Anna Bloom is depressed–so depressed that her parents have committed her to a mental hospital with a bunch of other messed-up teens. Here, she meets a roommate with a secret (and a plastic baby), a doctor who focuses way too much on her weight, and a cute, shy boy who just might like her.
But wait! Being trapped in a loony bin isn’t supposed to be about
making friends, losing weight, and having a crush, is it?
In her fiction debut, Julie Halpern finds humor in the unlikeliest of places, and presents a character whose voice–and heart–will resonate with all of us who have ever felt just a little bit crazy.

Julie Halpern’s Maternity Leave tells the profane, profound and just plain funny story of a professional woman who thinks she’s ready for a baby but her maternity leave proves otherwise.

Thirty six year old Annie Schwartz-Jensen is a middle school teacher on maternity leave-a time she imagined as uninterrupted, blissful bonding with her baby. Instead she is dealing with her body leaking from every possible orifice, a baby who won’t sleep, a husband who still wants to have sex with her (is he nuts??), single friends who are clueless, and a mother who picked now to take a vacation. The only people who REALLY understand Annie are the wonderful people she spends sleepless nights with on QVC: Keep those velveteen table runners and non-jiggle stretch pants coming!

As Annie navigates life with her new baby, she realizes that not all Mommies are created equal. But she is determined to find her way, love her baby, her husband, herself—even if she has to wear nipple protectors for the rest of her child-bearing life.

The audiobook includes an interview with the author.