Monsters, Martyrs, and Marionettes

Essays on Motherhood

2024 INDIES Finalist
Finalist, Essays (Adult Nonfiction)
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Documenting the birth and early life of her daughters, Gruber shares what it means to use one’s body to bring life into the world and the lasting ramifications of that act on parent and child. Each piece peers into the seemingly mundane to show the mortal and emotional consequences of maternal bonds, placing experiences of “being a mom” within broader contexts—historical, biological, and psychological—to speak to the realities of parenthood often omitted from mainstream conversations.