Through history, interviews, anecdotes, and popular culture, this book examines pregnancy from all angles, covering changing expectations for pregnancy; new definitions of when fatherhood begins; the implications of new, earlier connections to the fetus; and the political, economic, and social consequences to the public.In the 21st century, pregnancy is more than a biological event—it's a cultural phenomenon. A Womb with a View: America's Growing Public Interes...

This book investigates the changing culture of grandparenting. Depending on the group, the period, and the family, grandparents have been powerful patriarchs and matriarchs, reliable second parents, dependents, burdens, or community figures. The book examines the history of grandparenting and the changing depiction of grandparent culture from “old” to “hip,” including the development of the celebrity grandparent, the emergence of media technologies that allow for new communication and rela...

In the twenty-first century, fatherhood is shifting from simply being a sidekick in the parental team to taking center stage with new expectations of involvement and caretaking. The social expectations of fathers start even before the children are born. Mr. Mom is now displaced with fathers who don’t think of themselves as babysitting their own children, but as central decision makers, along with mothers, as parents. Deconstructing Dads: Changing Images of Fathers in Popular Culture is an ...

This timely, highly readable edited collection undertakes an interdisciplinary analysis of the innovative ways in which both the political process and the entertainment industry appeal to voters under the age of 30 and how the intended audience receives these endeavors. Along the way, contributors shed light on the state of the modern American political system and its relationship to entertainment and popular culture. By integrating academic investigations with a 'real-world' point of view...

FROM CONFUSION TO CONFIDENCE IN FIVE STEPSSECOND EDITION COMPLETELY REVISED AND UPDATEDThe Baby Decision is a clear, compassionate guide to making a parenting or childfree decision with confidence. Many women of childbearing age and their partners find it hard to make this life-changing decision. Without a crystal ball, what can you do? Some women say "I like the idea of motherhood, but how do I know I'd really enjoy it? What will happen to my job, my relationship, my sanit...

The acclaimed author explores the hidden crises of Gen X women in this "engaging hybrid of first-person confession, reportage [and] pop culture analysis" ( The New Republic).Ada Calhoun was married with children and a good career—and yet she was miserable. She thought she had no right to complain until she realized how many other Generation X women felt the same way. What could be behind this troubling trend? To find out, Calhoun delved into housing costs,...

"A fascinating exploration of the mysteries ignited by DNA genealogy testing—from the intensely personal and concrete to the existential and unsolvable." —Tana French, New York Times–bestselling authorYou swab your cheek or spit in a vial, then send it away to a lab somewhere. Weeks later you get a report that might tell you where your ancestors came from or if you carry certain genetic risks. Or, the report could reveal a long-buried family secret that upe...

From Jezebel.com, the popular website for women, comes a must-read encyclopedic guide to pop culture, feminism, fashion, sex, and much more.Within months of Jezebel's May 2007 appearance on the new media scene, fans of the blog began referring to themselves as "Jezzies" in comment threads and organizing reader meet-ups in cities all over the world. By 2008, the devotion of the self-appointed Jezzies reached such a fever pitch that the New York Times ran a ...

Fall in love. Get married. Have children. For most couples, marriage and children go hand in hand. And yet, the number of people choosing childlessness is on the rise. These are the childless by choice-people who have actively decided not to have children—rather than the childless by circumstance.In Two Is Enough, Laura S. Scott explores the assumptions surrounding childrearing, and explores the reasons many people are choosing to forgo this experience. Scott, founder of t...

"If this book feels like it’s sounding the alarm on the state of American motherhood, well, that’s because it is." -- San Francisco ChronicleIn this timely and necessary book, New York Times opinion writer Jessica Grose dismantles two hundred years of unrealistic parenting expectations and empowers today’s mothers to make choices that actually serve themselves, their children, and their communitiesClose your eyes and picture the perfect mother. She is usually blonde and thi...

Author, activist, and TED speaker Ashton Applewhite has written a rousing manifesto calling for an end to discrimination and prejudice on the basis of age.In our youth obsessed culture, we’re bombarded by media images and messages about the despairs and declines of our later years. Beauty and pharmaceutical companies work overtime to convince people to purchase products that will retain their youthful appearance and vitality. Wrinkles are embarrassing. Gray hair sh...

The comprehensive guide for single women interested in proactively becoming a mother—includes the essential tools needed for parenting on your own, how best to follow through on your decision, and insight about answering the child’s questions and needs over time.Choosing Single Motherhood, written by a longtime journalist and Choice Mother (a woman who chooses to conceive or adopt without a life partner), will become the indispensable tool for any woman co...