"The body forgets pain, she said. Otherwise women would only have one child. Is it true? Has my body forgotten?" "Few experiences are as powerful, as deeply poetic, as childbirth. Many poets have written powerfully about it; I think of Gabriela Mistral, of Sharon Olds, of Martha Silano. Jessica Bates writes in that great tradition. In her keen eye, "every tummy ripple gets attention"; she is rapt in the face of "this wild thing that came from" her body. Birth is messy, and Bates doesn't blush or flinch when describing the blood and goo of her lived experience. This is the poetry of "a glistening goddess, naked and pacing."" - Tom C. Hunley, author of PLUNK and THE STATE THAT SPRINGFIELD IS IN "This beautiful book of poetry fell into my lap just very recently. I was nursing my youngest son who is 22 months old reading a poem on weaning. The emotions that overcame my soul I'm not yet able to articulate, but I knew instantly I needed more. I am so incredibly thankful to have found this work of art. Breastfeeding and motherhood changes us in our core and we are all connected in this way. This is an amazing gift for any mama you know." - Barbara Demske, from The First Latch's 2017 Holiday Gift Guide Birth & motherhood transform us. They shake our foundation with sacred, unconditional love. These 56 poems reflect on birth, death, motherhood, family, breastfeeding, raising children, confronting fears, and feeling joy in a fleeting moment. A perfect gift for a new or seasoned mother, and also a great read for those of us who aren't mothers. Birth is universal; birth is miraculous. Birth is a roaring power.

Q: How do you breed contempt? A: Have a baby. Hey. It’s me. Your baby. Let me say, first off, that I love you. I do. You’re a great parent. You do a lot of things right. I know how devoted you are to me and how invested you are in hitting this whole parenting thing out of the playground. Okay. Now that I’ve given you the validation I know you need, let’s get a few things clear . . . I’m not as innocent as you think I am. You don’t realize it because you’re blinded by my sweet good looks, but I am aware of way more than I can convey. I feel more than I can express. I have more going on in my soft, little baby brain than you could possibly imagine. Until now. The book you’re holding finally reveals the complexities and nuances of my life so far. From my point of view. Unapologetic. Unplugged. Unswaddled. Be warned . . . it’s not always adorable.

The arrival of every new child is an opportunity for many in the community to celebrate. In Bless This Child, Unitarian Universalist minister Edward Searl has collected a wide range of poetry and prose for every occasion surrounding a new life: composing birth announcements, birthday cards, and notes to new mothers and fathers/ performing readings at birth ceremonies and naming rituals/ and honoring an adoption. An indispensable tool for well-wishers, this collection will also provide quiet spiritual sustenance to new and expecting parents. The selections are contemplative, contemporary, and spiritual but not overtly religious. They are drawn from ancient and modern sources from the famous to the obscure and from various cultures and faith traditions. Many works are previously uncollected. Includes passages from Lao Tzu, Charles Dickens, George Bernard Shaw, Nelson Mandela, Hillary Rodham Clinton, and Erica Jong, among many others. Filled with wonder and hope, Bless This Child is the perfect gift -- a keepsake for expecting mothers and their partners, new parents, grandparents, clergy, and anyone who has a role in nurturing the sacred life of a new baby.

"A tender and honest account of new motherhood". 'A Mother's Birth' is a beautiful collection of relatable rhymes to resonate with mums all through the ages. The author takes her readers on a journey from pregnancy to toddlerhood, addressing the wonder and the challenges of the transition to motherhood. A book for the bedside table, as a companion for all those night feeds: A welcome reminder that you are not alone. "Maria captures, so eloquently, the beautiful rollercoaster of emotions that is motherhood in the most relatable of ways. Her motherly musings are simply gorgeous and a reminder that we are not alone! A must read for new and expectant Mums." Aoibhin Garrihy (Actor, Presenter, Voiceover Artist, Mum)

New and sensitive ... raw, in-the-moment mothering feelings. -Sarah Cannon, author of The Shame of Losing In Birth of a Daughter, Samantha Kolber deftly reveals the private world of pregnancy and birth-the middle of the night and light of day worries about safety, connection, and intimacy, weighing what shifts, writing, "I am marked. I am one becoming two, becoming one / again...my body deceives me." Indeed, these poems are brave in their accounting of the pregnant, birthing body, the realities of mothering, and the territory we enter-"oh, these worlds we are now / you and I." Dailiness and milestones merge here, bringing us on a journey that is part emotional travelogue, part wonder, part weighing of generations and of our times, and part arrival at the precise awareness that, "I am witness. I am mother." Kolber's voice is an important one, honoring what is often kept hidden. - Kerrin McCadden, author of Keep This to Yourself In her startling, beautiful new collection, Birth of a Daughter, Samantha Kolber pulls us into the time-out-of-time experience of pregnancy and motherhood. Alert to the expanded "porous" boundaries of both body and self, Kolber writes with intimate, visceral authority: "I am / clearly awake." Like salt-water pearls, these raw, gorgeous poems glow, capturing the wild internal variations felt just holding a new child or toddler in your arms, exhausted and exhilarated. "I am me plus and minus the cells expunged to create you, daughter," Kolber writes, ever-attuned to the possibility of artistic sublimation to the hunger of her infant daughter. This collection affirms Kolber's territorial claim to the mother-as-artist: "sucking what light I make / into the core of you / oh, these worlds we are now." - Megan Buchanan, author of Clothesline Religion

An English/Spanish bilingual edition of Nancy Tillman's heartwarming debut picture book for readers of all ages, On the Night You Were Born / La Noche En Que Tu Naciste. On the night you were born, the moon smiled with such wonder that the stars peeked in to see you and the night wind whispered. "Life will never be the same." On the night you were born, the whole world came alive with thanksgiving. The moon stayed up till morning. The geese flew home to celebrate. Polar bears danced. On the night you were born you brought wonder and magic to the world. Here is a book that celebrates you. It is meant to be carried wherever life takes you, over all the roads, through all the years.

With insightful candour, Toi Derricote's poem explores the ways in which her confusion about love and sex and longing detracted from the pleasures of pregnancy and motherhood.

'Honest, unflinching and unforgettable... one of Britain's best writers' Stormzy 'You will come away bruised. You will come away bruised but this will give you poetry.' Raw and stark, the poems in Yrsa Daley-Ward's breakthrough collection strip down her reflections on the heart, life, the inner self, coming of age, faith and loss to their essence. They resonate to the core of experience. 'Yrsa's work is like holding the truth in your hands. A glorious living thing' Florence Welch 'yrsa daley-ward's 'bone' is a symphony of breaking and mending. an expert storyteller. of the rarest. and purest kind - daley-ward is uncannily attentive and in tune to the things beneath life. beneath the skin. beneath the weather of the everyday.' nayyirah waheed. author of salt. and nejma

POETIC WONDERS is a beautifully produced anthology, that is filled with an eclectic mix of contemporary poems.There are 15 poems from each of the six authors, plus a full length story, written in rhyme for you to enjoy.The book provides a wonderful plethora of moods, emotions and genres and there is something for everyonein this collection. "Poetic Wonders [is] a book that renews my faith. Here we have an undeniably modern collection sovaried that all theorizing fades away." Enoch Anderson.Rosalind has been writing poetry and lyrics for over 30 years and has enjoyed significant achievements, which include winning awards for two of her songs. She runs her own editing business and as well as her writing she enjoys music, musical theatre and anything 'word creative'."Producing this book is one of my greatest joys and achievements." Rosalind Winton.