The path to motherhood can be complicated and emotional, and for many this journey takes much longer than expected. In the US, 38% of women ages 20-44 do not have children by choice or by chance. Author Melanie Notkin sheds an intimate light on this reality in her book Otherhood, a powerful memoir about being unmarried and childless.

Notkin shares her personal story with refreshing honesty and humor, and she offers encouragement to anyone whose life has not gone according to their original plan (…we’ll raise our hands now).

Some may say grouping childless women into an “otherhood” category could come across as condescending or even insensitive. But book titles aside, we think Otherhood will empower all women (regardless of parental status) to find fulfillment, no matter how unpredictably bumpy the road turns out to be.

Otherhood: Modern Women Finding A New Kind of Happiness, $17.67, Amazon.