Others Like Me: The Lives of Women Without Children by Nicole Louie
In a world that expects all women to become mothers, what happens to those who circumvent motherhood? Now and throughout history, women without children have been misunderstood and even vilified for not conforming to the prescriptive path of daughter, wife, mother, whether by choice, circumstance or ambivalence. But with an increasing number of people choosing to forego children, Nicole Louie knew she was not alone. As she recounts her own journey towards embracing a life without children, Louie weaves in stories from the women around the world she found in her search for community and guidance, from their pasts to their presents to their hopes for the future.
Others Like Me is a candid, tender and distinctive exploration of how fourteen women found fulfilment and flourished outside of motherhood, upending stereotypes and offering reassurance and recognition down a much-treaded but lesser-known track.
In a world that expects all women to become mothers, what happens to those who circumvent motherhood? Now and throughout history, women without children have been misunderstood and even vilified for not conforming to the prescriptive path of daughter, wife, mother, whether by choice, circumstance or ambivalence. But with an increasing number of people choosing to forego children, Nicole Louie knew she was not alone. As she recounts her own journey towards embracing a life without children, Louie weaves in stories from the women around the world she found in her search for community and guidance, from their pasts to their presents to their hopes for the future.
Others Like Me is a candid, tender and distinctive exploration of how fourteen women found fulfilment and flourished outside of motherhood, upending stereotypes and offering reassurance and recognition down a much-treaded but lesser-known track.
In a world that expects all women to become mothers, what happens to those who circumvent motherhood? Now and throughout history, women without children have been misunderstood and even vilified for not conforming to the prescriptive path of daughter, wife, mother, whether by choice, circumstance or ambivalence. But with an increasing number of people choosing to forego children, Nicole Louie knew she was not alone. As she recounts her own journey towards embracing a life without children, Louie weaves in stories from the women around the world she found in her search for community and guidance, from their pasts to their presents to their hopes for the future.
Others Like Me is a candid, tender and distinctive exploration of how fourteen women found fulfilment and flourished outside of motherhood, upending stereotypes and offering reassurance and recognition down a much-treaded but lesser-known track.
About the Author
Nicole Louie is a writer and translator based in Ireland. Her essays have appeared in Oh Reader magazine, The Walrus and the Guardian, and her curated collection of books, movies and podcasts about women who are not mothers by choice, infertility, circumstance or ambivalence can be found on Instagram: @bynicolelouie. Others Like Me: The Lives of Women without Children is her first book.
Praise for Others Like Me
“An important, beautiful, self-excavating memoir about female autonomy and joy found in childlessness, told with great tenderness.”
- Nuala O'Connor, author of SEABORNE
“Part memoir, part research, all impressive storytelling, Louie travels the globe listening to women speak of the experience of being not-mothers . . . In questioning her choice to be childfree while holding space for those who grieve their childlessness, Louie offers the possibility that as women - mothers or not - we may have more in common than is often acknowledged, not least that the lives of women and girls are all too often circumscribed by societal expectations and misogyny. A vital work as we approach the second quarter of the twenty-first century.”
- Stella Duffy, author of LULLABY BEACH
“What a unique addition to the genre exploring women without children! . . . With candour and self-reflection, Louie takes us on her journey to a deeper understanding of wanting a life that does not include motherhood. Beautifully crafted, this book shows us how inner work and learning from others leads to living assuredly in our truths.”
- Laura Carroll, author of THE BABY MATRIX
Publisher: Dialogue Books
Date Published: 12 June 2025
Paperback, 368 pages
ISBN: 9781408748350
