Book Review: Give Birth Like a Feminist by Milli Hill

Title: Give Birth Like a Feminist

Author: Milli Hill

Publisher: HQ

Publication date: August 2019

Genre: Non-fiction, Pregnancy & parenting, feminism

Source: Review copy via NetGalley

Rating: 10/10

Description: Birth is a feminist issue. It’s the feminist issue nobody’s talking about.

For too long women have been told, ‘a healthy baby is all that matters’. This book dares to say women matter too.

Finally blasting the feminist spotlight into the labour ward, Milli Hill encourages women everywhere to stand and deliver, insisting that birth is no longer left off the list in discussions about female power, control and agency.

From the importance of birth plans to your human rights in childbirth, and including birth stories from women across the world, this call-to-arms will help you find your voice, take an active role in your choices, and change the way you think about childbirth.

My thoughts: So when I started reading this book, I thought it sounded like an interesting topic, and I was planning to start trying to have a baby soon, so it seemed like a particularly good time to read up on the topic. Then over the course of reading, I became pregnant, which made it an even more interesting book to be reading. However, I think it's really important that it's not just pregnant people or mothers who read this book. It's important that these topics come into the general discussion of feminism. 

Milli Hill highlights from the beginning of the book that in the birth room, people have got too used to saying 'that's just how it is' when experiences are unpleasant, undignified or traumatic, and instead we should be questioning things, exercising human rights, and pressing for change. Women shouldn't be told to 'leave their dignity at the door' or that 'a healthy baby is all that matters'. Of course, we want a healthy baby at the end of the process. But that doesn't mean totally discounting the mother and her experience. 

Some key topics she looks at: 

• Consent during pregnancy & birth
• The urge in some places (mainly first world countries) to push medicalised interventions, and discourage more 'hands-off' types of birth
• Being 'allowed' to do things & the language around permission. (Clue: the mother should be the one in charge. She is allowed to do anything she wants.) 
• Belittling & dismissive language used towards pregnant & labouring people
• Difficulties for women who want to give birth in a way that differs from what's most common & accepted in their area 
• The 'postcode lottery' of what you 'can' and 'can't' expect from your birth experience in the UK
• The colour of your skin affecting your birth experience 
• So many others! 

There are some stories of what a hospital birth was like in the UK for the author's mother & friends of that age that horrified me. There are stories of births in the UK today that were shocking. There are stories of brith practices that happen in Europe, Australia, and the US that made me very glad I'm having my baby in the UK. These stories were shocking because we don't hear about this stuff; people don't talk about this stuff. In my (39 week) experience of pregnancy, it's only at this stage of life that you hear about different policies between first world countries, through places like Facebook and Mumsnet where I've seen women talk about typical timelines and medical interventions that vary from place to place, like the UK vs US vs Australia. Outside of this book, I haven't seen much about what pregnancy & birth are like in other countries. We need to make the stealing of mothers' rights a big part of the feminist conversation, highlight the indignities and inequalities, and change them. 

Milli Hill does a really good job of providing scientific evidence around various policies, from delayed cord cutting, to giving birth lying on your back (did you know it's really not the greatest position to give birth in? I did not) to inductions. 

I could pick out more topics and probably devolve into ranting, so instead I'll say - go and read this book. It's well balanced, it's full of supporting evidence and it shines a spotlight on a topic that I think has been very neglected in our society. It might be very different from most of the books I've read this year, but it's still one of my 'best books read in 2020'. 10 out of 10. 

Book Review: Eat, Drink, Run. by Bryony Gordon

Title: Eat, Drink, Run.
Author: Bryony Gordon
Publication date: 31st May 2018
Publisher: Headline
Genre: Non-Fiction, Memoir
Source: Review copy from publisher

Description: Bryony Gordon was not a runner. A loafer, a dawdler, a drinker, a smoker, yes. A runner, no. But, as she recovered from the emotional rollercoaster of opening up her life in her mental health memoir MAD GIRL, she realised that there were things that might actually help her: getting outside, moving her body and talking to others who found life occasionally challenging. As she ran, she started to shake off the limitations that had always held her back and she saw she had actually imposed them on herself. Why couldn't she be a runner?

In April 2017, Bryony Gordon ran all 26.2 miles of the London Marathon. In Eat, Drink, Run., we join her as she trains for this daunting task and rises to the challenge one step at the time. Of course, on top of the aching muscles and blistered feet, there's also the small matter of getting a certain royal to open up about his mental health. Through it all, Bryony shows us that extraordinary things can happen to everyone, no matter what life throws our way.

My thoughts: I read Mad Girl, Bryony Gordon's previous book, in the autumn. To say I enjoyed it is not quite the right sentiment; it's mostly not a happy book, as it documents Bryony's life living with OCD and the frequent lows that the condition brought her to. It was a very moving book that had a lot of effect on me, though, so I was very interested to see what direction her next book would take. While I enjoyed Eat, Drink, Run., it's a very different book to Mad Girl. The book begins by setting up how she decided to run the London Marathon in the first place. It talks a bit about her OCD and how that led to her setting up a support group, beginning to write a lot more about her mental health in her Telegraph column and working on writing Mad Girl itself. She's invited to an event about mental health hosted by Price William, Princess Catherine and Prince Harry, where one thing leads to another and she tells them she'll run the marathon.

While it's just as readable as her previous book, there were places where I felt like Eat, Drink, Run. was an extended column. There are a lot of anecdotes that, while funny, don't necessarily tie in to the rest of the book very well. That aside, it manages to be a very entertaining book while looking at the serious subject of mental health, and how we can all tackle something big by taking it in small steps. It doesn't focus much on Bryony's particular marathon training plan (except to say that for a while there really wasn't one). You get a general picture of how training is progress, but it's more of a background, framing how the increased exercise is changing her habits for the better, and how the journey to running the marathon lead to her crossing paths with the royals on several occasions.

The book is light, entertaining and inspiring, while still drawing attention to what it can be like to live with a variety of mental health problems and how we can do better to help people living with them. It's a very accessible book for those who want to learn a little bit more about OCD without getting into something too emotional or draining, and I think that's who I'd most recommend this book to. If you've enjoyed reading Bryony's columns, but didn't feel like Mad Girl was right for you, I'd suggest picking up Eat, Drink, Run. I'd still very much recommend it to people who did enjoy her other books, but just caution that it is quite different from Mad Girl. Overall, I'm giving Eat, Drink, Run. 7 out of 10.

Book review: Because We Are Bad by Lily Bailey

Title: Because We Are Bad
Author: Lily Bailey
Publication date: March 2018 (paperback)
Publisher: Canbury
Genre: Non fiction: Memoir
Source: Review copy via publicist

Description: 
As a child, Lily Bailey knew she was bad. 

By the age of 13, she had killed someone with a thought, spread untold disease, and spied upon her classmates.

Only by performing a series of secret routines could she correct her wrongdoing. But it was never enough. She had a severe case of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, and it came with a bizarre twist.

This true story is from a startling new voice in non-fiction. It lights up the workings of the mind like Mark Haddon or Matt Haig.

Anyone who wants to know about OCD, and how to fight back, should read this book. Immerse yourself in a new world.

My thoughts: 
I've read a few books (fiction and non-fiction) which look at OCD, but Lily Bailey highlights a whole new angle of the illness in Because We Are Bad. The book flows as though it were fiction, following Lily's life chronologically from when she is a young girl through to her early twenties. And for most of that period, she has a second voice in her head, telling her what to do. This other person in her head gives voice to the OCD thoughts - you should wash your hands again to make sure you don't spread that disease. You're horrible, you need to do this thing to make up for it. 

It was quite hard to read in places, because the reader can see how much harm Lily was doing to herself, and how much she needed help. Even once she starts seeing a therapist, the OCD remains severe. I found it really interesting to read about the therapy sessions, what people tried to do to help, and the effects (or sometimes lack of them) on Lily and her illness.

It's a very different sort of book than Mad Girl by Bryony Gordon, which I read in the autumn & is about her journey with OCD. Lily's experience with OCD, with the voice in her head being a distinct, separate, constant presence, is not something I've read about before. But because it's so different, I think it's very worth talking about. The more people talk about what their experience with a particular issue is, the higher the likelihood that someone reading these books will be able to identify themselves in one of them.

Overall, it was a very well written book. I found it very readable, which isn't always the case with memoir, or non-fiction more broadly. I admire Lily Bailey for how open she has been with this book, and I hope that it will help people living with OCD. Overall, I'm giving it 7 out of 10.

Book Review: Doing It by Hannah Witton

 Title: Doing It
Author: Hannah Witton
Publication date: 6 April 2017
Publisher: Wren & Rook
Genre: Non-fiction
Source: Swapped with a friend

Description: Sexting. Virginity. Consent. The Big O ... Let's face it, doing it can be tricksy. I don't know anyone (including myself) who has sex all figured out. So I've written a book full of honest, hilarious (and sometimes awkward) anecdotes, confessions and revelations. And because none of us have all the answers, I've invited some friends and fellow YouTubers to talk about their sexuality, too. My book is for everyone, no matter what gender you identify as or who you fancy.

We talk about doing it safely. Doing it joyfully. Doing it when you're ready. Not doing it. Basically, doing it the way you want, when you want. So. Let's do this ...

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Doing It candidly and openly explores topics like masturbation, slut-shaming, pornography and consent, as well as how to maintain healthy relationships in a digital age.

My thoughts: Doing It is a guide to all things relating to sex, relationships, and bodies. It's broken down by topic, and I found it to be very accessible easy reading. What made it particularly interesting to me was that it's full of personal stories from Hannah Witton and her friends about their experiences with a certain thing. It's very frank and open, which I think is important in a book dealing with these subjects.

I did find that a lot of it wasn't so relevant to me, because it was things I'd learned in high school or already experienced and learned how to handle. So from that point of view, I'd say it's a book for people in their tweens or early teens, and definitely a good one to have in high school libraries. That said, with the personal anecdotes I found some bits particularly interesting because they were about experiences very different from my own.

Overall, the book really does what it says in the blurb. It's hard to rate, because it wasn't so relevant to me but still interesting, and still a very useful book for many people. So, I'm giving it 6/10. I liked it, it was interesting.

Book Review: The Unmumsy Mum by Sarah Turner

Title: The Unmumsy Mum
Author: Sarah Turner
Publisher: Bantam Press
Release date: 11th February 2016
Genre: Non-fiction, advice/memoir

Description: The Unmumsy Mum is a blogging and Facebook sensation! Her posts are adored by thousands of fans for delivering a hilarious, unapologeticaly honest account of motherhood. From the soaring highs of life as a parent to the emotional lows of feeling like you might not be cut out for the job, this uncensored portrayal of what it's really like to be a mum has won a place in the hearts of parents everywhere. 
No subject is off limits for the Unmumsy Mum - from distinctly unglowing pregnancies to seemingly endless night feeds; from finding your feet at baby group to the reality of returning to work; from dealing with toddler tantrums to navigating around soft-play hellholes. 
This book won't tell you how to parent, what to buy or how you should feel. Its refreshing frankness is guaranteed to make you laugh, may well make you cry, and will no doubt leave you breathing a sigh of relief that it is definitely not just you...

My thoughts:
I picked this book up from someone who was rehoming it because I thought it would be full of funny, honest stories. It sat on my bookshelf for a little while, than I started it earlier this month, looking for some light reading and a change from fiction.

While the book does have some amusing anecdotes from Sarah's life as a mother, and some short funny things that some of her blog readers have written to her about, the book is much more like an honest look at all aspects of being a mother to very young children. She writes about the miserable side to being pregnant, giving birth, and not getting enough sleep. She talks about deciding to have a second child, and the adjustment needed to cope with having two children rather than one.

It's an incredibly informative book, and I think it would be a very reassuring read for mothers of young children. However, although I might have kids sometime in the next few years, I'm not at that point yet. While it was very educational to read as it went into aspects of parenthood that I didn't know anything about before, or had never even considered, I didn't find it as engaging to read as I think I will in a few years time when I'm expecting a child. I'll definitely be keeping this on the shelf until then, though, because I do think it will be very reassuring and useful when I reach that stage in my life. 7/10.

Short review: When Breath Become Air by Paul Kalanithi

Title: When Breath Becomes Air
Author: Paul Kalanithi
Publication date: January 2016
Publisher: Vintage
Genre: Memoir
Source: Borrowed

Description: At the age of thirty-six, on the verge of completing a decade’s training as a neurosurgeon, Paul Kalanithi was diagnosed with inoperable lung cancer. One day he was a doctor treating the dying, the next he was a patient struggling to live.

When Breath Becomes Air chronicles Kalanithi’s transformation from a medical student asking what makes a virtuous and meaningful life into a neurosurgeon working in the core of human identity – the brain – and finally into a patient and a new father.

What makes life worth living in the face of death? What do you do when when life is catastrophically interrupted? What does it mean to have a child as your own life fades away?

Paul Kalanithi died while working on this profoundly moving book, yet his words live on as a guide to us all. When Breath Becomes Air is a life-affirming reflection on facing our mortality and on the relationship between doctor and patient, from a gifted writer who became both.

My thoughts: I was intrigued to read about the experience of a man who had been a successful surgeon becoming a patient with a serious illness. I wasn't expecting the book to be as philosophical as it was. Paul writes about how, in his university life, he was very interested in why people do certain things, what motivates people, etc. From there he moved to looking at, medically, how the brain works. He discusses why he himself was compelled to push on with his work as a surgeon despite it being an incredibly intense profession.

He also talks a fair bit about how people adjust to the news that they have a serious illness, maybe a terminal one, and how being in that position himself gave him a new perspective on many things.

Personally, I didn't enjoy the book as much as I had hoped. It was all very reflective, thoughtful, and philosophical... so quite boring from my point of view! I think I had been hoping for more about the doctor/patient relationship, and how that was affected. I've read better books this year about working in the healthcare industry. While When Breath Becomes Air was an interesting book, and I'm glad I had the chance to read it, it didn't blow me away and I don't think it stands out on a shelf as being overly special. I'm giving it 6 out of 10.

Book Review: Scrappy Little Nobody by Anna Kendrick

Title: Scrappy Little Nobody
Author: Anna Kendrick
Release date: November 2016
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Genre: Autobiography
Source: Gift from friend

Description: A collection of humorous autobiographical essays by the Academy Award-nominated actress and star of Up in the Air and Pitch Perfect.

Even before she made a name for herself on the silver screen starring in films like Pitch Perfect, Up in the Air, Twilight, and Into the Woods, Anna Kendrick was unusually small, weird, and “10 percent defiant.”

At the ripe age of thirteen, she had already resolved to “keep the crazy inside my head where it belonged. Forever. But here’s the thing about crazy: It. Wants. Out.” In Scrappy Little Nobody, she invites readers inside her brain, sharing extraordinary and charmingly ordinary stories with candor and winningly wry observations.

With her razor-sharp wit, Anna recounts the absurdities she’s experienced on her way to and from the heart of pop culture as only she can—from her unusual path to the performing arts (Vanilla Ice and baggy neon pants may have played a role) to her double life as a middle-school student who also starred on Broadway to her initial “dating experiments” (including only liking boys who didn’t like her back) to reviewing a binder full of butt doubles to her struggle to live like an adult woman instead of a perpetual “man-child.”

Enter Anna’s world and follow her rise from “scrappy little nobody” to somebody who dazzles on the stage, the screen, and now the page—with an electric, singular voice, at once familiar and surprising, sharp and sweet, funny and serious (well, not that serious).

My thoughts: I'm aiming this year to read six non-fiction books; combined with the fact a friend offered me a copy of the book, this is mostly why I read it. It's the second non-fic book I've finished, so I need to speed up a little with that challenge.

The book starts at the beginning of Anna's life, with some funny stories about her personality during primary school, before moving to look at how she got involved in professional musical theatre in her early teens. Once it gets to her living in LA, things start to jump around a bit more and become more topical, with stories about learning to live alone, dating, sex, and learning about fashion. She throws in lots of little anecdotes involving famous people she's worked with, which were fun to read.

I found the first section of the book really interesting; I always like to hear about how someone ended up in their career. I did get a little bored in the middle though - I felt like, there are better places to get dating advice, and at this point, a lot of this advice is kind of too late for me, I've learned the lessons myself and am doing ok now, really. I didn't care about the awkward dating experiences she had in high school, those stories just weren't particularly interesting to me.

I did find the book more enjoyable towards the end. I liked the funny stories of things that had happened while filming various movies, and at events like the Oscars. I think if you like celebrity autobiographies, you will probably enjoy this one as well, or if you're interested in an acting career. For me, it slowed down a lot in the middle and I had to push myself to keep going. I don't think I'll be looking at more autobiographies from people this age any time soon. Overall, I'll give Scrappy Little Nobody 6 out of 10.

Fragile Lives: Non Fiction Book Review

Title: Fragile Live
Author: Professor Stephen Westaby
Publisher: HarperCollins
Genre: Memoir
Release date: 9th February 2017
Source: ARC from publisher

Description: An incredible memoir from one of the world’s most eminent heart surgeons and some of the most remarkable and poignant cases he’s worked on.

Grim Reaper sits on the heart surgeon’s shoulder. A slip of the hand and life ebbs away.

The balance between life and death is so delicate, and the heart surgeon walks that rope between the two. In the operating room there is no time for doubt. It is flesh, blood, rib-retractors and pumping the vital organ with your bare hand to squeeze the life back into it. An off-day can have dire consequences – this job has a steep learning curve, and the cost is measured in human life. Cardiac surgery is not for the faint of heart.

Professor Stephen Westaby took chances and pushed the boundaries of heart surgery. He saved hundreds of lives over the course of a thirty-five year career and now, in his astounding memoir, Westaby details some of his most remarkable and poignant cases – such as the baby who had suffered multiple heart attacks by six months old, a woman who lived the nightmare of locked-in syndrome, and a man whose life was powered by a battery for eight years.

A powerful, important and incredibly moving book, Fragile Lives offers an exceptional insight into the exhilarating and sometimes tragic world of heart surgery, and how it feels to hold someone’s life in your hands.

My thoughts: I don't read much non-fic but I'm challenging myself to read 6 nf books this year. I had Fragile Lives on my shelf from a giveaway which HarperCollins ran while I worked there, and I was very intrigued by the premise, so it seemed like a good place to start the challenge.

I loved this book. Broadly, it follows Stephen Westaby's career, from university through to the present day, and takes you on a journey through some of the big developments in heart surgery during that time, looking specifically at valve alternatives and external mechanisms. While it's generally chronological, the book also looks at some of the most interesting cases Westaby has worked on, some of which are mentioned in the blurb above.

While he uses plenty of technical terms, the author explained things well enough that I, with no knowledge really of how a heart works or the problems it can have, was able to follow quite easily what was going on in each situation and what the significance of certain details was. Fragile Lives is a fascinating look into an area of surgery where the stakes are very high and everything must be done very precisely. It was a really really interesting read, and I highly recommend it.

Leave Your Mark, by Aliza Licht

Title: Leave Your Mark
Author: Aliza Licht
Publisher: Piatkus
Release date: May 2015
Genre: Non-fiction - Advice/Autobiography
Source: Bought

Description: LEAVE YOUR MARK isn't an advice book -- it's a mentorship in 288 pages.

Aliza Licht -- global fashion communications executive, AKA fashion's favorite 'PR girl' and Twitter phenomenon -- is here to tell her story, complete with The Devil Wears Prada-like moments and insider secrets.

Drawing invaluable lessons from her experience, Licht shares advice, inspiration, and a healthy dose of real talk in LEAVE YOUR MARK. She delivers personal and professional guidance for people just starting their careers and for people who are well on their way. With a particular emphasis on communicating and building your personal brand, something she knows a thing or two about, Aliza is your sassy, knowledgeable guide to the contemporary working world, where personal and professional lines are blurred and the most important thing you can have is a strong sense of self.

My thoughts: Although Leave Your Mark charts Aliza Licht's route into working at a fashion magazine, it provides excellent advice for starting careers in the media and in general. I read it just as I was starting to apply for publishing jobs and found all the advice very helpful. As that's the stage I was at, I was mostly interested in the early sections, which focus on getting your CV into shape, and how to get work experience. I read through the whole book once, then made particular notes based on those sections. Later, as I was invited to interviews, and got a longer work experience placement, I read on to the bits dealing with those. I found the section on making the most of a placement particularly helpful.

The book charts Aliza Licht’s career so far, so there are definitely sections which I’ll revisit as they become relevant - such as the etiquette for looking for internal and external jobs, or requesting a pay rise. Even though these sections weren’t stuff I needed to hear, it’s still an interesting account of Aliza’s life and I enjoyed hearing about the trials and triumphs she experienced as she started out in the world of media. She became the voice of ‘DKNY PR girl’ when the account was started and shares the story of how the account was planned and how it became her running it.
That lead in to the other section which I really enjoyed, something you can appreciate and learn from even if you’re not looking for careers advice: using social media as a marketing tool. I think a lot of bloggers would find some interesting things in this section as Licht writes about figuring out the defining features of your personal brand and how to harness social media to tie in to it.

Overall, I give Leave Your Mark by Aliza Licht 8 out of 10. It has excellent careers advice, particularly for anyone looking to work in media. I’m really glad I found the book when I did as it gave me some very helpful tips.

The Rubicon

For the past two weeks I've been reading this book nightly. The Rubicon is a hard book to categorise - although it is historical non fiction (has footnotes and all), Tom Holland tells the History of the Roman Republic in a compelling storytelling manner. The Rubicon (the first of Tom Hollands Historical books) can be summed up as 'Truth is stranger than fiction' or should i say 'Truth is more entertaining than fiction'.

In the first year of my undergrad degree, i did a year of 'Ancient civilisations' which focused on Rome and Greece. In all the books I've read on the subject of Rome, I think The Rubicon does an excellent job of telling the story of Rome - like a panoramic picture of its beginnings to the end - without too much (or overwhelming) detail to bog down the reader. This, i think, is the key to the success of this book - you don't have to be a scholar to comprehend and read this, and it isn't too clustered with details or differing academic opinions to leave you confused. Tom holland makes assumptions based on facts (lets you know he has) and gets back to the juicy details of the story.

Definitely this book though isn't a hero worship of Caesar or Augustus but gives a warts and all view of the political horizon of Rome, and of course (as he says in his preface) focuses beyond the typical 'main players' and shows the reasoning behind it all. My only fault is that there isn't a huge focus on the most epic moments (which almost feel anti-climatic) like Caesars murder or Antony and Cleopatra's suicides. He mentions them and moves on. However it should be noted that Tom Holland makes the point in the preface that this is a book about 'Rome and its people' and i think deliberately underplays the 'most known' parts so as not to swamp the message.

So to sum up, buy this book and read it! Even if history is not your cuppa, this is a reviting read! Can't wait to pick up his other two: Persian Fire and Millenium.

How Not To Write A Novel -

Ok, i have read numerous books on writing. I have stopped midway through many, my eyes and mind drained and befuddled from terminology and small print and i walk away with a terrible feeling of trepidation - that i will never be good enough to actually write a book (and remember all this nitty things that are so important - pov, climax, development etc.)

Wandering one day, i saw this little book, i picked it up, bought it and began to read it on the train home and i didn't stop till i was completely finished. It now sits by my bed (in a very honoured position) between my Stephen King 'on writing' and 'elements of style'.

In humorous, short anecdotes and tips, this book outlines all the things a person can do WRONG, and strangely enough its one of the most positive writing books i've read because its advice is sensible, practical and the examples portray clearly what they mean.

In 255 pages, and 200 mistakes Sandra Newman and Howard Mittelmark take you from Plot to how not to sell a novel, with lots of great information in between AND with lots of humour too!

So, when i was reading through and saw about ten things that i was doing wrong, i actually laughed, and nodded my head to myself - sniggering at my stupidity because through their amazing fun and friendly style, mistakes are shown and criticism is offered in a easy to swallow form (especially to the hyper sensitive newbie).

Definitely ten out of ten and light years ahead of many 'how to' books! This book is worth every cent!

For more information : http://www.hownottowriteanovel.com/

Momma Zen by Karen Mazen Miller

"Drawing on her experience as a mother and on her years of Zen meditation and study, Karen Maezen Miller explores how the daily challenges of parenthood can become the most profound spiritual journey of our lives. This compelling and wise memoir follows the timeline of early motherhood from pregnancy through toddlerhood. Miller takes readers on a transformative journey, charting a mother's growth beyond naive expectations and disorientation to finding fulfillment in ordinary tasks and developing greater self-awareness and self-acceptance - to the gradual discovery of maternal bliss."

Momma Zen is a book I picked up on the recommendation of a friend and fellow mother and I will never be able to thank her enough for it. Miller is a mother and recently converted Buddhist Priest whose perspective will alter your own views on how to handle everyday occurrences. She shares experiences that the reader can connect to even in the event they have never had a child of their own. During my own journey through this book I have found greater peace and comfort and feel better equipped to handle the challenges that come my way.

Every mother or future mother I know will be receiving a copy of this book. I can hardly begin to explain how inept you feel as a new mother (even the second time around) and Miller helped me to know that I am not alone in my feelings. She shares experiences that make you laugh out loud, but in almost every chapter I also found myself crying. From the actual experience of having a child to caring for and loving my own, I finally have begun to understand that I am not alone.

This is a book that I would also recommend to anyone seeking more peace in their own lives. Miller discusses how she handled the loss of her mother and how it affected the way she cared for those around her. Her writing and explanation of this one experience is beautiful beyond words. If you are interested in learning more about meditation I would read this book, because she offers advice even to those with only a few minutes to spare. There is even a "When you need a little help" section in the back of the book referencing each chapter with a subject to refer to, brilliant.

Momma Zen is a beautiful book that breathes new life into its readers. I give it a 10 out of 10. I plan on rereading it over and over again as I grow older to see how my perspective changes.

10 out of 10