When we talk about mothering and politics together, we usually consider isolated moments: the policing of breastfeeding, or the cost of childcare. This book argues that this is not enough, constructing an alternative history of the UK—from the Women’s Liberation Movement to austerity—that reveals motherhood itself to be an inherently political state.

‘Mother State places Helen Charman alongside Jacqueline Rose, Angela Davis, and Denise Riley in a lineage of psychical and political history that lets us re-see this ubiquitous form of care at a critical juncture.’ – Hannah Zeavin, UC Berkeley

’Totemic and graceful. A necessary study and intervention into contemporary thinking around care, love and the multifarious ideas of the ‘mother’. Helen Charman writes with such intellectual command, open generosity and nuance: she is a genius.’ – Rachael Allen, Queen Mary University of London

More information about the book can be found here: https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/443791/mother-state-by-charman-helen/9780241512821

More information about the book tour can be found here: https://linktr.ee/motherstate