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lovelymisanthrope 's review for:
Maggie: Or, A Man and a Woman walk into a Bar
by Katie Yee
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
N/A
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I selected this as one of my Book of the Month picks.
"Maggie; or, A Man and a Woman Walk into a Bar" follows an unnamed woman as she grapples with the knowledge that her husband is having an affair with a woman named Maggie. As if this is not enough to send the narrator over the edge, she heads to the doctor to address some chest pain, only to discover that she has breast cancer.
This was a fast, fun read that I think a lot of women could relate to. Our narrator feels lost in motherhood and a marriage that is clearly struggling, and now it feels like her life is literally falling apart. As if it is not enough having to navigate the discovery that your husband is having an affair and explaining to your young children why mommy and daddy are not together anymore, she finds out she has cancer.
One of my favorite aspects of this novel was the narrator's best friend. The best friend is a ride or die who has been supporting this woman since college. She does not need any information about Maggie to be on the narrator's side. She also independently does her own research to try to find encouragement about the narrator's cancer diagnosis.
I do think the narrative of this story reads like a very tired, worn-out mother and wife, which is a good thing because that is who the narrator is. However, it does also mean that the story was not super memorable for me. I wanted more of a personality from the prose.
I think this is a great story to read; bit is not all that memorable overall.
"Maggie; or, A Man and a Woman Walk into a Bar" follows an unnamed woman as she grapples with the knowledge that her husband is having an affair with a woman named Maggie. As if this is not enough to send the narrator over the edge, she heads to the doctor to address some chest pain, only to discover that she has breast cancer.
This was a fast, fun read that I think a lot of women could relate to. Our narrator feels lost in motherhood and a marriage that is clearly struggling, and now it feels like her life is literally falling apart. As if it is not enough having to navigate the discovery that your husband is having an affair and explaining to your young children why mommy and daddy are not together anymore, she finds out she has cancer.
One of my favorite aspects of this novel was the narrator's best friend. The best friend is a ride or die who has been supporting this woman since college. She does not need any information about Maggie to be on the narrator's side. She also independently does her own research to try to find encouragement about the narrator's cancer diagnosis.
I do think the narrative of this story reads like a very tired, worn-out mother and wife, which is a good thing because that is who the narrator is. However, it does also mean that the story was not super memorable for me. I wanted more of a personality from the prose.
I think this is a great story to read; bit is not all that memorable overall.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer, Infidelity, Grief, Gaslighting
Moderate: Medical content