The Matricritics Club with Motherhood Scholar Andrea O’Reilly, Ph.D.
A Book Club on Mothers, Mothering, and Motherhood in Contemporary Women’s Fiction
Explore how concepts of good/normative motherhood are challenged in literature; how mother protagonists unmask motherhood to authentically reveal the truths of mothering; how maternal narratives provide models for resistance and empowerment.
Changing Motherhood through Literature and Critical Conversations.
Join The Matricritics Club with Andrea O’Reilly, Ph.D. for February’s book club on The School of Good Mothers by Jessamine Chan.
Virtual Book Club: Thursday, February 27th from 7 to 8:30 pm EST
*Please purchase the book from your bookstore or borrow from your local library.
Cost: $50 (PDF of Wild With Child: Outlaw Mothers and Feminist Representations of Maternal Power (2024), featuring Dr. O'Reilly's chapter on School for Good Mothers INCLUDED!)
Come listen and learn with Motherhood Scholar Andrea O’Reilly, Ph.D.
Dr. Andrea O’Reilly is internationally recognized as the founder of Motherhood Studies (2006) and its subfield Maternal Theory (2007), and creator of Matricentric Feminism, a feminism for and about mothers (2016) and Matricritics, a literary theory and practice for a reading of mother-focused texts (2021). She is full professor in the School of Gender, Sexuality and Women’s Studies at York University, founder/editor-in-chief of the Journal of the Motherhood Initiative and publisher of Demeter Press. She is author and co-editor/editor of thirty-five plus books on motherhood. She is currently completing a monograph on Motherhood and Mothering in Post 2010 Women’s Fiction/Memoir.
Can’t make this month’s book club?
You’re in luck. Choose from any of the FOUR upcoming book clubs!
March 27: 7-830 pm EST
Clean Air by Sarah Blake
With a complimentary PDF copy of The Pain Mothers Must Never Expose. Michelann Parr, Ed. Demeter Press, 2024 with O’Reilly’s chapter “Imagining Motherhood in a Post-Apocalyptic World: Reifying and Resisting Normative Motherhood in the Climate-Change Novels Clean Air by Sarah Blake and The New Wilderness by Diane Cook.”
May 1: 7-830 pm EST
The New Wilderness by Diane Cook
With a complimentary PDF copy of The Pain Mothers Must Never Expose. Michelann Parr, Ed. Demeter Press, 2024 with O’Reilly’s chapter “Imagining Motherhood in a Post-Apocalyptic World: Reifying and Resisting Normative Motherhood in the Climate-Change Novels Clean Air by Sarah Blake and The New Wilderness by Diane Cook.”
May 22: 7-830 pm EST
The Need by Helen Phillips
With a complimentary PDF copy of Monstrous Mothers: Troubling Tropes. Abigail Palko and Andrea O’Reilly, Eds. Demeter Press, 2021 with Dr. O’Reilly’s chapter “The Terror of Mothering’: Maternal Ambiguities and Vulnerabilities in Helen Phillips’ The Need and Melanie Golding’s Little Darlings.”
June 26: 7-830 pm EST
The Push by Ashley Audrain
With a complimentary PDF copy of Revolutionizing Motherlines. Fiona Joy Green, Victoria Bailey, and Andrea O’Reilly, Eds. Demeter Press, 2025 with Dr. Andrea O’Reilly’s chapter “I wanted to be anyone other than the mother I came from”: Enacting a Motherline of Intergenerational Trauma to Expose, Explore, and Explain the Dark Side of Motherhood in Ashley Audrain’s The Push.”
Is The Matricentric Way Training Right for You?
If you are a clinical therapist, physician, yoga teacher, doula, educator, or someone passionate about supporting mothers and contributing to the paradigm shift in maternal care, this program is for you. The Matricentric Way provides the tools, knowledge, and community to help you make a meaningful impact in your work and the lives of the mothers you support.
“I signed up for The Matricentric Way because of my deep interest in how becoming a mother impacts a mother's identity.
A friend and colleague had just completed the program and raved about her experience. I had resisted going down the "matrescence" rabbit hole (which I’m now kicking myself for!), but the more I explored maternal identity further, the more I realized it was something I couldn’t avoid. I was drawn in by the powerful language Chelsea Robinson used on her website, like “The way we are supporting mothers needs to change” and “Mothers need validation, normalization, and one another. They need education, data, and a paradigm shift.” These statements resonated with me and captured what I knew was true from my personal and professional experiences.
Chelsea didn’t just deliver on what she promised—she knocked it out of the park. From the beginning, I started learning concepts and tools I could immediately share with my clients, and I saw its instant impact. Having the words to describe what so many new moms are feeling, coupled with the research and data to more powerfully say, “You’re not alone,” has been a game changer. I feel incredibly grateful to have been a participant and to now count Chelsea as a mentor. The course materials, resources, and reflection prompts are something I know I’ll return to again and again for probably years to come. We covered so much, and yet, it feels like we’ve just scratched the surface in the best way.
If you’re feeling called to learn more about how to truly support moms through their transition into motherhood, to find the words to describe their experiences, and to better understand the unique challenges mothers face today, I can’t recommend this training program enough.”
Be Part of the Change in Maternal Care
Are you ready to join a community of professionals dedicated to transforming maternal care?
Enroll in The Matricentric Way today and start making a difference in the lives of mothers and their families.