UPCOMING EVENTS
Private book club and teaching events ongoing (Please message me here about joining your book club conversation, medical school/healing professions trainee presentation, creative nonfiction interest group, or other gathering—locally or virtually!)
SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 16TH, 3 PM PDT — MAGGIE MAE’S BOOKSHOP
In-person event in Gresham, OR. With Held Together collaborator Anna David. A conversation about how our perceptions of self are shaped by our experiences with the medical system, how to balance trusting our intuition about our own bodies with considering sometimes-conflicting advice from others who care for us, and how to parent through uncertainty when we (or our children) are facing medical complexity, especially when we don't yet know what influences a given condition or diagnosis might have on our lives. (RSVP here—not required, but appreciated!) Please note that this will be a masks-required event to make the space accessible to higher risk and medically complex families and to promote community care. Extra masks will be available on site for those who do not have their own. All are welcome!
SUNDAY, JANUARY 11TH, 2 PM PST — in partnership with CLEAN AIR EVENTS
Zoom event (hosted by Seattle-based organization). Proceeds to benefit RESOLVE, The National Infertility Association. In conversation with fellow Pacific Northwesterner and mom who gets it, Kristin Stevens. In community, in solidarity, in collective action….
THURSDAY, MARCH 5TH — BEAVERTON MAIN LIBRARY
In-person event in Beaverton, OR, featuring multiple collaborators. Evening. Details TBA.
PAST EVENTS
POWELL’S CITY OF BOOKS (Portland, OR) — April 2025. In conversation with Wendy Davis, PhD, PMH-C, of Postpartum Support International, and three of Held Together’s collaborators: Dr. Thompson’s obstetrician, Dafna (Devorah) Lohr, MD, and two of her own patients, Kelly Burke and Anna David.
ST. LOUIS COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARY FOUNDATION AUTHOR SERIES (St. Louis, MO) — May 2025. In conversation with reproductive mental health therapist Shellie Fidell, MSW, LCSW. And I was honored to meet—and give a copy of Held Together to—one of my longtime narrative medicine heroes, Dr. Abraham Verghese, who presented in the series the night before I did!
GARDEN HOME COMMUNITY LIBRARY (Portland, OR) — May 2025. A reading and Q&A—including collaborators Mitra Hasan and Anna David sharing excerpts from their own chapters too!
MAGERS & QUINN BOOKSELLERS (Minneapolis, MN) — June 2025. In conversation with Held Together collaborator Eileen Andersen. (Recording available here for those who missed it!)
BOLD COFFEE & BOOKS (Portland, OR) — July 2025. In conversation with Held Together collaborator Kelly Burke for a reading, a conversation, a Q&A…. All in a delightfully cozy coffee shop bookstore, recently opened by my book-loving (and book industry expert!) friend Ali Shaw and her family. You can read more about BOLD’s amazing origin story here too.
THIRD PLACE BOOKS, SEWARD PARK (Seattle, WA) — July 2025. In conversation about the wilderness of motherhood with Amber J. Keyser, PhD, author of The V-Word: True Stories about First-Time Sex and The Way Back from Broken.
SEASIDE PUBLIC LIBRARY (Seaside, OR) — July 2025. In conversation with Held Together collaborator Kelly Burke and in partnership with Beach Books. You can read a local newspaper piece about the event here.
COFFEE TALK ONLINE GATHERING (virtual) — October 2025 event hosted by the Coffee & Grief community. You can also check out their Facebook page to learn more, find previous episodes, and join their community for companionship and support. (Recording in podcast listing below.)
ANNIE BLOOM’S BOOKS (Portland, OR) — October 2025. With Held Together collaborator Dafna (Devorah) Lohr. A conversation about providing reproductive health care while pregnant and parenting, navigating patienthood as a medical professional, and considering how our own personal and medical challenges affect the care we can offer to others.
PODCASTS
What Fresh Hell: Laughing in the Face of Motherhood — with host Amy Wilson
Solving for Joy — with host Chrissie Ott, MD
I’ll Meet You There — with host Paige Nolan
Read. Talk. Grow. — with host Denise Millstine, MD, and conversation partner Molly Krause, MD
Prescribing Possibility — with host Dympna Weil, MD
Mom and Mind — with host Dr. Katayune Kaeni, PsyD, PMH-C
The Kettle — with host Meagan Francis
Restorative Grief — with host Mandy Capehart
Voices of Your Village — with host Alyssa Blask Campbell, MEd
Create Meaning in Medicine — with hosts Erin Hurley, MD, and Joanne Sotelo, MD
The IBCLC Mentor — with host Margaret Salty, MPH, IBCLC
Coffee Talk Online Gathering — with hosts Anne Gudger and Maria Gibson and including readings by fellow authors Asha Dore, Bob Macauley, Brad Snyder, and Karen Bonofiglio.
Coffee, Grief, and Gratitude — with hosts Anne Gudger and Maria Gibson (coming soon)
Success Reimagined — with host Amna Shabbir, MD (coming soon)
The Balanced Parent — with host Laura Froyen, PhD (coming soon)
Imperfect Love — with host Carla Marie Manly, PhD (coming soon)
The Podcast by KevinMD — with host Kevin Pho, MD (coming soon)
TELEVISION & VIDEO
Family Action Network: In conversation with fellow physician-author Kimmery Martin, MD. Our reflections on the process and craft of narrative medicine, commonalities and contrasts in writing fiction versus nonfiction, and the nontraditional paths that brought us to where we are today, in both career and in family life.
Voices With Vigor: In conversation with fellow physician Susan J. Baumgaertel, MD, founder of myMDadvocate and MenopauseMenu and author of The Menopause Menu. An exploration of intersecting themes in our work, including community, family, and female wisdom. Recording coming soon.
Hello, Rose City! (KGW/NBC): Interview with host Lacey Evans. In celebration of Held Together’s April 2025 launch.
AM Northwest (KATU/ABC): Interview with host Helen Raptis. In celebration of Held Together’s April 2025 launch
Open To Hope: Interview with mother-daughter team Drs. Gloria and Heidi Horsley, founders of an international non-profit with the mission of helping people find hope after loss.
REVIEWS & OTHER COVERAGE
“This touching, beautifully written work will help many people who have endured loss or complicated paths to parenthood. They are sure to find experiences that resonate with them.”
Library Love Fest On Your Radar
“[A] deeply moving narrative that celebrates the resilience of women as they navigate the diverse and complex journeys of building and sustaining families…. Warm, inclusive, and profoundly inspiring, Held Together is an invitation to connect, reflect, and honor the many ways we define love, family, and motherhood.”
“Women who are struggling . . . may find solace in knowing they're hardly alone. . . . Even the stories without fairy-tale endings should make women feel less solitary.”
“Held Together maps the many experiences of mothering through Thompson’s own story, interwoven with the narratives of other mothers…. Choosing this braided structure instead of presenting her story as a standalone essay in a collection is a powerful choice because it allows the book to become a chorus of women’s voices, emphasizing the healing and knowledge women can gain from one another by sharing their stories and the connection that forms from talking about personal experiences…. Held Together is a testament to the power of sharing stories to aid healing and provide comfort.”
“In this moving debut, physician Thompson weaves an account of her complicated path to becoming a mother with recollections from colleagues, friends, and patients on their own experiences with parenthood…. The varied selections prove there’s no single, ‘normal’ route to motherhood.”
Publishers Weekly interview in New Memoirs by and About Mothers
Publishers Weekly feature: 8 New Books for Mother’s Day 2025
“Mother's Day is almost here. Maybe you're still seeking a gift for the mom(s) or maternal figure(s) in your life; maybe you're a mom yourself, and are in the mood to read about the joys and trials of motherhood. Either way, these books might be for you.”
Stanford Magazine Biblio File: What to Read Now
“Women’s stories underscore the importance of personalized reproductive health care, where one size doesn’t fit all.”
Harvard Magazine Off The Shelf
MER Bookshelf: Motherhood, Literature, and Art
The Bookworm Sez (as reported in The Philadelphia Tribune)
“For the mother who’s struggled…a book that seems like a long series of comfort and camaraderie from friends who’ve been there….” (And find the review in your local outlet if you live in Florida, Mississippi, Texas, Washington, Connecticut, or the Caribbean!)
Memoirs about Motherhood (review from Fergus Falls Public Library)
“[A]n impactful memoir of motherhood and the medical system. I savored each story, told so honestly….”
The Miscarriage Dialogues interview: On Miscarriage, Motherhood & Rethinking Maternal Care (from Miscarriage Movement)
“Social media’s leading physician voice” features an excerpt from Olivia’s chapter, Anticipation, which explores how life-altering disease can impact individuals and families and shape the decisions we make over generations.
Beautiful essay by Held Together collaborator Nancy Fresco, ostensibly about gender—but mostly just about being human. (And here’s some bonus content, an Easter egg if you’ve read this far down our page: Nancy’s fantastic essay about congenital rubella sydrome on McSweeney’s Internet Tendency. Has anyone in the history of CRS ever managed to make prenatal effects of infectious diseases poignant, funny, ominous, heartwarming, dark, terrifying, and just a little bit hopeful all at the same time in quite the same way before?? I think not.)