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3.7 AVERAGE
3.7 AVERAGE
I don’t even really know how I feel about this book!!!! So many complicated feelings. The scrutiny on parenting seems absolutely ridiculous. But then it also seems extremely this could so easily happen.
I have been wanting to read this book for a long time.
It was extremely well written. I completely identified and felt the emotions of the mom.
But……YIKES!
I have been wanting to read this book for a long time.
It was extremely well written. I completely identified and felt the emotions of the mom.
But……YIKES!
challenging
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
dark
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I didn't finish this because it so perfectly depicted the coldness and cruelty of bureaucracy, the way some women are consistently monitored and critiqued and judged, and some women's abuse of their children goes under the radar because it conforms to cultural norms (ie, disordered eating, Instagram moms exploiting their kids for views). I might have fared better had I been able to read it with a book group & focus on themes to critique rather than getting so caught up in the story that my rage did not allow me to continue.
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
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
The School for Good Mothers is a beautiful book, but overall pretty difficult to read and absorb.
You need to approach it by knowing in advance how brutally honest it would be on double standards, patriarchal society, motherhood, depression, and suicide.
Thus, I'd highly suggest also reading something lighter while you have this book on your shelf.
It's almost impossible to go through the book without feeling your guts in your throat, but it deserves for you to get to the end of it because it gets better through the pages, up to a stunning finale.
You need to approach it by knowing in advance how brutally honest it would be on double standards, patriarchal society, motherhood, depression, and suicide.
Thus, I'd highly suggest also reading something lighter while you have this book on your shelf.
It's almost impossible to go through the book without feeling your guts in your throat, but it deserves for you to get to the end of it because it gets better through the pages, up to a stunning finale.
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
emotional
sad
The School for Good Mothers depicts what seem like a far-away dystopian world but can easily become a reality in the not so distant future.
Jessamine Chan has produced a taut and terrifying debut- one wherein a single lapse in judgement forces a young mother to enroll in a government reform program for "bad mothers".
Faced with the possibility of losing her child, Frida Liu must prove that she can live up to the standards set for good mothers- that she can unlearn her bad parenting methods.
This debut is a brilliant reflection of the unrealistic expectations society places on a mother (on women in general), of how women are often not treated as living, breathing humans but as a body existing solely for the purpose of bearing and rearing children.
I'd highly recommend this book to dystopian fiction lovers. Thanks to Edelweiss and the publisher for providing me with a digital copy of the book to review.
Jessamine Chan has produced a taut and terrifying debut- one wherein a single lapse in judgement forces a young mother to enroll in a government reform program for "bad mothers".
Faced with the possibility of losing her child, Frida Liu must prove that she can live up to the standards set for good mothers- that she can unlearn her bad parenting methods.
This debut is a brilliant reflection of the unrealistic expectations society places on a mother (on women in general), of how women are often not treated as living, breathing humans but as a body existing solely for the purpose of bearing and rearing children.
I'd highly recommend this book to dystopian fiction lovers. Thanks to Edelweiss and the publisher for providing me with a digital copy of the book to review.
Clawed at my heart with every page. I especially appreciate Chen’s short sentences, that deliver the harsh realities of this world (and our world within it) as devastating matter-of-fact truths. Brilliant read, although I’m mindful of the power dynamics (that the author does pull out) which make these conditions particularly real for young working class Black and brown mothers in particular.