Reviews with content warning for Child death - Still Born

Reviews tagging 'Child death'

Still Born by Guadalupe Nettel

13 reviews

amycrehore's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

This book gutted me. I texted my friend halfway through that I was equal parts shock, anger, sadness, queasiness. This is not an easy book to read, especially if you are a mother or hope to be one. But the reflections on motherhood and womanhood were profound and the prose was beautiful. Excellent translation, quick read. I devoured it in just a couple days.

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alexisgarcia's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

a raw portrait of womanhood in the decision to have or not have children. a very important and powerful little book.

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amyford's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

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tiffany_lishan's review against another edition

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sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

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reverie_and_books's review against another edition

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dark emotional hopeful reflective sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

Proceed with care, this book deals with pregnancy, motherhood, and huge fears regarding both.

The novel is devastating and hopeful. It asks seemingly unquestionable questions. To someone not exactly knowing what they’re talking about here (I don’t have children), the author seems to keep the sugarcoating away but also shines a light on the good things. It seems balanced out, relatable, while being also very far away from me. In some way it is tragic. In some other way it is life affirming.

“I have to admit, I have never really got along well with children.” This is a thought of the main character, Laura, on page one. She goes further and seems to investigate the cause, the why, the reason, why women still want to become mothers, and suspects society and their families as the only driving forces.

But there is a twist, a tragically beautiful one. Her best friend (suddenly) wants to have a child, gets pregnant, but there are complications and huge worries.

Accompanied by a pigeon nest on her balcony rafters, her neighbors son Nicolás, who keeps smashing his head against the wall, and his mother Doris, traumatized and overwhelmed, Lauras perceived world grows in size:

“The more we love a person, the more fragile and insecure we feel because of them.”

Life is complex, frightening, beautiful. I want to end this review by quoting a sentence from the blurb:

“In prose that is as gripping as it is insightful, Still Born explores maternal ambivalence with a surgeon’s touch, carefully dissecting the contradictions that make up the lived experiences of women.” While I expected something different, I know that this book will take permanent residency in the back of my mind.

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