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A review by clairebartholomew549
Counting Backwards by Jacqueline Friedland
dark
emotional
informative
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
This is a timely, difficult, and fascinating read. We have two timelines here, both exploring horrifying abuses by the U.S. In 2019, we follow Jessa, a corporate lawyer who takes on a pro bono immigration case and subsequently discovers that doctors in an ICE facility are performing nonconsensual sterilizing surgeries on female detainees, including hysterectomies and removals of ovaries. In the 1920s, we follow Carrie Buck, the subject of a truly heinous Supreme Court case condoning the sterilization of "feeble-minded" people in the name of eugenics.
I waffled between giving this book three and four stars, but landed on four stars in the end because I couldn't stop reading and found much of this compelling. There are definitely not enough accessible books about our country's long history of performing nonconsensual medical "experiments" on marginalized populations and surgeries in the name of "purifying" America's bloodlines, and in a time when reproductive justice issues are at the forefront, it's important to know the breadth of oppressions that exist. Friedland does a great job tracing how Carrie ended up being eugenicists' test case for sterilization in the courts, and I appreciated that Carrie wasn't pathologized or condescended to by the narrative. Jessa's storyline gives the reader insight into how draconian and confusing immigration law is, how government agencies operate with impunity in the name of "national security" and against marginalized populations, and how media makes all the difference when trying to make change. The story moves fast, and the writing for the most part is not too ham-handed.
Now for the parts of this book that for me skewed this book closer to three stars. The white saviorism definitely grated on me (a letter Jessa receives singing her praises feels especially icky), and it was frustrating that we got very little insight into the actual people affected by ICE's horrors. Why couldn't one of them have been a main character? Jessa's relationship with Vance is one of the weakest parts of the book - he is just not an interesting character, their marriage makes zero sense, and they both are selfish and bullheaded (although Vance at times is almost cartoonishly evil) - and Jessa having fertility issues was a bit on the nose. It was nice to have Carrie's perspective, but that often felt secondary, especially when the book shoehorns in Jessa's connection to Carrie (more on that in the spoiler section below). Ultimately, there are times where this book just really reads like it was written by a privileged white woman - which is not necessarily a criticism since I too am a privileged white woman lol - but given how the issues discussed in this book involve complex racial and class dynamics, sometimes things felt a bit too trite and self-aggrandizing. It's also wild how long it takes Jessa to enlist other lawyers to help her with the case, and her stubbornness about having to be involved in the case really shows her own self-centeredness and need to be a hero. But I'd still recommend this book because you really do learn a lot and it's fascinating.
Jessa's connection to one of the lead scientists in Carrie's case, who was a preeminent eugenicist and whose research was relied upon by the Nazis to justify and carry out their genocides, felt kind of weird to me. It almost felt like it was there for shock value, and it really just functioned as a way to applaud Jessa for fighting against her family's legacy and trying to make a difference. The connection between the U.S. eugenics movement and the Nazis is incredibly important and deserved more space, time, and depth than being reduced to a wedge between Jessa and Vance and a vehicle for Jessa to do good.
Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Muse for an advanced reader's copy in exchange for an honest review! I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
I waffled between giving this book three and four stars, but landed on four stars in the end because I couldn't stop reading and found much of this compelling. There are definitely not enough accessible books about our country's long history of performing nonconsensual medical "experiments" on marginalized populations and surgeries in the name of "purifying" America's bloodlines, and in a time when reproductive justice issues are at the forefront, it's important to know the breadth of oppressions that exist. Friedland does a great job tracing how Carrie ended up being eugenicists' test case for sterilization in the courts, and I appreciated that Carrie wasn't pathologized or condescended to by the narrative. Jessa's storyline gives the reader insight into how draconian and confusing immigration law is, how government agencies operate with impunity in the name of "national security" and against marginalized populations, and how media makes all the difference when trying to make change. The story moves fast, and the writing for the most part is not too ham-handed.
Now for the parts of this book that for me skewed this book closer to three stars. The white saviorism definitely grated on me (a letter Jessa receives singing her praises feels especially icky), and it was frustrating that we got very little insight into the actual people affected by ICE's horrors. Why couldn't one of them have been a main character? Jessa's relationship with Vance is one of the weakest parts of the book - he is just not an interesting character, their marriage makes zero sense, and they both are selfish and bullheaded (although Vance at times is almost cartoonishly evil) - and Jessa having fertility issues was a bit on the nose. It was nice to have Carrie's perspective, but that often felt secondary, especially when the book shoehorns in Jessa's connection to Carrie (more on that in the spoiler section below). Ultimately, there are times where this book just really reads like it was written by a privileged white woman - which is not necessarily a criticism since I too am a privileged white woman lol - but given how the issues discussed in this book involve complex racial and class dynamics, sometimes things felt a bit too trite and self-aggrandizing. It's also wild how long it takes Jessa to enlist other lawyers to help her with the case, and her stubbornness about having to be involved in the case really shows her own self-centeredness and need to be a hero. But I'd still recommend this book because you really do learn a lot and it's fascinating.
Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Muse for an advanced reader's copy in exchange for an honest review! I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Infertility, Miscarriage, Forced institutionalization, Police brutality, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Classism
Moderate: Confinement, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault
Minor: Antisemitism, Deportation, Pandemic/Epidemic