Otherhood

More American women are childless than ever before—nearly half those of childbearing age don’t have children. While our society often assumes these women are “childfree by choice,” that’s not always true. In reality, many of them expected to marry and have children, but it simply hasn’t happened. Wrongly judged as picky or career-obsessed, they make up the “Otherhood,” a growing demographic that has gone without definition or visibility until now.

In Otherhood, author Melanie Notkin reveals her own story as well as the honest, poignant, humorous, and occasionally heartbreaking stories of women in her generation—women who expected love, marriage, and parenthood, but instead found themselves facing a different reality. She addresses the reasons for this shift, the social and emotional impact it has on our collective culture, and how the “new normal” will affect our society in the decades to come.

Notkin aims to reassure women that they are not alone and encourages them to find happiness and fulfillment no matter what the future holds. A groundbreaking exploration of an essential contemporary issue, Otherhood inspires thought-provoking conversation and gets at the heart of our cultural assumptions about single women and childlessness.

About the Author:

Melanie Notkin is the national best-selling author of Savvy Auntie: The Ultimate Guide for Cool Aunts, Great-Aunts, Godmothers, and All Women Who Love Kids and the founder and personality behind Savvy Auntie, the beloved lifestyle brand celebrating modern aunthood. In 2009, she established Auntie’s Day, the first annual day to honor aunts and godmothers. Notkin is the foremost expert on the emerging demographic of childless, often single, women in North America. She has shared her research, writing, and popular voice as a contributor to The New York Times, The Huffington Post, and PsychologyToday.com, among others, and she appears regularly on national television, radio, and the web. Otherhood is inspired by her life in New York City.