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4.2 AVERAGE
4.2 AVERAGE
Honest and painful, but does a great job imbuing hope into these intersecting stories of maternity
"La hija única" muestra a la maternidad de manera diveresa y real. La cual involucra incluso a aquellas que, como Laura, deciden no ser madres. Hace visibles las emociones, frustraciones, dilemas, secuelas y preculas del ser madre. Narra principalmente las historias de tres mujeres, pero también entreteje las de algunas otras.
Leer este libro fue de lo más sencillo y disfrutable. Sus capítulos cortos de invitan a continuar leyendo, porque ¿qué son 3 páginas más antes de dormir? Y así, se van sumando, hasta que sin darte cuenta llegas al final.
Leer este libro fue de lo más sencillo y disfrutable. Sus capítulos cortos de invitan a continuar leyendo, porque ¿qué son 3 páginas más antes de dormir? Y así, se van sumando, hasta que sin darte cuenta llegas al final.
Loved this book's discussion of motherhood and the gravity of the decision to choose to have children - a decision which is in most cultures seen to be an inevitability. It doesn't shy away from tragedy or try to romanticise motherhood but also highlights the magical moments of being a mother. The only problem I have with this book is its sudden LGBTQ ending which wasn't really alluded to or developed throughout the rest of the book and just felt clumsily thrown in as an afterthought.
Some of my favourite quotes:
- "We daughters have a tendency to see in our mother’s mistakes the source of all our problems, and our mothers tend to consider our defects as proof of a possible failure."
- "I said to myself that surnames and parental rights are courtesies we pay to men once they acknowledge their children, almost like a dowry. The truth is that in our society it is optional for children to be allotted fathers, whereas mothers have no choice in the matter."
- "There is a word to describe someone who loses their spouse, and a word for children who are left without parents. There is no word, however, for a parent who loses their child."
Some of my favourite quotes:
- "We daughters have a tendency to see in our mother’s mistakes the source of all our problems, and our mothers tend to consider our defects as proof of a possible failure."
- "I said to myself that surnames and parental rights are courtesies we pay to men once they acknowledge their children, almost like a dowry. The truth is that in our society it is optional for children to be allotted fathers, whereas mothers have no choice in the matter."
- "There is a word to describe someone who loses their spouse, and a word for children who are left without parents. There is no word, however, for a parent who loses their child."
El medio tema para una escritura un poco desabrida. La maternidad tiene tantas aristas que me gustó encontrarme con una historia que intentando cubrir 3 tipos de maternidades, finalmente hablaba más de cómo manejamos el amor y los cuidados en general, indefiniendo el mismo concepto. Sin embargo, llegue al final del libro y fue como "ah chucha, con esto terminaba?". Al ser una escritura que narraba el día a día de la protagonista, la vida de Alina y Doris, creo que nunca se encausó mucho hacia un final, algo que nos diera indicios de que se estaba por "concluir" al menos la historia de alguna de ellas. Incluso si se trataba de un final abierto, para mi fue como de sopetón pasar a la siguiente página y plop se terminó.
Si bien tiene (a mi parecer) 2 historias sumamente duras y que te dejan pensado, se me hizo IMPOSIBLE empatizar con Nicolás. Puede ser mi predestinación a que me caigan mal todos lo nicolases? Si
Si bien tiene (a mi parecer) 2 historias sumamente duras y que te dejan pensado, se me hizo IMPOSIBLE empatizar con Nicolás. Puede ser mi predestinación a que me caigan mal todos lo nicolases? Si
Un libro cortito que habla sobre la maternidad desde tres puntos de vista, uno de los cuales me pareció durísimo. Te hace reflexionar y pensar sobre el ser madres/padres cuando las cosas no son como lo imaginamos.
challenging
emotional
reflective
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
emotional
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
fast-paced
This short book explored motherhood and the expectations and thought process around deciding whether pregnancy and being a parent is the right path for that person.
If I had reviewed this book five years ago, I imagine I would have rated it lower as I would not have felt so attached to it. However I felt akin to both Laura and Alina despite them taking two very different paths in maternal development and this made me feel very immersed in the narrative. The writing was very prose-y but I enjoyed this - it reminded me slightly of Kazuo Ishiguro, with the writing flowing quietly and freely and hitting you hard at the end of those lengthy paragraphs.
I felt I actually wanted more than 200 pages - it felt like everything was wrapped up quite quickly in the final pages - but overall the atmosphere of the book was beautiful and I would love to read more of Nettel's work.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for sending me an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
If I had reviewed this book five years ago, I imagine I would have rated it lower as I would not have felt so attached to it. However I felt akin to both Laura and Alina despite them taking two very different paths in maternal development and this made me feel very immersed in the narrative. The writing was very prose-y but I enjoyed this - it reminded me slightly of Kazuo Ishiguro, with the writing flowing quietly and freely and hitting you hard at the end of those lengthy paragraphs.
I felt I actually wanted more than 200 pages - it felt like everything was wrapped up quite quickly in the final pages - but overall the atmosphere of the book was beautiful and I would love to read more of Nettel's work.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for sending me an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
N/A
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated