Leave: A Postpartum Account

by Shayne Terry

Shayne Terry’s fourth trimester is not going as planned. Instead of bonding with her new baby, she’s stuck on the couch with a third-degree tear, barely able to walk. When the women in her family show up to help, they come bearing family secrets and old wounds that also need repair. Begun as notes on Terry’s phone documenting a parental leave gone awry, Leave examines a healing process complicated by capitalism, intergenerational trauma, and a healthcare system with a long history of devaluing women. This powerful postpartum account treats birth as a portal, one that can connect us to a lineage of pain, joy, death, and life. And at a time when our bodily autonomy is being stripped away, Leave is an urgent exploration of one woman’s experience recovering from birth in America.

Genres: Memoir, Mental Health, Nonfiction

162 pages, Paperback

Published February 25, 2025

Reviews

[Emilee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Shayne tells this story in such a engaging, easy to digest manner that you can’t help but devour in one sitting. It’s heartbreaking, it’s affirming, it’s honest, it’s painful and its hopeful. Even those who haven’t given birth can find compassion and understanding in this story in a perspective not often shared from a postpartum mother.

[Laura Donovan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this in one sitting. What a compelling, shocking yet sadly typical birth experience. Shayne Terry is “lucky,” I suppose, that she had a village following the dreadful birth of her son. I had two c sections, which were hard on my body, but nothing compared to this writer’s experiences. All I can say is women are built to survive so much pain and they shouldn’t have to. She should have been able to enjoy her new baby, but she was ripped open and left for dead by modern medicine. I felt this way after getting mastitis following the birth of my son. My doctor no long prioritized me after the baby arrived, even though mastitis is a life-threatening condition. The same is true for Shayne’s vaginal tear. This book should be unbelievable and an anomaly, but sadly it’s not. Written beautifully and very accessibly. There’s a lot in this book about family traumas and stories kept from us. What a book.

[Kara · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have two reviews for this work:

1. On a tangible level, Terry's writing is compelling and complex in its directness and simplicity. It is no exaggeration to say that I could not put this book down because I enjoyed it so much.

2. On an abstract level, this work is a piece of art that—ironically—defies words. Yes, I enjoyed reading it, but I cannot describe the feeling of humanness, intimacy, and vulnerability that Terry evokes in her account. Only a couple of things that come to my mind are similar to reading Leave: a. Gazing at an incredible painting in a quiet museum, and b. being held by a loved one while weeping in their arms.

[Gennifer Tetreault · Rating 5 out of 5]

Leave: A Postpartum Account by Shayne Terry was a wonderfully written, real-life account about giving birth and the fourth trimester. The book was written in a totally relatable way, even if scenarios written about are not something you personally experienced. Since giving birth myself, I am extremely interested in hearing the stories of others and the circumstances they have faced.

I would strongly recommend this book to anyone who has given birth, or may in the future.

This book will be released on February 25, 2025.

Thank you to NetGalley and Autofocus Books for the ARC!

[Shana · Rating 4 out of 5]

*Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review*

Oof. This account of the initial postpartum period hits hard, but you don't have to be someone who has birthed to feel its impact. Shayne Terry's birth-related trauma opens up a layered examination of intergenerational trauma, among other things. Using some of the simplest, most straightforward language, she was able to express so much depth and feeling. I admire that quality in a writer and feel appreciation for what Terry was willing to reveal so that we might also be able to sit with it and reflect.

[WhatFrizRead · Rating 4 out of 5]

Leave is a very frank and honest account of one woman's experience after giving birth. It's well written, easy to read and relate to - even though I had two positive, straightforward births and recovery.

I think this book probably needs a trigger warning but there is no sensationalism and the raw emotions that accompany every detail are honest. It's a relatively short read and also talks a lot about death and how family relationships can change after having a baby.

I enjoyed this book greatly.

[Julia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really enjoyed reading this short book on a postpartum experience. It is brutal and very honest but a conversation that needs to be had more often. It definitely made me terrified to get pregnant and give birth and at the same time, I have been wanting to read about brutally honest birth experiences so I really appreciated it. Highly recommend. Thank you Net Galley and Victory Editing for this e-arc.

[Emily Carruthers · Rating 4 out of 5]

An intricate portrayal of the fourth trimester of pregnancy not always discussed in not just media, but life itself.

Terry brings pain, empathy, and understanding to her story and those of the women that come before her that is a wonderful read from start to finish.

Although at times it’s a hard read due to the subject, it is nonetheless a worthwhile read that I will be thinking about going into my own last few weeks of pregnancy and soon motherhood.

[Shannon Thompson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had my baby two years ago, and I still find myself reaching for books like these. Stories where mothers can find each other and say, I see you. I read this in one sitting. Each essay is so powerful, and yet they all fit together. Thoughtful, raw, vulnerability, strength. Highly recommended.

Thank you, NetGalley, for a copy.

[Joanna · Rating 4 out of 5]

e-ARC. this is a gripping, raw account of what the postpartum period looks like for one woman who experienced a pregnancy complication. “complication” is a sweeping term, and Terry takes us through what that meant for her and her recovery. the postpartum period is one that is not discussed truthfully often, even amongst women. kudos to Terry for having the courage to share her story so openly.

[Adora · Rating 5 out of 5]

Devastating and moving, these meditations about mothers and death and injury will stay with me for a long time. I googled “third degree tear” a few pages in because I didn’t understand what this phrase corresponded to on the body. I think that says a lot about social silences around reproduction and women’s health. I’m glad this book — with powerful succinctness — offers one corrective.

[Katie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Essential reading and expertly crafted. I couldn’t put this down. This should be required reading for every obstetrics resident, and nearly all new moms will relate to how Terry describes giving birth as basically kissing death.

[Michelle Zeigert · Rating 5 out of 5]

There’s something comforting about reading someone’s voice…about how traumatic childbirth is no matter how it goes down…shared trauma of the subsequent years…grateful for this author sharing her experiences.

[Lindsay Hunter · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is so important and is about so much more than childbirth. I inhaled it.

[Megan Harrington · Rating 5 out of 5]

A powerful book; I’m so glad I read it. Leave is a postpartum account, but it’s about so much more - death, generational trauma, resilience, and how we as a society see pain.

[Sara · Rating 5 out of 5]

This mighty gem belongs in everyone’s hands.

[Abigail Franklin · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book didn’t dissuade me from wanting children, which should scare me & doesn’t, which scares me

[america · Rating 5 out of 5]

📖

[Rachel León · Rating 5 out of 5]

So searing and important. I love this book so much.

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful addition to the matrescence canon.