A review by lcr16
Motherthing by Ainslie Hogarth

dark funny reflective fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I could not put this down! Motherthing is a phenomenal ghost story that explores the influence of a mother and child relationship as well as hereditary depression. Abbey and her husband move into her mother in law's house who is struggling with depression and dies by suicide. Her mother in law begins to haunt their home and in particular Abbey's husband Ralph. Abbey's dysfunctional relationship with her mother in law and her own mother makes it clear Abbey has no role model for motherhood, caregiving, or healthy relationships. This manifests in comfort objects such as an old cookbook and a childhood couch, much like Harlow's experiment of giving baby monkey's inanimate objects in place of mothers. Abbey is dependent, self-isolating, paranoid, and socially inept. This is made clear by her making jellied salmon in a big mold shaped like a fish to work and getting upset her coworker just wants to eat her yogurt, resulting in an outburst inquiring about her coworker's digestion. It's an incredibly funny scene. The writing style is incredibly funny at times, while being effervescently gorey. Motherthing truly gets at the root of childhood trauma, internal narratives, and hereditary mental illness. Thank you to NetGalley and Knopf Doubleday for the ARC in return for an honest review 
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