Things I Didn't Expect

Name: Things I Didn't Expect
Brand: Melbourne University Publishing
Price: 54.99 AUD

(When I Was Expecting)

By: Monica Dux

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Paperback | 12 September 2025 | Edition Number 1

At a Glance

Paperback
274 Pages

Dimensions(cm)
2.1 x 15.6 x 23.4

Paperback

$54.99

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Blending humorous memoir with sharp critique of the way we do pregnancy today, Things I Didn't Expect is one woman's journey to make sense of the absurdities, the harsh realities, the myths and the downright lies about making babies.

Pregnancy is natural, healthy and fun, right? Sure it is, if you're lucky. For others, it's an adventure in physical discomfort, unachievable ideals, kooky classes and meddling experts.

When Monica Dux found herself pregnant with her first child, she was dismayed to find she belonged firmly in the second category. For her, pregnancy could only be described as a medium-level catastrophe. So, three years later and about to birth her second child, Monica went on a quest: to figure out what's really going on when we incubate.

Things I Didn't Expect is one woman's journey to make sense of the absurdities, the harsh realities, the myths and the downright lies about making babies.

Monica explores the aspects of baby-making that we all want to talk about, but which are too embarrassing, unsettling or downright confronting. She also looks at the powerful forces that shape women's experiences of being pregnant in the west, the exploitative industries, and the medical and physical realities behind it all.

Along the way, she fends off sadistic maternal health nurses, attempts to expand then contract her vagina, and struggles to keep her baby's placenta off her hippy brother's lunch menu.

About the Author

Monica Dux is a writer and social commentator. She can be heard regularly on ABC radio and 3RRR, and has published widely, especially on women's issues. In 2008 she co-authored The Great Feminist Denial.

In an earlier life Monica studied and taught history at the University of Melbourne, where she was the founding editor of the interdisciplinary journal Traffic. She has worked for Melbourne University Publishing and on The Monthly magazine

Industry Reviews

"New mothers will scream with delight, recognition and laughter. Everyone else will just scream."
Benjamin Law

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