by Amanda Fields, Rachel Moritz

Twenty-one vivid, moving essays on caesarean birth

“No one talks about C-sections as surgery,” writes SooJin Pate. “They talk about it as if it’s just another way—albeit more convenient way—of giving birth.” The twenty-one essays in My Caesarean add back to the conversation the missing voices of a vast, invisible sisterhood.

Robin Schoenthaler reflects: “A C-section for us meant life.” And yet, women who don’t give birth vaginally—by choice or necessity—often feel stigmatized. “My son’s birth was not a test I needed to pass,” writes Sara Bates. “As if growing a human inside another human for nine months then caring for it the rest of its life isn’t enough,” adds Mary Pan, herself a physician.

Alongside their personal stories, the writers—decorated novelists, poets, and essayists—address the history of the C-section as well as its risks, social inequities, impact on the body, and psychological aftermath. My Caesarean is a heartfelt meditation, offering much-needed comfort through shared experience.

Contributors include: Catherine Newman, Judy Batalion, Nicole Cooley, Aimee Nezhukumatathil, Lisa Solod, Misty Urban, Jacinda Townsend, Mary Pan, Robin Schoenthaler, Elizabeth Noll, Jen Fitzgerald, Tyrese Coleman, SooJin Pate, Daniela Montoya-Barthelemy, Cameron Dezen Hammon, LaToya Jordan, Sara Bates, Susan Hoffmann, and Alicia Jo Rabins.

★ 2019 Foreword INDIES Silver Winner

“The cumulative sum of these stories is an enlightening reading experience for both those who’ve had C-sections and those who may.”—Publishers Weekly

“This brave, brilliant, and astoundingly well-written collection smashes the walls of silence and shame and lets C-section survivors celebrate each other as fellow mothers, as sisters on the surgical table, as patients who went under the knife and came out changed.”—Femmeliterate

“Women have always been able to find narrative stories that explore vaginal birth. But what about books that just talk about what happens during C-Section and shortly after? [This] new book takes a thoughtful approach and explores a diverse lens of stories.”—Mama Glow 

“A collection of evocative essays written by a diverse group of writer-mothers. These intimate accounts say this to the reader: I see you; you are not alone; your birth story matters . . . The editors have, indeed, triumphed in their hope ‘to begin a conversation about caesarean birth.’”—Literary Mama

“The C-section experience is as varied as life itself—there’s guilt and gratitude, pride and regret. These mothers illuminate the whole spectrum with depth, urgency, and humor. My Caesarean is the antidote to alienation, and I dearly wish I’d had it before my own births. I’m so glad we have it now.”—Meaghan O’Connell, author of And Now We Have Everything

“A fresh and compelling range of voices lifting a painful topic into the light.”—Kathleen Glasgow, New York Times–bestselling author of Girl in Pieces

“The essays in My Caesarean refuse to idealize the birth experience and show it in all its stunning unexpectedness. This is a beautiful and important book that should be prominently shelved in the birth and parenting section of every bookstore.”—Julie Schumacher, award-winning author of Dear Committee Members and The Shakespeare Requirement

“This collection gathers the overlooked and under processed experiences of C-sections—each importantly different, each importantly the same—and prompts robust reflection. Together these voices create a much-needed community that will comfort and challenge, enlighten and affirm.”—Beth Ann Fennelly, poet laureate of Mississippi and author of Great With Child