Maternity Service Audiobook By Emma Barnett cover art

Maternity Service

A Love Letter to Mothers from the Front Line of Maternity Leave

Pre-order: Try for $0.00
Prime logo Prime members: New to Audible?
Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Maternity Service

By: Emma Barnett
Pre-order: Try for $0.00

$14.95/month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Pre-order for $30.54

Pre-order for $30.54

Confirm pre-order
Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.
Cancel

About this listen

Brought to you by Penguin.

The essential companion for every mother embarking on maternity leave


'In one important sense maternity leave is poorly named, as it involves no actual leave. You are constantly on, even when your offspring is having a nap. There is nothing restful about it. In another sense maternity leave is aptly named, because it’s a period of leave from all you know: taking leave of one’s mind, body, job, and relationships'

When Emma Barnett began her second maternity leave, she realized that, despite having been there before, as soon as her first leave finished the rose-tinted lenses had descended and she immediately forgot what the experience was actually like when you’re in it. This collective forgetting, which leads to well-meaning comments such as ‘enjoy every minute’ and ‘treasure this special time’, is doing a disservice to women, leaving them unprepared for the more complicated reality of what it means to be on maternity service.

In this warmly reassuring, refreshingly honest book, Emma sets out to capture this reality, in real time while on her latest tour of duty. She isn’t offering advice on sleep-training or weaning or helping your baby reach milestones. Instead, this book is a celebration and acknowledgement of the work of being on maternity leave, with its soaring highs and challenging lows, and its impact on how women feel about our purpose and ourselves.

'Kind, funny, smart, soothing and radical ... This book is a hot cup of tea, a steadying hand on an arm, a baton passed with care and compassion ... A true gift for mothers, and an act of service in itself. This book will change lives' LUCY JONES, author of Matrescence

©2025 Emma Barnett (P)2025 Penguin Audio
Motherhood Parenting & Families Relationships Sexual & Reproductive Health Sociology

What listeners say about Maternity Service

Average customer ratings

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.