A review by casskrug
Maps of Our Spectacular Bodies by Maddie Mortimer

4.0

this was quite an inventive, poetic book about a woman’s personal history and struggle with cancer. lia, mother of iris and wife of harry, has just found out that her cancer has returned. there’s a cast of characters from her past and we learn about the events that have shaped her.

i felt really engaged with the plot and the way we uncovered more of lia’s history as the book progressed - there were some moments revealed that genuinely shocked me. i also enjoyed seeing the nuances of the relationships between the characters, especially the grandmother-mother-daughter trio of anne, lia, and iris. with the book being pretty lengthy, i had a chance to get truly invested in their lives, and i did shed some tears at the end.

i found the inclusion of the disease’s point of view to be really intriguing, especially its shift from using “i” to “we” as it took over more of lia’s body. the writing style was a bit too flowery for my personal taste at times, but it created an earnestness in tone that was ultimately quite touching. the book covers some very raw experiences and the style did well in conveying the emotions and turmoil of the characters.

instead of stretching the reading experience out like i tend to do with longer books, i found myself motivated to continue moving through the story as i got deeper in. this is a book that had a high likelihood of not working for me due to its style, but i must have picked it up at the right time.