The School for Good Mothers by Jessamine Chan
Product details
Web ID: 15421527Are you afraid of the surveillance state?
Are you afraid of the surviellance state? In Jessamine Chan's THE SCHOOL FOR GOOD MOTHERS a mother's worst nightmare comes true–Frida Liu is a struggling mother who finds herself punished for her worst mistake: leaving her toddler home alone while she ran an errand. In the aftermath of a CPS investigation Frida finds herself first scrupulously monitored and eventually sentanced to a year in a state institution where she will be trained on how to mother. With precient cultural critique, Jessamine Chan's debut novel thoughtfully challenges the concept of "good motherhood" in the United States, forcing her readers to consider the line between good mother/bad mother not just permeable, but practically indiscernable.
Recommends this product
Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
unexpected
interesting
Recommends this product
Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Slow-Burning Dystopia
This slow-burning dystopian drama builds the suspense gradually, as our familiar world begins to turn dark and troubling. It begins with intrusive surveillance, directed at a frazzled mother who leaves her baby alone for a couple hours--something she calls a terrible mistake, and for which she truly feels remorse. When Child Protective Services intervenes, they introduce a pilot program that installs cameras everywhere in our protagonist's home. She fails to satisfy the agency's demands for sufficiently committed motherhood and is sent to what appears to be a reeducation camp. Things spiral into a darkness of absurdity and thought control after that. Chan's debut novel is a well-crafted exploration of the hostility and attempts at social control directed at mothers who don't meet society's model of total sacrifice and erasure of identity to satisfy the needs of their children. She evokes at times the style of George Saunders in the absurdities encountered during her "reeducation". The barbs are particularly stinging after the overturning of Roe v. Wade, as pregnant mothers become subject to the state's disregard of their own health for the sake of their unborn children.
Recommends this product
Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
yikes
Pulled me with the drama of her daughter but lost me with the boring details and no action behind it.
Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
An accurate portrayal of women's future treatment
This book hits it all - - harsher rules for POC - utilizes stereotypes to show differential treatment - men granted more leniency - women pitted against each other - anti any non male/female relationships - anti any woman's sexuality j - anti any woman's identity outside of traditional roles - majority of "mothers" are young - late teens/early twenties Wow. This book takes a hard look - but not unfounded. Not unfounded. This is women's future - reported for mostly minor infractions, pooled with those with pose actual threats to their children. Terrifying. Chan does an amazing job of using American culture - without extremism. This is what we are on the brink of!
Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Not my type of reading
3.25. This debut novel has gotten a lot of good buzz. However, I found it painfully slow to read, predictable, and very repetitious. I think this author shows talent with pretty good character development but this novel did not grab me. A disturbing dystopian novel taking place in contemporary times on motherhood that could capture almost any mother within its orbit with an Orwellian tone of the state taking control. Others may enjoy it, but was not to my liking. I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an unbiased and candid review.
Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Interesting story
I couldn't decide whether to give this book 3 stars or 4 stars. After much thought, I decided it deserved 4 stars because it definitely held my interest. The 3 stars would have just been because it was a very uncomfortable book to read. And think about what it would be like if this kind of situation were a reality.
Recommends this product
Customer review from barnesandnoble.com