Leaving the Ladder Down: How to Combine Career and Motherhood, from the Women Who’ve Done it

A funny, practical and crucial guide for women facing the life-changing prospect of returning to work after having children.

When Dolly had her children, the idea of returning to the fast-paced, all-consuming job she had previously loved felt daunting and somehow unprecedented, despite it being the experience of so many millions of women. She struggled to find material to galvanise and reassure her, and to make her feel that anything was possible.

In this book, Dolly aims to change all of that. Interweaving practical advice and her own personal experiences with anecdotes, life-hacks and guilt-avoidance strategies from a diverse range of women – from fashion designers to taxi drivers, journalists to actors, lawyers to doctors, bankers, entrepreneurs and restaurateurs – Leaving the Ladder Down is a gift for the next generation of women taking on the trials, challenges and general amusement involved in combining career and motherhood.

Equally empowering and accessible, and featuring serious advice from employers, employment lawyers and health specialists to boost knowledge and confidence, this book acts as a ‘ladder down’ to the next generation of working women, from a generation who have experimented their way to making it work.

© 2025 Fourth Estate (Audiobook): 9780008431419

Release date

Audiobook: 10 April 2025