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kaitlynscupoftea's review against another edition
4.0
There are several trigger warnings that are associated with this book: animal killings, rape, abuse, and suicide.
This novel follows Sable, who is 18 years old. It follows her as her father suggests who her Match is and how she becomes pregnant, the drugs she is forced to take, and when she gets to the birth yard. Along the way, Sable meets new friends and is placed with her friends in the nicer, better birth yard.
This story is mostly character driven and I loved every second of it. The dystopian novels are what I love, the more dark, disturbing, and chilling they are the more I enjoy them. I think that’s why I enjoyed this novel, the dark tone and intensity really got to me, especially when they were in the Birth Yard.
This book was well written and so interesting! I want more! I’m hoping for a sequel and I can’t wait to see what else Tater does!
I have posted a full review on my blog https://kaitlynscupoftea.home.blog
This novel follows Sable, who is 18 years old. It follows her as her father suggests who her Match is and how she becomes pregnant, the drugs she is forced to take, and when she gets to the birth yard. Along the way, Sable meets new friends and is placed with her friends in the nicer, better birth yard.
This story is mostly character driven and I loved every second of it. The dystopian novels are what I love, the more dark, disturbing, and chilling they are the more I enjoy them. I think that’s why I enjoyed this novel, the dark tone and intensity really got to me, especially when they were in the Birth Yard.
This book was well written and so interesting! I want more! I’m hoping for a sequel and I can’t wait to see what else Tater does!
I have posted a full review on my blog https://kaitlynscupoftea.home.blog
i_sabella15's review
dark
hopeful
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
kayliesbookshelf's review against another edition
4.0
Canadian author Mallory Tater had her debut novel The Birth Yard “birthed” into this world in March of this year and it is filled with so many important themes that we need to be discussing around women’s rights. This coming-of-age story follows eighteen-year-old Sable Ursu as she navigates her way through an intense patriarchal cult called The Den all while trying to make her family proud. Throughout the novel, Sable is left to struggle with the oppressive world she finds herself in. The Den believes that men are superior and that women need to be controlled. This includes who they marry, when they conceive, and The Den requires women to take pills to keep their hysteria at bay. This cult is extremely misogynistic and while The Den wants to take care of the women who live there they (the men of The Den) view women only as vessels who are meant to serve them and carry children.
The Birth Yard is chock full of intense themes including women’s rights, reproductive rights, misogyny, birth control, and womanhood. All of these themes are mixed in with Sable’s narrative as she goes from timid, conforming girl to boisterous, freethinking woman. Sable begins to question the ways of The Den when she is in the Birth Yard preparing to give birth to her daughter and while she wants to make her family proud she also realizes that staying in The Den will put her daughter in harm’s way - something she does not want to do. Tater weaves all of these themes effortlessly through the plot and has created a distinct narrative that can take a bit of time for the reader to get used to. Visually, Tater takes all of the male words in The Birth Yard and capitalizes them so that it is reinforced to the reader that men are superior to the women in this world. The way Tater writes Sable’s narration also changes as Sable goes through her journey in the story. It is brilliant!
It’s clear to the reader that Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaids Tale was an influence in Tater’s The Birth Yard but it should be made known that The Birth Yard is its own novel with so many different aspects including, and prominently, that it is not a totalitarian dystopia but rather The Den is a cult that exists in life as we know it. Tater deserves praise for creating this intense world that Sable has to navigate and there are a lot of parallels in The Birth Yard that ring true to the treatment of women in society today (even if it’s not as extreme in real life). Without giving anything away, the ending to The Birth Yard has the reader craving for more and leaves a lot of unanswered questions, so naturally the reader hopes that Sable’s story is not over yet. Tater has created a world that the reader wants to be both immersed in and free from and that shows just how well done this novel is. As a fellow Canadian, I cannot wait to see what Tater ends up writing next.
https://www.cloudlakeliterary.ca/blogposts/book-review-the-birth-yard-by-mallory-tater
Originally published on Cloud Lake Literary’s website, link above.
The Birth Yard is chock full of intense themes including women’s rights, reproductive rights, misogyny, birth control, and womanhood. All of these themes are mixed in with Sable’s narrative as she goes from timid, conforming girl to boisterous, freethinking woman. Sable begins to question the ways of The Den when she is in the Birth Yard preparing to give birth to her daughter and while she wants to make her family proud she also realizes that staying in The Den will put her daughter in harm’s way - something she does not want to do. Tater weaves all of these themes effortlessly through the plot and has created a distinct narrative that can take a bit of time for the reader to get used to. Visually, Tater takes all of the male words in The Birth Yard and capitalizes them so that it is reinforced to the reader that men are superior to the women in this world. The way Tater writes Sable’s narration also changes as Sable goes through her journey in the story. It is brilliant!
It’s clear to the reader that Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaids Tale was an influence in Tater’s The Birth Yard but it should be made known that The Birth Yard is its own novel with so many different aspects including, and prominently, that it is not a totalitarian dystopia but rather The Den is a cult that exists in life as we know it. Tater deserves praise for creating this intense world that Sable has to navigate and there are a lot of parallels in The Birth Yard that ring true to the treatment of women in society today (even if it’s not as extreme in real life). Without giving anything away, the ending to The Birth Yard has the reader craving for more and leaves a lot of unanswered questions, so naturally the reader hopes that Sable’s story is not over yet. Tater has created a world that the reader wants to be both immersed in and free from and that shows just how well done this novel is. As a fellow Canadian, I cannot wait to see what Tater ends up writing next.
https://www.cloudlakeliterary.ca/blogposts/book-review-the-birth-yard-by-mallory-tater
Originally published on Cloud Lake Literary’s website, link above.
sabrinav625's review against another edition
5.0
This book is so remarkably unsettling.
For fans of Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale and Liggett's The Grace Year, it combines those themes with a cult very much like Charles Manson's or Jim Jones's. I tore through this book in a few days, hating and loving it all at once. I rooted for Sable and all the others trapped in this hell - it is definitely a book that does not hold back on what it discusses, so brace yourself going in.
I found the first half a bit slow, but everything was absolutely necessary for the story.
I also deeply appreciated that this was not a story when a man saved the day; the women did it all. The women fought for their lives.
For fans of Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale and Liggett's The Grace Year, it combines those themes with a cult very much like Charles Manson's or Jim Jones's. I tore through this book in a few days, hating and loving it all at once. I rooted for Sable and all the others trapped in this hell - it is definitely a book that does not hold back on what it discusses, so brace yourself going in.
I found the first half a bit slow, but everything was absolutely necessary for the story.
I also deeply appreciated that this was not a story when a man saved the day; the women did it all. The women fought for their lives.
kaciesreads's review
3.0
Couldn’t put this book down. Would have given 4 stars but the ending was so abrupt. I hope there is a sequel coming.
chloeimogen's review
4.0
Lowkey one of the most frightening books I've read -- just imagining being in this situation.
Anyway, I recommend this to fans of [b:The Handmaid's Tale|38447|The Handmaid's Tale (The Handmaid's Tale, #1)|Margaret Atwood|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1578028274l/38447._SY75_.jpg|1119185], especially if you're like me and are a fan of The Handmaid's Tale but was disappointed by [b:The Testaments|42975172|The Testaments (The Handmaid's Tale, #2)|Margaret Atwood|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1549292344l/42975172._SY75_.jpg|66802198].
Anyway, I recommend this to fans of [b:The Handmaid's Tale|38447|The Handmaid's Tale (The Handmaid's Tale, #1)|Margaret Atwood|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1578028274l/38447._SY75_.jpg|1119185], especially if you're like me and are a fan of The Handmaid's Tale but was disappointed by [b:The Testaments|42975172|The Testaments (The Handmaid's Tale, #2)|Margaret Atwood|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1549292344l/42975172._SY75_.jpg|66802198].
emilyriddle's review
5.0
such a page turner! i read this in two days. this book was thrilling and the plot kept me guessing. the author created a distinct world with all ends tied up and character motivations clear. some folks have said below that they didn’t like the ending but i thought it was perfect.
serendipitysbooks's review
challenging
dark
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
The Birth Yard tells the story of Sable Ursu, an eighteen year old who lives in a regimented, patriarchal misogynistic cult (aren’t they all?) called The Den. Because she is 18 she is old enough to breed so is paired with a Match for the purpose of conceiving. When she enters her second trimester Sable and all the other pregnant young women are moved to the Birth Yard to be prepared for labour and motherhood. While there, and especially once she learns her baby is a girl, Sable begins to question everything she has been taught to believe.
Like the best dystopian fiction it is very much rooted in reality - men seeing women as inferior and attempting to control every aspect of their bodies, especially anything related to fertility. Sound familiar?
While similarities to The Handmaid’s Tale are inevitable and justified to a point, I was able to enjoy this book in its own right. It had a unique take on some things that had me cringing in places - read the section on conception to see what I mean - and wanting to scream at the cruelty and stupidity (Sable’s punishment for daring to ‘attack’ a boy who was trying to rape her sister) in others. Overall I was obviously rooting for Sable while alternately rolling my eyes or wanting to physically harm many of the males who controlled The Den. The story was propulsive and I often found myself listening to “just one more chapter”.
Many of the big ideas here are not new and have been explored in other books. But, now more than ever, they are relevant and crucially important. If you need a reminder of a future to be avoided this would be a good pick.
Like the best dystopian fiction it is very much rooted in reality - men seeing women as inferior and attempting to control every aspect of their bodies, especially anything related to fertility. Sound familiar?
While similarities to The Handmaid’s Tale are inevitable and justified to a point, I was able to enjoy this book in its own right. It had a unique take on some things that had me cringing in places - read the section on conception to see what I mean - and wanting to scream at the cruelty and stupidity (Sable’s punishment for daring to ‘attack’ a boy who was trying to rape her sister) in others. Overall I was obviously rooting for Sable while alternately rolling my eyes or wanting to physically harm many of the males who controlled The Den. The story was propulsive and I often found myself listening to “just one more chapter”.
Many of the big ideas here are not new and have been explored in other books. But, now more than ever, they are relevant and crucially important. If you need a reminder of a future to be avoided this would be a good pick.
lfs's review
1.0
300 pages of pointlessness driven by a character as boring as she is stupid, waiting for SOME THING to finally happen, and then when it finally does, the book just.... ends.
Why. Why was this even published. Why was it written. Why did I waste a day of my life finishing it. Just...why.