Hysterical

Any time Dr Pragya Agarwal writes something, I want to read it. Her words illuminate the hidden patterns of bias and therefore injustice that impact us. This book will make you question everything you thought you knew about emotions (yours and other people's) and make you want to reclaim your emotions as an integral part of your full humanity. Once again, Pragya has shown us that when we understand history and science, we can create a better future -- LAYLA F. SAAD, author of Me and White Supremacy A necessary, thought-provoking book that demands we urgently rethink the terms of the debate on gender and emotion -- DR TIFFANY WATT SMITH, author of The Book of Emotions Brave, unapologetic and, at times, rightly furious... all emotions for which women have been labelled hysterical. -- LAURA BATES, author of Men Who Hate Women Praise for (M)otherhood: An exhilarating, genre-defying read . . . seamlessly interwoven with statistics, quotes and scientific evidence to clever narrative effect . . . reminiscent of Olivia Laing's writing on loneliness or the body . . . The whole thing adds up to the most thoughtful, empathic and inspiring science of the self -- VIV GROSKOP * * Observer * * Absolutely sensational. Revelatory and of its time, challenging myths and ingrained perceptions. I could not put it down. Everyone should read this -- MICHAEL CASHMAN, CBE, co-founder of Stonewall Brilliant, brave, beautiful . . . such an inspiring book -- ELIF SHAFAK Riveting. Agarwal writes with searing honesty and tenderness about the joys and agonies of becoming a mother, of trying and failing to conceive again, and then of pursuing a route to motherhood that's widely seen as taboo . . . Agarwal writes beautifully about her own complicated experience * * Guardian * * Intimate and insightful, Pragya Agarwal expands the meaning of the word motherhood in this brilliant book. This is urgent, essential reading for everyone -- AVNI DOSHI A wide-ranging, searingly honest and timely intervention into the framing of a fundamental and fraught choice, as well as an impassioned defence of ambivalence as part of the human condition -- OLIVIA SUDJIC (M)otherhood is a valuable step towards a literature that acknowledges the breadth and variety of the parenting experience and its cultural meanings. It is touchingly personal and brave -- ANGELA SAINI, author of Superior: The Return of Race Science Powerful and compelling . . . Agarwal is a precise, elegant writer who seeks answers by embracing complexity * * New Statesman * * A book about the disparate forces of duty, stereotypes, pressure, double standards and expectations forced upon women, Agarwal cuts through all of it to examine the multiplicity and complexity of motherhood in all its myriad forms. A moving, urgent and necessary read, ultimately it is a book about love -- LAURA BATES Courageous, tender, painfully resonant and beautifully written - this is such a wise and generous exploration of womanhood and identity, and deserves to be read as widely as possible -- DAISY BUCHANAN A bold, honest and investigative book that aims to empower, educate and normalise much-needed conversations surrounding parenthood, the body and all the bits in between. Smashing stigmas and breaking the silence through the beauty of both science and poetry -- LAURA DOCKRILL A brilliant, properly inclusive look at what motherhood means for different women -- CAITLIN MORAN