5 motherhood books I read in 2025 that challenged the way I think

Books on motherhood, not parenting

Given that I am on week 2 of no childcare + day 4 of hardly a nap, I’m saving my New Year’s reflection post for next week (or maybe never). I’m trying to give myself some grace this week and appreciate that my office is closed, since working without childcare is impossible. SO, if you’re like me right now and your brain can hardly handle anything other than an engrossing book during the rare downtime, I’ve curated a list of five books I read this year that are related to motherhood. And they aren’t exactly parenting books.

In no particular order

Everyone Is Lying To You by Jo Piazza

First up: a page-turning murder mystery about momfluencers. Everyone Is Lying To You by Jo Piazza was an entertaining whodunit that kept me hooked. Piazza explores female friendship, the challenges of building a career amid motherhood, and the gap between online performance identity and reality. As someone who recently signed up for Instagram after deleting my account five years ago, this book also helped me sift through the bait of perfectly curated, mom-focused homesteading #tradwife content that would otherwise leave me feeling weirdly envious and grossed out.

The Mother Artist by Catherine Ricketts

Next, for the artist in you: The Mother Artist by Catherine Ricketts. In this evocative (and relatively short yay) book, Ricketts blends her story of early motherhood with the history of mother artists. Little did I realize that most of the female painters you could list (Frida Kahlo, Georgia O’Keeffe [my heart i love you Georgia], Mary Cassatt) did not have children of their own. Ricketts delves into why this is the case—surprise, the same reasons mothers leave the workforce at a higher rate than fathers—and tells the stories of lesser-known artists who are also mothers. I found this book inspiring for my own creative identity.

Unfit Parent by Jessica Slice

Another non-fiction on the list, Jessica Slice’s Unfit Parent, dives deep into the injustices (and beauty) of parenting as a person with a disability. I graduated with a degree in Sociology and have taken classes on disability, but never in those classes did I learn about the challenges facing parents with disabilities. The SYSTEM, the fucking system. Slice weaves in her own story of her disability and becoming a mother while challenging the assumptions about disability and parenting. The title refers to the classification by social services agencies and courts as “unfit” if the parent has a disability. The analysis of ableism within our healthcare, legal, and family systems was thought-provoking, to say the least. Although I wanted to rage against these systems while reading, Slice left me with a sense of hope and belief in community.

Open Wide by Jessica Gross

Another fiction book! And with an awesome cover design. Jessica Gross’s Open Wide is a novel about a young Jew(ish) woman living in New York City who falls in love with a surgeon. Although the protagonist is not a mother herself, the protagonist’s relationship with her own mother is a central theme of the story. But that’s not why this book is on this list. Gross explores obsession in relationships, pushing past the line. She weaves surrealism with desire, as Gross’s vivid prose depicts the physical act of entering another person's body to become “one” with a partner. No spoilers, but this provocative read was easily relatable as a mother who feels she sometimes cannot get close enough to her child.

Sidenote: I learned about this book as a member of Brad Listi’s Other Ppl podcast book club, which I highly recommend.

Second Life by Amanda Hess

Lastly! A third non-fiction: Second Life by Amanda Hess. Like the other non-fiction books on this list, Hess integrates her own story of motherhood among a cultural critique, this time focused on digital culture. Hess explores period and pregnancy-tracking apps, online parenting communities (who’s been deep down a Reddit hole at 2 am?), and the surveillance of children with daycare cameras and baby monitors (hello, Nanit, which I admittedly have contemplated buying many times because my baby monitor is subpar). I thought Hess’s tone was witty and relatable in how technology has shaped my experience of anxiety, parental judgment, and community. This book was hard to put down.

Each of these books explores the both/and of motherhood, which I acutely feel right now. I hope you have some reprieve this week, while C hopefully learns how to speak with a British accent after too much Peppa Pig. I’d love to hear what you’ve been reading.

Happy 2026! (only 2 more years until it’s 3 more years from now!)

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If you are feeling like you want to do some good ole New Year’s reflection, I’m planning to (slowly) work through Zoë Björnson prompts in her latest post. Or, you can use my Google Sheet template.

New Year Reflection Guidance