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3.71 AVERAGE
3.71 AVERAGE
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
emotional
reflective
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abortion
This was one very wild ride. I could not stop once started, and only wish I’d picked it up sooner. The book is artfully written as you follow the paths of five women. I was interested in some more than others, but was shockingly surprised by their individual and interwoven journeys. Zika’s toys with hot topics in women’s health, and shows you multiple perspectives from the abortion seeker to that of illegal practitioners...
Very very well done.
Very very well done.
Who controls a woman? What are the truths surrounding conception, abortion and adoption? And who gets to decode those truths?
This novel follows five different prototypic women through some of these answers, at least for this subset of women. Thought provoking. A page turner.
This novel follows five different prototypic women through some of these answers, at least for this subset of women. Thought provoking. A page turner.
More of a 3.5-4 for me. I liked this book and I found myself drawn to each of the 4 women in it as well- especially the biographer. This is my Oregon book for my USA Reading Roadmap challenge and let me tell you, it definitely makes you feel like you are in Oregon. My only critique with the book was that there were elements that didn't feel like they fit in with the story, and everything was sort of tied up too nicely considering the biggest part of the book is about abortion. It does a scary, good job of discussing women's bodies and women's "role" in society- but I wanted more! I would recommend reading this so I can talk with you about it. The writing is poignant and extremely well done if anything else.
challenging
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
In the America of Red Clocks, a human embryo has more rights than that of a woman carrying it. Due to a special amendment in the law, abortion is illegal in every state in America and women who attempt an abortion can be jailed. Those who miscarry can be charged with manslaughter or forced to for the funeral of the fetus, and single women who want to adopt are not allowed due to a 'Every Child Needs Two' rule. Even IVF is out of the question as the embryos did not give consent.
This is a strange book to read because even though everything in it seems so over the top and crazy, we all know too well that the strict abortion laws portrayed in this book are almost identical to those currently in place in Poland, and where up until very recently in my own country of Ireland. The journeys American women in this book go on to Canada - a journey of fear, loneliness and pain - is currently being experience by Polish women travelling to neighbouring countries and all the Irish women who took the flight to England, and bled on the way back.
This is actually a book I put off reading for over two years because when I originally received it, Repeal the 8th hadn't yet passed in Ireland and all the fears and entrapment felt by the women in this book were ones I also felt when I fear what would happen if I ever went through an unwanted pregnancy. However, having read it now and at the right time - now Irish women have the control over their own bodies for the first time in a long, long time - I thoroughly enjoyed this book and not just for the points it made (how women and those in vulnerable position are always the ones that are affected the most by insane abortion rules aka men trying to control women's bodies AND abortion laws don't stop abortions from happening, they just stop safe ones)
I liked entering the world of the various women in this book, and all the different things they were going through and how different they all were. I definitely had favourites and least favourites with Ro (The Biographer) being on top and Susan (The Wife) being on the bottom. I actually would have loved more from Gin's perspective (The Mender) as I feel like she had a lot more to tell and give to the story and her character fell a little bit into the stereotype of the witchy woman. Ro also does deal with the cliche of becoming a slightly manic with despair woman desperate for a baby which I have seen before in books and it never really looks great - however, I liked seeing Ro's journey come full circle and her peace and acceptance in where her life would be going next.
While Mattie (The Daughter) played an important part in being the section of the story dealing with the fear and anxiety over an unwanted pregnancy, and the lengths a person will go through to not be pregnant anymore, there wasn't much else to her story. There were times where I couldn't figure her out as she seemed quite smart but she had also been so dumb when it came to Ephraim.
While Susan was interesting in terms of the woman who seems to have it all (almost) but really she doesn't, her storyline is also been there, done that. I do think it would have been better to have a woman who was on the opposite side of the tracks when it came to the abortion laws as all the women we're following agree in a person's right to choose. It was a bit strange having no-one on the other side other than some of the side characters who all happened to be men (Mattie's dad and Mr Fivver for instance).
I did enjoy this a lot, and it was the kind of book when I wasn't reading it, I was thinking about reading it which says a lot!
This is a strange book to read because even though everything in it seems so over the top and crazy, we all know too well that the strict abortion laws portrayed in this book are almost identical to those currently in place in Poland, and where up until very recently in my own country of Ireland. The journeys American women in this book go on to Canada - a journey of fear, loneliness and pain - is currently being experience by Polish women travelling to neighbouring countries and all the Irish women who took the flight to England, and bled on the way back.
This is actually a book I put off reading for over two years because when I originally received it, Repeal the 8th hadn't yet passed in Ireland and all the fears and entrapment felt by the women in this book were ones I also felt when I fear what would happen if I ever went through an unwanted pregnancy. However, having read it now and at the right time - now Irish women have the control over their own bodies for the first time in a long, long time - I thoroughly enjoyed this book and not just for the points it made (how women and those in vulnerable position are always the ones that are affected the most by insane abortion rules aka men trying to control women's bodies AND abortion laws don't stop abortions from happening, they just stop safe ones)
I liked entering the world of the various women in this book, and all the different things they were going through and how different they all were. I definitely had favourites and least favourites with Ro (The Biographer) being on top and Susan (The Wife) being on the bottom. I actually would have loved more from Gin's perspective (The Mender) as I feel like she had a lot more to tell and give to the story and her character fell a little bit into the stereotype of the witchy woman. Ro also does deal with the cliche of becoming a slightly manic with despair woman desperate for a baby which I have seen before in books and it never really looks great - however, I liked seeing Ro's journey come full circle and her peace and acceptance in where her life would be going next.
While Mattie (The Daughter) played an important part in being the section of the story dealing with the fear and anxiety over an unwanted pregnancy, and the lengths a person will go through to not be pregnant anymore, there wasn't much else to her story. There were times where I couldn't figure her out as she seemed quite smart but she had also been so dumb when it came to Ephraim.
While Susan was interesting in terms of the woman who seems to have it all (almost) but really she doesn't, her storyline is also been there, done that. I do think it would have been better to have a woman who was on the opposite side of the tracks when it came to the abortion laws as all the women we're following agree in a person's right to choose. It was a bit strange having no-one on the other side other than some of the side characters who all happened to be men (Mattie's dad and Mr Fivver for instance).
I did enjoy this a lot, and it was the kind of book when I wasn't reading it, I was thinking about reading it which says a lot!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Infertility, Abortion
I put off reading this book because of the mixed reviews. I am so glad I decided to give it a chance. Although the novel is not perfect, Zumas's prose is lyrical. In some ways her writing puts me in mind of Rene Denfeld, another recent favorite.
This isn't some weak Handmaid's Tale wannabe. It's an important work that casts light on just how easy it would be, with the current political climate in the U.S., for us to slide down this increasingly slippery slope. It's a solid novel and I look forward to reading more of Zumas's work.
This isn't some weak Handmaid's Tale wannabe. It's an important work that casts light on just how easy it would be, with the current political climate in the U.S., for us to slide down this increasingly slippery slope. It's a solid novel and I look forward to reading more of Zumas's work.
What if decisions about your body were not your own? What if the government decided the definition of family? What if age old topics from the political theater became reality? What if? In this haunting, scary, and thought provoking fictional novel, Zumas tackles these terrifying questions with an almost poetic prose. This moving novel follows five women as they wrestle with the new landscape of what it means to be a woman.
When a book grabs you, it truly deeply grabs you and that is exactly what Red Clocks does. In part because it paints a picture of where the U.S. might go in this current political climate and in part because of how well it is written and how beautiful the characters are. Definite recommend.
Wow, read clocks is really powerful. It gave me the same feeling I got when reading A Handmaid's Tale. I can see people reading this in 10, 20, 30 years.