or rather, four books and one film – that explore motherhood.

Deborah Levy on Motherhood in Literature

    The best books on Being a Mother, recommended by Amy Chua

  • Read
    The best books on Being a Mother - Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

    1

    Little Women
    by Louisa May Alcott

  • Read
    The best books on Being a Mother - The Good Earth by Pearl Buck

    2

    The Good Earth
    by Pearl Buck

  • Read
    The best books on Being a Mother - Make Way for Ducklings by Robert McCloskey

    3

    Make Way for Ducklings
    by Robert McCloskey

  • Read
    The best books on Being a Mother - The Hours by Michael Cunningham

    4

    The Hours
    by Michael Cunningham

  • Read
    The best books on Being a Mother - A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius by David Eggers

    5

    A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius
    by David Eggers

  • The author of the self-satirising memoir on ambitious "tiger mothers" talks us through the books about motherhood that have made the most impact on her.

  • The best books on Being a Mother - Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
  • The best books on Being a Mother - The Good Earth by Pearl Buck
  • The best books on Being a Mother - Make Way for Ducklings by Robert McCloskey
  • The best books on Being a Mother - The Hours by Michael Cunningham
  • The best books on Being a Mother - A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius by David Eggers

The best books on Being a Mother, recommended by Amy Chua

The author of the self-satirising memoir on ambitious “tiger mothers” talks us through the books about motherhood that have made the most impact on her.

The best books on Being a Mother, recommended by Amy Chua

    The best books on Childbirth, recommended by Leah Hazard

  • Read
    The best books on Childbirth - Reclaiming Childbirth as a Rite of Passage: Weaving Ancient Wisdom with Modern Knowledge by Rachel Reed

    1

    Reclaiming Childbirth as a Rite of Passage: Weaving Ancient Wisdom with Modern Knowledge
    by Rachel Reed

  • Read
    The best books on Childbirth - Why Birth Trauma Matters by Emma Svanberg

    2

    Why Birth Trauma Matters
    by Emma Svanberg

  • Read
    The best books on Childbirth - Divided: Racism, Medicine and Why We Need to Decolonise Healthcare by Annabel Sowemimo

    3

    Divided: Racism, Medicine and Why We Need to Decolonise Healthcare
    by Annabel Sowemimo

  • Read
    The best books on Childbirth - Life, Almost: Miscarriage, Misconceptions and a Search for Answers from the Brink of Motherhood by Jennie Agg

    4

    Life, Almost: Miscarriage, Misconceptions and a Search for Answers from the Brink of Motherhood
    by Jennie Agg

  • Read
    The best books on Childbirth - Nightbitch: A Novel by Rachel Yoder

    5

    Nightbitch: A Novel
    by Rachel Yoder

  • Birth is a transformational experience but it's also an emotionally fraught one, with sometimes traumatic consequences, says midwife Leah Hazard. Here she recommends five books that discuss the deep psychological impact of childbirth, the debate over interventionism, and the inequalities baked into the practice of obstetrics.

  • The best books on Childbirth - Reclaiming Childbirth as a Rite of Passage: Weaving Ancient Wisdom with Modern Knowledge by Rachel Reed
  • The best books on Childbirth - Why Birth Trauma Matters by Emma Svanberg
  • The best books on Childbirth - Divided: Racism, Medicine and Why We Need to Decolonise Healthcare by Annabel Sowemimo
  • The best books on Childbirth - Life, Almost: Miscarriage, Misconceptions and a Search for Answers from the Brink of Motherhood by Jennie Agg
  • The best books on Childbirth - Nightbitch: A Novel by Rachel Yoder

The best books on Childbirth, recommended by Leah Hazard

Birth is a transformational experience but it’s also an emotionally fraught one, with sometimes traumatic consequences, says midwife Leah Hazard. Here she recommends five books that discuss the deep psychological impact of childbirth, the debate over interventionism, and the inequalities baked into the practice of obstetrics.

The best books on Childbirth, recommended by Leah Hazard

    The best books on Women in Society, recommended by Erica Jong

  • Read
    The best books on Women in Society - Of Woman Born by Adrienne Rich

    1

    Of Woman Born
    by Adrienne Rich

  • Read
    The best books on Women in Society - The Female Eunuch by Germaine Greer

    2

    The Female Eunuch
    by Germaine Greer

  • Read
    The best books on Women in Society - The Golden Notebook by Doris Lessing

    3

    The Golden Notebook
    by Doris Lessing

  • Read
    The best books on Women in Society - Frankenstein (Book) by Mary Shelley

    4

    Frankenstein (Book)
    by Mary Shelley

  • Read
    The best books on Women in Society - The Second Sex by Simone de Beauvoir

    5

    The Second Sex
    by Simone de Beauvoir

  • The celebrated feminist gives us her view of essential reading for women – and says the gender revolution is far from over

  • The best books on Women in Society - Of Woman Born by Adrienne Rich
  • The best books on Women in Society - The Female Eunuch by Germaine Greer
  • The best books on Women in Society - The Golden Notebook by Doris Lessing
  • The best books on Women in Society - Frankenstein (Book) by Mary Shelley
  • The best books on Women in Society - The Second Sex by Simone de Beauvoir

The best books on Women in Society, recommended by Erica Jong

The celebrated feminist gives us her view of essential reading for women – and says the gender revolution is far from over

The best books on Women in Society, recommended by Erica Jong

    The best books on Women and Work, recommended by Myra Strober

  • Read
    The best books on Women and Work - Getting to 50/50: How Working Parents Can Have It All by Sharon Meers and Joanna Strober

    1

    Getting to 50/50: How Working Parents Can Have It All
    by Sharon Meers and Joanna Strober

  • Read
    The best books on Women and Work - A Grand Gender Convergence: Its Last Chapter by Claudia Goldin

    2

    A Grand Gender Convergence: Its Last Chapter
    by Claudia Goldin

  • Read
    The best books on Women and Work - Tempered Radicals by Debra E Meyerson

    3

    Tempered Radicals
    by Debra E Meyerson

  • Read
    The best books on Women and Work - Behind the Kitchen Door by Sarumathi Jayaraman

    4

    Behind the Kitchen Door
    by Sarumathi Jayaraman

  • Read
    The best books on Women and Work - Living Wages, Equal Wages: Gender and Labour Market Policies in the United States by Deborah M. Figart and Ellen Mutari and Marilyn Power

    5

    Living Wages, Equal Wages: Gender and Labour Market Policies in the United States
    by Deborah M. Figart and Ellen Mutari and Marilyn Power

  • Despite having slightly higher education levels, women working full-time in the US still only earn 79% of what men do. Stanford economist and author of Sharing the Work, Myra Strober, picks the best books—and one article—that explain the gender wage gap, and, more importantly, show us what we can do about it.

  • The best books on Women and Work - Getting to 50/50: How Working Parents Can Have It All by Sharon Meers and Joanna Strober
  • The best books on Women and Work - A Grand Gender Convergence: Its Last Chapter by Claudia Goldin
  • The best books on Women and Work - Tempered Radicals by Debra E Meyerson
  • The best books on Women and Work - Behind the Kitchen Door by Sarumathi Jayaraman
  • The best books on Women and Work - Living Wages, Equal Wages: Gender and Labour Market Policies in the United States by Deborah M. Figart and Ellen Mutari and Marilyn Power

The best books on Women and Work, recommended by Myra Strober

Despite having slightly higher education levels, women working full-time in the US still only earn 79% of what men do. Stanford economist and author of Sharing the Work, Myra Strober, picks the best books—and one article—that explain the gender wage gap, and, more importantly, show us what we can do about it.

The best books on Women and Work, recommended by Myra Strober

About

We ask experts to recommend the five best books in their subject and explain their selection in an interview.

This site has an archive of more than one thousand seven hundred interviews, or eight thousand book recommendations. We publish at least two new interviews per week.

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