La Leche League

"A readable history and philosophy of the organization. . . . This book is well referenced, illustrated, and indexed, and highly recommended for college and university libraries that support courses in women’s history, religion, ethics, nursing, sociology, anthropology, and public health."--Choice

“This fascinating, accessible cultural study explores the interplay of religion and feminism in La Leche League. . . . Ward approaches her often-controversial subject with empathy and finesse.”--Publishers Weekly

"A fascinating look inside an organization whose full history has been essentially untold."--American Catholic Studies Newsletter

"This book presents an engaging analysis of how informal encounters at a Catholic family picnic in 1956 grew into an internationally acclaimed organization that uses woman-to-woman networks to enhance breast feeding practices. Focusing on the positive, Ward describes the theological, feminist, and medical viewpoints that jointly fueled the engine of the La Leche League success story."--Judith Walzer Leavitt, University of Wisconsin-Madison

"While lactation and nursing may seem rather unimportant maternal matters, in actuality La Leche League tells an intriguing tale of the revival of an intimate practice at the heart of child rearing and hence at the core of family life, development, relationships, and even human love. In a word, La Leche League participated in creating new ideals of motherhood, and Jule Ward tells the story of this evolution with finesse and insight. Her fine cultural analysis of the religious roots in Catholicism and the complex debates within the feminist movement should interest many people, from those in women's studies and history to those in religious studies and practical theology. Out of a movement that many of us simply take for granted come fascinating insights into the nature of human community and practical wisdom."--Bonnie J. Miller-McLemore, Vanderbilt University