For many teenage women, finding out that they are pregnant is extremely isolating and devastating. Many feel they can’t tell their parents. They may have already broken up with the baby’s father. Girlfriends may not offer real support. So where do pregnant teens turn? How do they decide whether to go through with the pregnancy and raise the child themselves or place him or her for adoption, or to have an abortion?

This book attempts to address that need. The interviewer, Anrenée Englander, talked to 40 women who responded to flyers that she sent to clinics, high schools, and shelters across North America. From these interviews, she chose to include the stories of 10 teenage women in their own words. And so we meet Eve, who placed her child for adoption; Samantha, who got pregnant after being raped by a stranger; Laura, who has had an abortion; Angela, who is raising her child; and six other young women. What their stories have in common is this: all of them struggled greatly with the decision, and none of them will ever be the same again.

Their stories, along with the introduction, shatter a few myths about teenage pregnancy: that teens don’t know about contraception, that young men abandon their pregnant girlfriends, that teen mothers are not good mothers, that teen mothers choose to drop out of school, that teens get pregnant so they can collect welfare. The issues around teen pregnancy and teen motherhood go far beyond these stereotypes; society must move beyond them, too.

The afterword, titled “You’re Pregnant, Now What?,” offers suggestions for how to deal with the situation. Headings such as “Dealing with the Initial Shock,” “Examining Your Options,” and “What Do I Tell My Parents?” can help guide pregnant teens through to make choices and live with them.

Many of the teens interviewed mentioned that when they were pregnant and looking for help, there were no books available on the subject. This book hopes to fill that gap for teens, but the adults who deal with pregnant teens – doctors, parents, teachers, youth workers, and others – will find it equally enlightening.