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3.16 AVERAGE
3.16 AVERAGE
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
funny
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Hogarth is an exceptional writer, her characters are complex and the protagonist in this novel is truly thought provoking. I didn’t necessarily like the main character, Dani, all that much, but that was part of her charm for me. Her internal dialogue throughout the novel encouraged me to further examine what traits typically make women protagonists likable to me.
I also very much appreciated the rich and at times surprising use of verbs. The authors writing style is fresh, her unique prose and brilliant thoughts scattered about the book is what kept me invested despite the slow pace of the book.
Although I could endlessly praise the authors witty and truly unique writing, the ending of the novel felt wildly rushed, which is why I’d give it a moderate rating. It felt almost as if the author got so wrapped up in the philosophical internal dialogue of the main character that she lost track of the plot and had to quickly to piece together the conclusion. The “ah-ha” moment that essentially concludes the novel felt rushed compared to the rest of the novel, leaving me with a strange sense of disillusionment. And to be completely honest it was not only rushed but entirely nonsensical, like I audibly asking “…what?” when I got to the end.
That being said I really liked the novel overall, I took my time enjoying its delightfully nuanced and refreshingly messy characters. A very, very human read.
I also very much appreciated the rich and at times surprising use of verbs. The authors writing style is fresh, her unique prose and brilliant thoughts scattered about the book is what kept me invested despite the slow pace of the book.
Although I could endlessly praise the authors witty and truly unique writing, the ending of the novel felt wildly rushed, which is why I’d give it a moderate rating. It felt almost as if the author got so wrapped up in the philosophical internal dialogue of the main character that she lost track of the plot and had to quickly to piece together the conclusion. The “ah-ha” moment that essentially concludes the novel felt rushed compared to the rest of the novel, leaving me with a strange sense of disillusionment. And to be completely honest it was not only rushed but entirely nonsensical, like I audibly asking “…what?” when I got to the end.
That being said I really liked the novel overall, I took my time enjoying its delightfully nuanced and refreshingly messy characters. A very, very human read.
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
after reading and five star-ing Motherthing, i was so eager to jump into Hogarth's body of work. this one was a little bit of a let down for me unfortunately. i'm still such a lover of Hogarth's writing style, but the plot of this novel is what lost me. the plot seemed like everything and nothing all at once. while Hogarth does bring up some really compelling points -that of which call into question how we value "a woman's work" which Hogarth emphasizes includes both sex work and motherhood- the ending just kind of obscured the message that Hogarth is trying to make. it seemed unclear what Hogarth's overall messaging on gentrification, sex work, and "woman's work" was. in all, this book seemed like a worse version of Ari Aster's Midsommar, and i couldn't help but feel disappointed after coming off the heels of Motherthing, which i very much so recommend. this one is a pass, but i haven't counted Hogarth out just yet.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Cancer, Death, Domestic abuse
Minor: Racism, Death of parent
slow-paced
Dani : "So tell me everything is not about me"
All other characters in this book: "but what if it is???"
Also where did Brandon go?
All other characters in this book: "but what if it is???"
Also where did Brandon go?
finished 4/7/24 ; 2.5/5 ; book 18/66
I love a no-plot-just-vibes book, and this book is like that- unless it isn’t. I also love a book with a tight, (yet complex) propulsive, thriller-esque plot, and this book is like that- unless it isn’t.
Ultimately, I think this book offers the beginnings of some very interesting critiques and commentaries on wellness culture, and its disproportional target of women, but at the end of the day I’m still wondering what exactly this book is trying to say about it. Are we supposed to agree with The Temple’s overall message about wellness and how men need to be prioritized too? On the one hand, sex work IS work, but on the other, the sort of sinister feeling that Dani got the entire time from the Temple was never really explored.
Also, I was left very dissatisfied with the ending. The entire book is built on what? a total misread from Dani? That’s not super interesting. I think perhaps the seeds could have been planted better, and Dani’s intense paranoia had more effect on the outcome. Everyone just manages to calm her down at the end and neatly explain everything, which doesn’t exactly make the almost 300 pages prior feel worth it.
I love a no-plot-just-vibes book, and this book is like that- unless it isn’t. I also love a book with a tight, (yet complex) propulsive, thriller-esque plot, and this book is like that- unless it isn’t.
Ultimately, I think this book offers the beginnings of some very interesting critiques and commentaries on wellness culture, and its disproportional target of women, but at the end of the day I’m still wondering what exactly this book is trying to say about it. Are we supposed to agree with The Temple’s overall message about wellness and how men need to be prioritized too? On the one hand, sex work IS work, but on the other, the sort of sinister feeling that Dani got the entire time from the Temple was never really explored.
Also, I was left very dissatisfied with the ending. The entire book is built on what? a total misread from Dani? That’s not super interesting. I think perhaps the seeds could have been planted better, and Dani’s intense paranoia had more effect on the outcome. Everyone just manages to calm her down at the end and neatly explain everything, which doesn’t exactly make the almost 300 pages prior feel worth it.
while i really enjoyed this read, something about the plot fell flat for me, particularly the end of the book. a fun read that kept me entertained, but didn’t do a whole lot more outside of that
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Normal Women is unique in its story telling and was over all a pleasure to read. The book largely centers around motherhood being deeply fulfilling but not nearly enough to sustain a whole life off of. To find purpose is to find meaning and I appreciated how we saw Dani deeply explore this throughout the book, even if she is a mess through most of it. I also found the commentary on sex work refreshing and balanced. The author did a great job of representing sex workers in a fair light.
The story can drag at times and feel convoluted, but over all it was a fun read.
The story can drag at times and feel convoluted, but over all it was a fun read.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Medical content, Trafficking, Pregnancy
Moderate: Child death, Death, Infertility, Toxic relationship, Grief, Abandonment
challenging
dark
funny
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Not bad but mom drama just isn't for me, they did the book a disservice by leading readers on with the "disappearance" part of the plot... Was not expecting half of the book to be body horror too
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
still deciding how i feel about this. i loved the characters, the premise, most of the plot, the narrative voice, and some of the commentary. i do think some of the takes on gender existed too much in the vacuum of the story and weren’t as real as other, stronger moments in hogarth’s commentary, and present an incredibly binary view of gender. i still loved the story for its raw presentation of motherhood and womanhood, and i really loved the characters, but the ending felt abrupt and unsatisfying. i was disappointed with the last forty pages or so, but not enough to entirely ruin it for me.