I Was Told There'd Be a Village - by Melissa Wirt (Hardcover)

About the Book

"Melissa Wirt thought she had everything-she'd built her own company and moved to a beautiful farm with her family. Then during a personal crisis, she realized: despite having created an online community reaching thousands of moms, she'd also somehow, become utterly isolated. In I Was Told There'd Be a Village, Melissa describes how she began making small changes-leaving behind a damaging Isolation Mindset and developing an advantageous Village Mindset. Using personal anecdotes and stories from moms across the country, this book provides specific, actionable steps to transform oppressive, solitary parenting into a connected, collective (even joyful) endeavor"--

Book Synopsis

Melissa Wirt recounts her journey and dozens of others in building a supportive "village" to transform oppressive, solitary motherhood into a connected--even joyful--endeavor.

Melissa Wirt thought she had everything--she'd built her own company and moved to a beautiful farm with her family. Then during a personal crisis, she realized that despite having created an online community reaching thousands of moms, she'd also somehow, become utterly isolated.

In I Was Told There'd Be a Village, Melissa leads us through the small changes she made to seek out connection. She also recounts how she talked to mothers from across the country, and soon saw that the beliefs keeping each of us parenting solo - I don't have time; my life is too messy - were also keeping us from accessing our most powerful resource: each other. The stories she uncovered, combined with her own, became a foundation for slowly building back community.

That journey starts with an intentional shift from an isolation mindset to a village mindset. It might be as simple as smiling at the mom next to you at story-time or sending a quick text to a friend. But it can be much bigger, eventually growing into a thriving, supportive community. Motherhood shouldn't be this hard, and it doesn't have to be. Here, at last, is a roadmap for finding your village.

Review Quotes

"A heartening take on the rewards of community."--Publishers Weekly

"Having it all doesn't mean doing it all. It's essential to understand that we don't have to navigate this journey of parenthood alone. Melissa Wirt addresses this significant struggle we have as parents -- American society making it impossible to have a village--and offers an insightful guide on how to create connection in this context."
--Eve Rodsky, New York Times Bestselling author of Fair Play

"These are stories that bring hope, normalizing the difficulties of our present moment and reminding us of a powerful resource: one another. Wise and actionable, this book is like a big-hearted hug for moms."--Sheryl Ziegler, PsyD, author of Mommy Burnout

"Melissa Wirt thinks like me--that living in community makes us happier, healthier and more grounded. Using her experience as a mother, she deftly teaches the art of connection. Encouraging, honest, and just fun to read, I recommend this book to all new moms."
--Mary Pipher, New York Times bestselling author of Reviving Ophelia and Women Rowing North

"This book is a balm for the souls of mothers. Melissa Wirt shows that so many of our modern maternal ailments have a root cause--loneliness--and that the cure is within our grasp. With warmth and wit, she coaches us on how to establish a powerful network of mom friends. Wirt herself feels like a friend of the very best sort. We cheer her on throughout, confident that she is cheering for us."
--Abigail Tucker, New York Times bestselling author of Mom Genes

About the Author

Melissa Wirt is the CEO and founder of Latched Mama, a breastfeeding-apparel company which has grown into a robust brand and community that counts close to half a million members and has been featured in media outlets ranging from Business Insider to USA Today to CBS This Morning. Melissa and her husband Eric live with their six children outside of Richmond, VA.