Catherine Pierce Didn't Write a "Cutesy Book" About Motherhood

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit rooted.substack.comSince I’ve started doing the Bottom Reader Book Club livestreams at home, I’m always aware of the possibility that my four-year-old could go rogue during her bedtime routine and come busting into the room where I’m recording, ready to take center stage among the talking heads on screen. This week, I took comfort in the fact that should this situation occur, my fellow book club conversation partners would absolutely understand (spoiler alert: there were no bedtime breakouts! Dad for the win.). Not only are Katie Pierce and Catherine Simone Gray both mothers, but they find creative inspiration in both the beauty and exhaustion of motherhood. Katie Pierce’s new memoir, Foxes for Everybody: Twenty-Four Hours of Early Motherhood, is a profound study of the marvels of parenthood that coexist alongside sleep deprivation and the chaos of getting out the door on a school morning.I loved hearing from Katie about the unique structure of the book—twenty four essays that correspond with the hours of the day—and the way the book’s structure mirrors the many sleepless nights of early parenthood. We also discussed our thoughts on the parallels between writing and parenting, and how to create balance between dark and light, humor and heaviness in a collection.You can listen to these book club recordings in the Substack app, in your web browser, or on Spotify Subscribe to Rooted on Spotify to get notifications when new episodes are released. Recorded book club conversations are only available to paid subscribers, but the live book club sessions will continue to be free and open to all readers.See Catherine and her husband Michael Kardos on tour for their newly released books!April 6: Friendly City Books at Bushy’s Clubhouse, ColumbusApril 7: Lemuria Books, JacksonApril 8: Off Square Books, OxfordApril 9: Mississippi State UniversityRead along with the Bottom Readers!April 30 - The Image They Had Painted with Joesph Patri Brown and Alison TurnerMay - When We Were Murderous, Time-Traveling Women with Ellen Morris Prewitt