Reviews

Chouette by Claire Oshetsky

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elsiebowsher's review against another edition

2.0

this book seemed interesting when i picked it up. it ended up being SO weird and really didn’t make sense to me. i should have just not finished it, but it was actually well written and so random that i just needed to know if it was going to make any sort of sense. unfortunately it didn’t lol. maybe there is some deep philosophical meaning being it all that i just didn’t understand, but overall, would not recommend. the cover is beautiful though so at least there’s that

serendipitysbooks's review

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challenging dark emotional reflective 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

4.0

Chouette is the strangest book I've read in a while, a modern fable about mothering a child who falls outside the accepted norm. Tiny is a cello player who somehow becomes pregnant to her (female) owl lover and gives birth to an owl-baby. Her husband intitally struggles with the baby's differences, but then focusses his attention on therapies, treatment and doctors to give Chouette, whom he calls Charlotte and refers to as "our girl", a better life, in other words to try and make her "normal". Tiny, meanwhile, fiercely and unconditionally loves her owl-baby, believes she is perfect as she is, is fixated on letting Chouette be her true self, and wants others to love and accept her for who she is. Tiny is disappointed and increasingly lonely when Chouette isn't accepted, becomes burnt out from trying to accommodate all her special needs, and, of course, increasingly alienated from her husband. A paean for the unconditional love of a mother and for children being unapologetically, joyfully themselves.

Content Warnings

abigailk's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

sousandwich's review against another edition

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5.0

Thank you very much, Claire, for gifting me with this wonderful piece. I say ‘me’ because I don’t know how the experience has been to other readers, but for me it’s been a memorable ride.
‘Chouette’ feels like being gently pulled up by the hips at first. Hop. It substracts you from whatever reality you’re experiencing and off you go into Tiny’s world. A world of synesthesia, where words on paper play like music, and wild smells pop up from unexpected places. We get gradually stripped of our coating of ‘reality’, our dog-behavior feels less and less present. We understand Tiny, not the way we understand that two plus two equals four, but on a more profound way. We share her struggles. Or at least I did, even though I am far from the experience of motherhood myself.
So thank you again, Claire, for getting me closer to my raccoon-self. I don’t remember being so emotionally invested with a reading as I’ve been with your book. All this yabber-yabber doesn’t do justice to how much love I feel for this book.
Please, keep writing. And publishing.

chatroulet's review against another edition

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dark mysterious reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character

4.0

olivia795's review against another edition

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4.0

Probably the weirdest book I've ever read. I really enjoyed it. I wouldn't recommend this to everyone because it really is one of those you either love it or hate it books. I loved it.