Real Birth: Women Tell Their Stories

by Robin Greene

Intimate and intensely personal, the 36 first-person narratives contained in Real Birth: Women Share Their Stories offer readers a window into the complex and emotionally exciting experience of... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0965449939
• ISBN13: 9780965449939
• Release Date: January 2000
• Publisher: Generation Books
• Length: 224 Pages
• Weight: 0.75 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 6.0" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

What's it going to be like?

The day my childbirth class was to start I was put on bed rest. Although I had read a lot about pregnancy and birth, I still didn't really know what it would feel like to have a baby. Reading these accounts of births helped a lot -- I felt I was much better prepared for the experience. I also liked Labor Day, edited by Ann-Marie Giglio, but that collection was relentlessly positive. This book include stories from women who weren't thrilled with their experiences, which seemed more honest. The stories are organized by where the birth occurred: hospital, birthing center, home. Reading the different accounts reassured me that I had chosen the location that was right for me.I'd recommend this book for anyone wondering what it's like to give birth.

BabyLounge.com gave Real Birth 5-pacifiers

This heartwarming book is a compilation of real women sharing their birth stories. Hospital births, births at home, and unexpected birth places. No matter where or how a woman has her labor and delivery, the end result is the same: the miracle of life, the birth of a baby. The stories shared here are bound to make you laugh and cry, and feel proud to be a woman. Any mother knows that moms never get tired of the birth experience of other women. It is fascinating to read about the variety of way that women deliver their babies. You'll read about "normal" birthing experiences that take place in a hospital with doctors and epidurals, and you'll read about unusual experiences, such as a woman who gave birth to her baby in a tunnel. With each birthing story you will feel empathy and camaraderie with the women who share their story in this wonderful book. Any woman who is pregnant or thinking about becoming pregnant will be amazed to read how many different ways there are to have a baby. Reading Real Birth may give a woman a new perspective about the way she would like to deliver her baby and is a must read for all expectant woman. The author Robin Greene says, "Women share their birthing stories the way men share their war stories." Any woman who has already had a baby will read this book and will feel priviliged to know that she is among the many, the proud, the moms.

A great book about women's lives.

I'm far beyond my pregnancy experience now, but this book gave me a look back. I so identified with these women. What struck me was that these narratives are more than women dealing with the pregnancy experience; these are their stories of the conflicts and struggles in their lives, stretching into the relationships with spouses, other children, parents, and themselves. This is a must-read for all pregnant women, and for mothers of pregnant daughters. Great stuff!!

Greene lets the birth experience shine through

Robin Greene should be commended for her skilled handling of the 36 narratives that make up this book. Each woman relating her harrowing/funny/poignant experience of birth has her own voice and style. What was amazing was how different each birth experience was for each woman (and not just regarding the setting that it happened) but at the same time how similar their experience was in terms of it being a life-transforming event. I felt her inclusion of experiences of multiple births and of infant loss to be a choice that really rounded out this book.

Honest stories of all kinds of births

I loved reading this book. It has such a wide spectrum of births and the women in the book are so honest about their experiences. Everything from home birth to cesareans, multiple births, adoption, and even stillbirths are included. I love how the personalities of the women shine through. I would highly recommend this book to any pregnant woman!