Americans have expanded the definition of family to encompass all sorts of arrangements, but a woman’s choice not to have a child can still raise eyebrows, even in the most liberal 21st-century circles. Los Angeles Times columnist Meghan Daum has written about her own decision not to have children–and its accompanying accusations of narcissism and materialism. But aren’t there more complex–and even life-affirming–reasons people choose not to have kids? How are these choices weighed and made, and might there be alternate paths to a full, satisfying adult life? Daum, editor of Selfish, Shallow, and Self-Absorbed: Sixteen Writers on the Decision Not to Have Kids, visits Zócalo with two of the anthology’s contributors, novelist Kate Christensen and cultural critic M. G. Lord, to discuss our baby-bump-patrolling culture, why they chose to eschew parenthood, and what family means for them.

Books will be available through Skylight Books.

Photo courtesy of Eugenia Loli.