Being a mother shouldn't suck -- Pioneer women -- Birthing a nation -- The industrial revolution and the division of labor -- Scientific motherhood and modern reproduction -- From Rosie the Riveter to the 1950s housewife -- Second-wave feminism -- Opting out, leaning in, and falling over -- The fertility-industrial complex -- The patriarchs -- Redefining "it all"

Examines the history of American ideas about motherhood, how those ideas have impacted all women whether or not they have children, and calls for changes in workplace policies, cultural norms, and personal attitudes about motherhood