Mary Fissell (@maryfissell.bsky.social)

@maryfissell.bsky.social Oct 8, 2026, 5:02 PM

New post on A is for Abortion! maryfissell.substack.com/p/q-is-for-l... Yep, I found another letter Q! It's for Lady Quarles, a character in Vita Sackville-West's 1953 novel The Easter Party, who demonstrates yet again that women of privilege can find ways to (safely) sidestep abortion bans.

@maryfissell.bsky.social Oct 6, 2026, 8:49 PM

Delighted to share that the British version of my book is now out in paperback! hurstpublishers.com/book/abortion/ Thanks, @hurstpublishers.bsky.social, still LOVE that cover.

Cover of a book about the history of abortion with images of plants from a 17th century manuscript.

@hurstpublishers.bsky.social Oct 5, 2026, 6:47 AMReposted by @maryfissell.bsky.social

📚 Plus 'new in paperback' editions from:

@marcowenjones.bsky.social
@shafikmeghji.bsky.social
@olivierschmitt.bsky.social
@maryfissell.bsky.social
@marenmein.bsky.social
@askwilliamblake.bsky.social
@kieranconnell.bsky.social
@vjmalletft.bsky.social
@warmatters.bsky.social

Shows paperback covers for 'Small Earthquakes,' 'Digital Authoritarianism in the Middle East,' and 'Far-Right France' in a pile.

@histmedjhu.bsky.social Sep 29, 2026, 10:34 PMReposted by @maryfissell.bsky.social

RSVP now for this hybrid event on 10/8 at 4pm EST: Dr. Mary Fissell presenting the The Fabric of Healing: Towards a History of Bandaging for the 31st Hideyo Noguchi Lecture in the History of Medicine. hopkinshistoryofmedicine.org/pec-events/3...

@maryfissell.bsky.social Sep 23, 2026, 5:37 PM

New post on A is for Abortion! maryfissell.substack.com/p/p-is-for-p... The story of a Caribbean flower immortalized on a tea-set in the collections of the Queen's House, Greenwich. Testament to the transit of knowledge about abortion.

@maryfissell.bsky.social Sep 11, 2026, 2:02 AM

New post on A is for Abortion: maryfissell.substack.com/p/o-is-for-w..., about a critic of hospital abortion committees, committees that refused women needed healthcare in the 1940s-60s.

@msmagazine.com Sep 4, 2026, 3:55 PMReposted by @maryfissell.bsky.social

The state’s new law trusts patients and doctors—not politicians, police or prosecutors—to make deeply personal decisions throughout pregnancy.

msmagazine.comMassachusetts Decriminalized Later Abortion, No Health Emergency RequiredMassachusetts law no longer imposes a gestational-age limit on abortion, meaning women can get abortions throughout any point in pregnanct.

@elliemaeohagan.bsky.social Sep 3, 2026, 10:28 AMReposted by @maryfissell.bsky.social

I love the dedication in My Life on the Road by Gloria Steinhem

THIS BOOK Is
DEDICATED To
Sharpe of London, who in decade before
England could legally perform an abortion for any reason other than
the health of the woman, took the considerable risk foran
abortion twenty-two-year-old American on her way to India
Knowing only that she had broken an engagement at home to seek
fate, he must promise me two you
‘ill not tell anyone my name, Second, you will do what you want to
ddo with
Dear Dr Sharpe, believe you, who knew the law was unjust,
‘would not mind if say long after your death:
Tye done the best could with my life
This book is for you

@maryfissell.bsky.social Aug 27, 2026, 12:20 PM

New post on A is for Abortion: N is for nurses, providers who we know to little about historically. maryfissell.substack.com/p/n-is-for-n...

@maryfissell.bsky.social Jul 30, 2026, 12:35 AM

New post on A is for Abortion: L is for Lakshmi Shastri ,https://maryfissell.substack.com/p/l-is-for-lakshmi-shastri a character in the novel The Henna Artist.

maryfissell.substack.comL is for Lakshmi ShastriL is for Lakshmi Shastri, a character in Alka Joshi’s novel The Henna Artist. Shastri is the rags-to-riches artist of the title, decorating the elite women of Jaipur with elaborate henna designs. But ...