Over five years, the author travelled the country, speaking to charity workers, doctors, social workers, in-home carers, nurses, palliative care teams and parents, to explore the value of care, the hidden glue that binds us together. She finds remarkable stories, in GP surgeries, in work undertaken by parents for their disabled children and in end-of-life teams, that conjure a different way of imagining our society and the connections between us. Blending these testimonies with a history and language of care, and with her own experiences of caring for the young and old in her family, ‘Labours of Love’ paints a portrait of our nation today – and of how it might be.