Bearing Life: Women's Writings on Childlessness

by Rochelle Ratner (Editor), Jodi Sh. Doff (Contributor)

A wall of silence surrounds the experience of women who are childless, whether by choice or by circumstance. Bearing Life is the first anthology to marshal the power of literature to break this silence. Now available in paperback, Bearing Life "widens the family circle to embrace childless women and recognize their invaluable contributions to our collective soul." (Booklist).

Here, more than fifty contemporary writers, including Margaret Atwood, Sandra Cisneros, Rita Mae Brown, Grace Paley, and Amy Tan, among others, reflect in their stories, poems, and personal essays on what it means to live as women without children. Bearing Life testifies to the complexity and completeness of women's lives whatever their choices, and helps to carve out a space where true choices can be made. Rochelle Ratner is the executive editor of the American Book Review.

Genres: Feminism, Nonfiction, Essays

256 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2000

Reviews

[Jeanie Kenkel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Four stars for the concept, but it could have been better executed. Only the first 1/3 or so of the book is written by childless women, and them, by choice. Could make one wonder if truly no more could be found, though the editor has her agenda. I for one crave the perspective of women who were unable to get married (and require it to have sex, thus not having children).
Didn't appreciate the fictional contributions or poems.

[Paige Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Few women’s lives can be lived without regret, as every choice seems to preclude another. I don’t regret not having a child, but sometimes I regret not wanting to have one. I regret drifting far from the stream of shared female concern; I regret not ever loving anybody *so much.* I regret my ongoing delight in solitude and freedom, because a “normal” woman does not want to be free or alone.”


4.5 stars

[Amber · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book and feel like it should have been included in my Woman Studies classes in college. This book is great for women who don't want children, have lost children to miscarriage or abortion, or are trying to have children through adoption, or any other method.

[Jodi Sh. · Rating 4 out of 5]

In this collection : Tie Me Up, Tie Me Off