After Birth - Paperback

by Elisa Albert (Author)

"Captures our time with bracing propulsive energy and brilliant honesty . . . Albert is virtuosic." -- Washington Post

Ari is isolated with a one-year-old son in a decayed upstate New York town. Then Mina appears, pregnant and alone. Suddenly there is the possibility of connection, and soon the two are comrades-in-arms, navigating the hostile terrain of new motherhood together. Acclaimed for its insight, outrageous humor, and power to spark fierce debate, After Birth is a daring and transformative novel about friendship, history, and the body.

"Vicious, hilarious, and above all real." --New York Times Book Review

"Boils with dark humor and brutal honesty." --People

"Funny as hell . . . Enlightening, sharply moving, and true." --Star Tribune

"A smartly acerbic exploration." --O, The Oprah Magazine

"Edgy . . . Like Lorrie Moore . . . cracked open." --Los Angeles Review of Books

Front Jacket

A year has passed since Ari gave birth, and still she can't locate herself in her altered universe. Amid the strange, disjointed rhythms of her days and nights and another impending winter in upstate New York, Ari is a tree without roots, struggling to keep her branches aloft.

When Mina older, self-contained, alone, and nine months pregnant moves to town, Ari sees the possibility of a new friend, despite her unfortunate habit of generally mistrusting women. Soon theybecome comrades-in-arms, and the previously hostile terrain seems almost navigable.

With piercing insight, purifying anger, and outrageous humor, Elisa Albert issues a wake-up call to a culture that turns its new mothers into exiles and expects them to act like natives. After Birth is adaring andresonant novel from one of our most visceral writers."

Back Jacket

Ari is adrift, isolated with a one-year-old son in upstate New York. Then Mina moves to town: indie rock bassist in the 1980s, now a poet, pregnant, and alone. Ari sees the possibility of connection, and soon the two become comrades-in-arms, navigating hostile terrain. Acclaimed for its insight, outrageous humor, and power to spark fierce debate, After Birth is a daring portrait of motherhood, marriage, and transformative friendship.

Vicious, hilarious, and above all real. New York Times Book Review

Boils with dark humor and brutal honesty. People

Funny as hell ... Enlightening, sharply moving, and true. Star Tribune

A smartly acerbic exploration. O, The Oprah Magazine

Heartfelt ... Necessary and powerful. Independent

Edgy ... Like Lorrie Moore ... cracked open. Los Angeles Review of Books

One of the most exciting books of the year ... Provocative. Buzzfeed

Sharp as a fresh-cut diamond. Flavorwire


Elisa Albert, author of The Book of Dahlia and How This Night Is Different, has written for NPR, Tin House, Commentary, Salon, and the Rumpus."

Author Biography

ELISA ALBERT, author of The Book of Dahlia and a collection of short stories, has written for NPR, Tin House, Commentary, Salon, and the Rumpus. She grew up in Los Angeles and now lives in upstate New York with her family.