Four Mothers

'Public interest journalism at its best - powerful human stories peppered with well-chosen facts ... A compelling case for a fairer society' SUNDAY TIMES 'An absorbing, moving, and beautifully composed exploration of motherhood and mothering across the world . . . a gripping, vital, and utterly compelling book' Elinor Cleghorn, author of Unwell Women AS THE YEAR TURNS, FOUR WOMEN GIVE BIRTH. In Japan, Tsukasa spends a week in her government-funded hospital room, before resting at her mother's house. In Kenya, Chelsea returns to her urban flat the day after giving birth, greeted by friends. In Finland, Anna delivers her baby in a midwife-led birth centre. And in America, despite her insurance, Sarah pays $3,000 for an uncomplicated birth. Following these women across their first year of parenting, Four Mothers is an immersive and deeply reported story of motherhood, and an enlightening exploration of the cultures and policies that shape it. 'Eye-opening and cathartic. It is a love letter to parents and a clarion call for better policy' Eve Rodsky, author of Fair Play 'Exquisitely reported and intensely readable ... Once I started Four Mothers I could not put it down' Darcy Lockman, author of All the Rage