Atlantic Books acquires urgent and compassionate book about abortion care

Atlantic Non-Fiction Publishing Director Poppy Hampson has bought UK and Commonwealth rights in A Necessary Kindness: Stories from the Frontline of Abortion Care by Juno Carey from Charlotte Colwill at Colwill & Peddle. A Necessary Kindness will be published in hardback in Spring 2024.

Juno Carey is a midwife practitioner who has worked in abortion care for the last eight years, having worked as a midwife in the NHS for several years before that. She is a vocal campaigner for reproductive rights as part of her work, and lives in Sussex with her wife and children.

In 2015, Juno Carey left her job as a midwife, burnt out, frustrated and looking for a better way to deliver care to women. And then she found work that she loves, that brings her satisfaction and the knowledge that she is helping women, directly and fundamentally, every day. Working in an abortion clinic is of course not easy, but it is a necessary kindness: she is delivering care that changes and even saves lives. In this book she shares the moving stories of the patients she helps there. Urgent and illuminating, A Necessary Kindness reveals the misunderstood world of abortion clinics and deals with an incredibly complex issue – around which there is still too much taboo and too little understanding – with gentle compassion and bold conviction. It is deeply human, often heart-rending, and desperately timely: these are the stories we need to share, the conversations we need to be having, and the rights we need to protect.

Juno Carey says,

‘The drive behind this book is to show the real-life, human side to abortion care. For those who have only read about it in the paper or heard about it during political debates, I hope to offer a true insight to the reality of the service and the lifeline it offers to so many every day. And to those who have accessed care in the past or may need to in the future, I hope to dispel some myths and provide reassurance that you are not alone and your choices are not judged. Thank you to Atlantic for being brave and showing such a passion for this book since the start. We share the same vision for the book and commitment to make a difference to the readers.’

Poppy Hampson says,

‘The dedication and determination with which Juno approaches her work, and the non-judgemental and caring way she shares these stories, convinced me that this is a book we need to publish. One in three women in the UK will have an abortion in their lifetime, for myriad different reasons, yet it is still so hard to talk about. This book will help to open up conversations and understanding, and of course it comes as a time when this is more needed than ever. I’m very proud to be publishing such an important book.’

Charlotte Colwill says,

‘These stories and the hugely passionate way in which Juno tells them are so vital, and I’m thrilled that they have found a home with Poppy and Atlantic, who really have the vision and bravery to get them into the hands of readers.’