Brain, Child: The Magazine for Thinking Mothers was founded in 1999 by Jennifer Niesslein and Stephanie Wilkinson, two friends who had babies under a year old. The pair, both with backgrounds in journalism, were itching for writing about motherhood that spoke to them. There were plenty of outlets for child-rearing tips and expert advice, but not a source of smart writing that delved into the meatier issues of that life-altering experience: motherhood.
After a year of planning, Brain, Child's first issue was published in March 2000. It included essays by Barbara Kingsolver and Susan Cheever, a feature on the new academic field of ethnopediatrics, a debate on the merits of family bed, fiction, and essays by mothers addressing the stuff of real-life parenting (swearing off swearing, or selective reduction, for example). That year, the magazine was named by Utne Reader as one of the five best new magazines in the country.
Brain, Child is the only literary magazine dedicated to motherhood. Contributors have included Pulitzer Prize-winning novelists Jane Smiley and Anne Tyler, best-selling author Barbara Ehrenreich, and acclaimed writers Antonya Nelson, Alice Hoffman, and Susan Maushart.
In 2010, Brain, Child received the Utne Independent Press Award for Social/Cultural Coverage. Brain, Child also won in 2003 for Best Personal Life Coverage. Since Brain, Child's inception, the editors of Utne have nominated the magazine in the categories of General Excellence, Best Writing, and Best New Title. It is the youngest magazine to have been nominated for General Excellence.
Work from Brain, Child won a Pushcart Prize in 2003 and was listed under "Notable Essays" in Best American Essays 2002.
Brain, Child is distributed in independent bookstores, Barnes & Noble superstores, Borders, and select grocery stores around the U.S. and Canada. Circulation stands at 36,000, with subscribers from every state and as far away as Sweden, Egypt, and Hong Kong. The Washington Post says "A good read is what Brain, Child is all about."
Subscriptions ($22/ year) and sample copies ($6) may be ordered by clicking here or by calling 888-30-4MOMS (888-304-6667).
Jennifer Niesslein became a mother in October 1998 when her son Caleb was born. Her work has been featured in The Nation, on NPR's "Morning Edition", on Alternet, and elsewhere. She was raised in western Pennsylvania and northern Virginia, and graduated from the University of Virginia in 1994 with a degree in English Language and Literature. Putnam published her first book, Practically Perfect in Every Way, in May 2007.
Stephanie Wilkinson graduated from Dartmouth College in 1985 with a B.A. in English literature. She has worked in advertising in New York, and as a journalist for high-tech and business magazines in Boston and San Francisco. She earned a Ph.D. in European and American Religious History from the University of Virginia in 1997. She lives with her husband and two children in Lexington, Virginia.
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