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A review by knittingandreading
The Republic of Motherhood by Liz Berry
5.0
I first encountered Liz Berry’s work via the You’re Booked podcast (the episode with Sinead Gleeson). Lines from the eponymous poem kept rolling round and round in my head: the notions of the queues of motherhood; the late night letters of complaint to the Department of Motherhood; all so evocative of my own memories of life with a baby. I knew I needed to be able to read it for myself and wanted to read the rest of the collection.
I was not disappointed. She captures the anxiety and uncertainty of waiting for a baby to arrive, the complex mix of wonder and brutality that is giving birth and the jumbled and often contradictory emotions swirling inside new mothers. She lays bare on the page both the outward hamster wheel of mundane domestic activity and the inner existential crisis that lies beneath it. Press this book into the hands of any mother you know - they will feel so wonderfully heard and, most importantly, will know they are not alone.
I was not disappointed. She captures the anxiety and uncertainty of waiting for a baby to arrive, the complex mix of wonder and brutality that is giving birth and the jumbled and often contradictory emotions swirling inside new mothers. She lays bare on the page both the outward hamster wheel of mundane domestic activity and the inner existential crisis that lies beneath it. Press this book into the hands of any mother you know - they will feel so wonderfully heard and, most importantly, will know they are not alone.