UPCOMING LIVE 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!)
SATURDAY, JULY 26TH, 2 PM PDT — SEASIDE PUBLIC LIBRARY
In-person event in Seaside, OR. In conversation with Held Together collaborator Kelly Burke and in partnership with Beach Books.
TUESDAY, AUGUST 19TH, 1 PM PDT — ONLINE
Virtual event in partnership with Susan J. Baumgaertel, MD, founder of myMDadvocate and MenopauseMenu and author of The Menopause Menu. A conversation about intersecting themes in our work, incluiding community, family, and female wisdom. Message me to sign up and receive a Zoom link for the gathering. More details TBA!
TUESDAY, OCTOBER 28TH, 7 PM PDT — ANNIE BLOOM’S BOOKS
In-person event in Portland, OR. In conversation with Held Together collaborator Dafna (Devorah) Lohr.
THURSDAY, MARCH 5TH — BEAVERTON MAIN LIBRARY
In-person event in Beaverton, OR, featuring multiple collaborators. 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-person event in St. Louis, MO. 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 — June 2025
In-person event in Minneapolis, MN. In conversation with Held Together collaborator Eileen Andersen. (Recording available here for those who missed it!)
FRIDAY, JULY 11TH, 7 PM PDT — BOLD COFFEE & BOOKS
In-person event in Portland, OR. 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.
TUESDAY, JULY 15TH, 7 PM PDT — THIRD PLACE BOOKS, SEWARD PARK
In-person event in Seattle, WA. In conversation with Amber J. Keyser, PhD, author of The V-Word: True Stories about First-Time Sex and The Way Back from Broken.
MEDIA APPEARANCES
PODCASTS
What Fresh Hell: Laughing in the Face of Motherhood — April 2025
Mom and Mind — April 2025
Prescribing Possibility — April 2025
The IBCLC Mentor — April 2025
I’ll Meet You There — May 2025
Solving for Joy — May 2025
The Kettle — May 2025
Voices of Your Village — May 2025
Create Meaning in Medicine — May 2025
Restorative Grief — July 2025
Read. Talk. Grow. — expected September 2025
The Balanced Parent — TBA
Success Reimagined — TBA
TELEVISION & VIDEO
Family Action Network: In conversation with fellow physician-author Kimmery Martin, MD — April 2025
Hello, Rose City! (KGW/NBC) — April 2025
AM Northwest (KATU/ABC) — April 2025
Open To Hope — March 2025
WRITTEN INTERVIEWS & OTHER COVERAGE
Hippocampus Magazine review — June 2025
“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.”
Stanford Magazine Biblio File: What to Read Now — July/August 2025
“Women’s stories underscore the importance of personalized reproductive health care, where one size doesn’t fit all.”
Harvard Magazine Off The Shelf — July/August 2025
Publishers Weekly feature: 8 New Books for Mother’s Day 2025 — May 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.”
The Bookworm Sez (as reported in The Philadelphia Tribune) — May 2025
“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!)
Library Love Fest On Your Radar — April 2025
“[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.”
Publishers Weekly review — April 2025
“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.”
Booklist review — April 2025
“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.”
The Miscarriage Dialogues: Dr. Rebecca N. Thompson on Miscarriage, Motherhood & Rethinking Maternal Care (from Miscarriage Movement) — April 2025
Publishers Weekly interview in New Memoirs by and About Mothers, by Pooja Makhijani — March 2025
Writing with Latitude — March 2025
Beautiful essay by Held Together collaborator Nancy Fresco, ostensibly about gender—but mostly just about being human.
Library Journal review — February 2025
“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.”
Zibby Media Most Anticipated List — Fall 2024/Winter 2025 season