Washoe County Library System

"A bracing, hilarious manifesto for motherhood as it ought to be: spontaneous, loving, and just a little bit selfishPre-chewing toddler food. Flash cards for two-year-olds. Endless hours of school gatherings to sit through in smiling silence. How did motherhood--which even under the best circumstances comes with a million small costs and compromises--become a venue for female martyrdom, verging on a sort of socially approved mass masochism? How did...

Volunteering at the local church, Mary-Margaret, a dull and overweight girl who nearly everyone disregards, has a profound experience while cleaning a statue of Jesus and becomes obsessed with fulfilling what she believes to be sacred duties while religious fervor spreads throughout her community.

"A profound novel about motherhood, friendship, and the power of community from “one of the leading lights in contemporary Latin American literature” (Valeria Luiselli, author of Lost Children Archive). Alina and Laura are independent and career-driven women in their mid-thirties, neither of whom have built their future around the prospect of a family. Laura is so determined not to become a mother that she has taken the drastic decision to have...

"The funny and poignant story of one woman’s wonderfully codependent relationship with her dog – and what he taught her about chosen family and the reward of motherhood. Birdie & Harlow is the story of a baby and a dog. But motherhood is never quite that simple. In Taylor Wolfe’s case, it’s a long, zigzagging and winding road. Meant to be a last-minute anniversary gift for her then boyfriend (and now husband), the highly-energetic and loud-mouthed...

Attention all potty-mouthed, cheap-wine-drinking mothers: Prepare to meet your match

A humorous description of motherhood from the supermom type to the mother who puts her children outside to play when the chill factor is 40 below.

The Covid-19 pandemic shed fresh light on a long-overlooked truth: mothering is among the only essential work humans do. In response to the increasing weight placed on mothers and caregiversand the lack of a social safety net to support them writer Angela Garbes found herself pondering a vital question: How, under our current circumstances that leave us lonely, exhausted, and financially strained, might we demand more from American family life? In...

"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...

An emotionally honest, arresting, and funny collection of essays about motherhood and adulthood... “Being a mother is a gift.” Wheres my receipt? Welcome to essayist Kimberly Harringtons poetic and funny world of motherhood, womanhood, and humanhood, not necessarily in that order. Its a place of loud parenting, fierce loving, too much social media, and occasional inner monologues where timeless debates are resolved such as Pro/Con: Caving to PTO...

"Sharing hard-won lessons from years of creating in the margins of motherhood, Ashlee equips women to discover the sacred connection between creating and mothering-without feeling guilty or selfish. Through creative exercises, journaling prompts, and more, you'll be inspired to make space to pursue the creative dreams God has planted in your heart"--