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courtthebookgirl's review against another edition
4.0
This collection of personal birth stories (including stories from caregivers who witnessed births) from celebrities to women globally is powerful and appropriate for Mother’s Day Weekend.
The stories in this book give a wide swath of “arrival stories,” from c-sections to natural births, home births, and everything in between. It addresses the disproportionate care received by Black and Brown women. It shares “horror” stories as well as beautiful moments.
Don’t let the glossy, pretty cover fool you. This is anything but a “light” read. It battles systemic racism, inadequacies in health care, the failures of America health care, harrowing birth stories and aftercare, and so much more. In the end, I found it powerful and empowering, but it was also incredibly eye-opening.
The stories in this book give a wide swath of “arrival stories,” from c-sections to natural births, home births, and everything in between. It addresses the disproportionate care received by Black and Brown women. It shares “horror” stories as well as beautiful moments.
Don’t let the glossy, pretty cover fool you. This is anything but a “light” read. It battles systemic racism, inadequacies in health care, the failures of America health care, harrowing birth stories and aftercare, and so much more. In the end, I found it powerful and empowering, but it was also incredibly eye-opening.
bookaddicted's review against another edition
emotional
funny
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
fast-paced
4.0
kaitybest's review against another edition
3.0
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
I'm a sucker for birth stories and anthologies about motherhood. I loved the intention behind this collection and the focus on addressing maternal health outcomes, particularly for women of color. That being said, I struggled a little with some of the stories. Nearly all of the women featured have significant wealth and/or celebrity status. The financial ramifications of birthing a child were barely discussed, which I find to be a crucial missed opportunity. For someone to lament about the trials of motherhood (legitimate as they may be) in the same sentence they share that they had a night nurse and nanny was pretty unrelatable and not reflective of the "typical" parenting experience.
All of that said, I did like that the multitude of ways in which a person can arrive at motherhood were spotlighted and no two stories were alike.
I'm a sucker for birth stories and anthologies about motherhood. I loved the intention behind this collection and the focus on addressing maternal health outcomes, particularly for women of color. That being said, I struggled a little with some of the stories. Nearly all of the women featured have significant wealth and/or celebrity status. The financial ramifications of birthing a child were barely discussed, which I find to be a crucial missed opportunity. For someone to lament about the trials of motherhood (legitimate as they may be) in the same sentence they share that they had a night nurse and nanny was pretty unrelatable and not reflective of the "typical" parenting experience.
All of that said, I did like that the multitude of ways in which a person can arrive at motherhood were spotlighted and no two stories were alike.
adsvoss's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
4.0
2000s's review against another edition
3.5
Very informational for someone who doesn't know a lot about how pregnancy works. A lot of the stories did feel too similar and blended together, even though the editors were trying to collect stories from a diverse group of people. Also, it was kinda delving into girlboss feminism in some moments which was just boring and kind of shallow.