Title: Without Permission
Release Date: 2024

"A dramatic and timely novel." —Kirkus Reviews

At a time when following the law means survival, could breaking the law mean freedom?

Amidst the turmoil of Occupied Paris, 25-year-old teacher Jane Smith is tested as she discovers that sometimes doing the right thing requires breaking rules when her Aunt Mathilde draws her into the dangerous task of smuggling Jewish girls out of France. Adding another layer of danger, the school’s doctor seeks Jane’s help in providing abortions, thrusting her into a clandestine world.

Jane embarks on a mission to provide care for those marginalized by society, from migrant workers in California, to women in post-war Japan. When she enlists in the Navy, Jane falls in love with an admiral’s daughter, adding another secret and another rule broken.

In this first book of a trilogy that spans decades and continents, Jane’s journey paints a vivid portrait of essential care given without permission, without authority, and without apology. Without Permission is a poignant tale of love, the power and peril of secrets, and the emotional and spiritual essence of abortion care. Jane’s enduring quest for justice offers a window into the resilience and courage of women who live outside of the laws of men.

Buy the Book: Amazon
ASIN: B0CY3VYCYD
ISBN13: 9781957176260

What are people saying about Without Permission?

The novel is gorgeously written with locales in France, the US, and postwar Japan. Like The Handmaid's Tale, this powerful novel defines the current vicious war on women in the United States and reminds us that we must act "without permission, without authority and without apology." A must-read for every woman who cares about our right to exist as human beings in this world.

— Elizabeth Velez, best-selling author of The Hell with Love

 

If ever there was a desperate need for a certain book at a critical time in history, this is it. This story. This author... Charlotte Taft is uniquely qualified to tell this story and we MUST listen.

— Susan Wicklund, author of This Common Secret: My Journey as an Abortion Doctor

 

Without Permission is filled with unforgettable characters, fascinating history, tenderness, strife, betrayal – all the things that make up a human life.

— Annie Lewis, poet, once-upon-a-time punk rocker and former Santa Fe movie theater owner

 

... a beautifully written work that combines a compelling main character and a spell-binding story set during the Second World War and its immediate aftermath.

— Carole Joffe, professor in the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences at the University of California, San Francisco, and the co-author (with David S. Cohen) of After Dobbs: How the Supreme Court Ended Roe But Not Abortion, Beacon Press, 2025.

 

... a stirring tale about women's historical bravery and courage in providing abortion care in the face of danger and severe punishment. The women in this novel show us that compassion is a fine spur to action, and rage is a powerful force to overcome injustice.

— Kate Manning, author, My Notorious Life, a novel inspired by the true story of a 19th century abortion provider; and Gilded Mountain, a novel about a young woman's coming of age in dangerous times.

 

Taft's perceptive and engaging writing models ways to understand and talk about abortion, sexuality, and justice with uncommon nuance and generosity of spirit. This historical novel sheds new light on twenty-first century reproductive oppression that aims to dictate how we can live, whom we can love, even who we can be. Jane's experiences, from the French Resistance to post-WWII Japan, remind us that the challenges we face today are not new; we have overcome them before and we will again.

— Jeannie Ludlow, PhD, Director of Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies and Professor of English, Eastern Illinois University