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A review by clarahooyer
The Push by Ashley Audrain
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Really, really liked it, but was a little offput by the pacing. The book starts off making me think every problem is the result of the main character being a bad mother. Eventually I started to realize the book meant for the child to be evil. It felt like the book changed halfway through from being a story about generational abuse, to a story about an all out evil child that the mother can't be blamed for. It was very thought provoking( which I like), but I was left wondering how the author intended me to interpret the story. I think that, as a book about abuses cycles, it is almost too extreme in its evolution. However, if viewed as a book about an evil child, than it properly explores all the environmental factors that cause the child to become the way she is. Definitely a book I will be thinking about for a while.
Graphic: Child death
Moderate: Car accident, Murder, Gaslighting, Death, Abortion, Grief, Mental illness, and Cursing
Minor: Suicide, Vomit, Infidelity, Toxic relationship, Death of parent, Infertility, Abandonment, Miscarriage, Self harm, Emotional abuse, and Sexual content