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Mother Ship

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Mother Ship

By: Francesca Segal
Narrated by: Francesca Segal
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About this listen

Random House presents the audiobook edition of Mother Ship, written and read by Francesca Segal.

‘Our greatest gift to one another is this: each woman here has been swept out by a riptide, pulled far from the current of normal motherhood. Apart and all together in this space, our odd craft, we are drawn back into the folds of the unremarkable.’

After her identical twin girls were born ten weeks prematurely, Francesca Segal finds herself sitting vigil in the ‘mother ship’ of neonatal intensive care, all romantic expectations of new parenthood obliterated. Her gripping diary of those months combines the tenderness of a love poem with the compulsive pace of a thriller. As each day brings a fresh challenge for her and her babies, Francesca makes a temporary life among a band of mothers who are vivid, fearless, and inspiring, taking care not only of their children but of one another.

MOTHER SHIP is an intimate, raucous, sublime and electrifying memoir. It is a hymn to the sustaining power of women’s friendship, and a loving celebration of the two small girls – and their mother – who defy the odds.

©2019 Francesca Segal (P)2019 Penguin Audio Children's Health Friendship Infants & Toddlers Motherhood Parenting & Families Relationships Women Heartfelt

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Critic reviews

"Heart-wrenching, heart-warming and heartfelt - Mother Ship is a beautifully crafted, warts-and-all love letter to our wonderful NHS." (Adam Kay, author of This is Going to Hurt)

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My daughter spent seven weeks in intensive care this book was so true and beautiful

Read in one sitting!

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Very well read story. Nice and clear.
Author's story of the birth of her premature twins with 2 months in NICU care.

beautiful written story

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I loved this book. I only found it due to a recommendation by Geovanna Fletcher (happy mum, Happy baby) and I’m so glad I did. A must read for anyone with a premie - perfect to listen to when your pumping.
Highly recommended.

Amazing read!!!

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beautifully written, I laughed and cried. it was a perfect audio book. I love every minute of the journey .

could not stop listening

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An amazing read. At times tear jerking at others heartwarming. Would highly recommend to anyone

WOW

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Such an inspiring read which I could not stop listening to once I started. Thank you Francesca.

Beautiful!

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I loved this wonderfully honest real life story of the author’s experience of having two babies in the NICU. The writing is brilliant, the author has a lovely voice and narration style, and the story is both heartbreaking and miraculously funny. Recommended to anyone interested in parenthood or even medicine.

Heartfelt and beautifully written

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I really enjoyed listening to Mother Ship - such a beautiful, evocative and at times even humorous account of what must be such a terrifying situation for new parents. I thought the author did a wonderful job of evoking the mixture of exhaustion, fear and trepidation of the whole experience. Would definitely recommend to anyone who would like to learn more about premature births and babies - I went in knowing very little and found it so interesting. So glad to see that the twins are doing well now :)

A moving listen

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Heartfelt, honest & tender. Can’t recommend this enough, and really hope she follows up with an update. Another reason I’ve given this book a 5* rating is because of how beautifully it’s read by the author. It makes such a difference to a book when the pace & tone of speech work together in such harmony. Highly recommended.

Mesmerising

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I was afraid to read this book having my own twins come very prematurely, however, Francesca writes with such love and candor I was so glad I decided to buy this book. She sets the scenes perfectly for what NICU life is for some parents. I felt a sense of relief that someone had put into words what I was never able to describe to my own friends or family. I am truly grateful for her sharing her story and giving this gift to others who may be struggling with a similar experience.

Beautiful

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