The US has experienced a dramatic increase in births to unmarried women - from 4 per cent of births in 1950, with most of the babies then adopted, to more than 30 per cent. This book analyses this radical change in family formation to compare and contrast the lives of these mothers of varying ages and economic circumstances.

The U.S. has experienced a dramatic increase in births to unmarried women in recent decades--from 4% of births in 1950, with most of the babies then adopted, to more than 30% today. Melissa Ludtke's book is the only in-depth analysis of this radical change in family formation to compare and contrast the lives of these mothers of varying ages and economic circumstances.