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I'm going to give this ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️, but not because I loved it. I admire the story this author crafted and it upset me SO MUCH.

Full review: https://laurensreads.blogspot.com

I liked the premise of this book. I think Frida would faced legal consequences in our real world and would receive parenting counseling. But this school was extreme, some scenes were absurd but I expect that in dystopian novels. However, I think it was unnecessarily repetitive in some parts. I still think this would be good for a movie or tv serie adaptation. The end...? Well..you need to read it. 3.75⭐️ I‘m a bad mother but learning to be good”

Terrifying how these outrageous dystopian-adjacent works of fiction are becoming more and more like real life. As a mother, this one hit hard. Though it‘s not a perfect book, it is impactful. Readers spend the majority of the novel with our MC in the school for good mothers, as the title implies. It was a bit repetitive, though it serves a purpose— I felt as if I were there going through the program with the mothers. A book for our time.

#judgemental #maymoms @Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks @Eggs

⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

I can‘t quite say I enjoyed this anxiety-producing read, but it was thought-provoking. My thoughts kept swirling around how women, especially women of color, are disproportionately impacted by broken systems and societal pressures. Could any person live up to every expectation of what it takes to be a “good mother”? What are the parameters and consequences, and who decides? 🎧

This book took about 100 pages to get interesting. It‘s a futuristic story about a woman who loses custody of her daughter and must attend a school for a year whose purpose is to improve parenting skills. Each parent gets a robot doll to practice with and must bond with this doll. I did like the ending.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It was very distopian and made me wonder if I myself am I good mum. I think you may appreciate this book more as a parent and in end I probably would have done what the mum did

Reminds me a little of Handmaid‘s Tale. Struggled to feel bad for the mother in the beginning, but after all the injustices she and the others endure your opinion may change.

Abandoning at 1/3, starts off nearly relevant and believable (kinda like Handmaid's Tale did) but quickly escalates into the realm of weird where "wayward" parents are to use robotic children and stuff. I can see where it is so very, very different is a reason it's getting such high praise it's just not a good fit for me.

Terrifying to say the least but what an excellent look at what government control is capable of.

This book was a tough read. It was very engaging and the premise was very interesting. I think it was really well executed. My only issue with it is that this is every mom's quest nightmare and it's not a happy book. That being says, well done. 🌟🌟🌟🌟

The Handmaid‘s Tale+Never Let Me Go+ every parent‘s worst nightmare = this novel. It was a well written book, along with dystopian flavor it raises very real issues. But it was not a happy read, though it was a quick one. I would not recommend it for new moms, though, I had my insecurities resurfacing, even though mine are teenagers. I chose “pick”, but won‘t reread.

I just picked this one up and I'm excited to drive in. I've gotten just far enough to be outraged on the methods social workers employ to determine whether Frieda is a "good enough" mother.

Set in a dystopian world, we deep dive into the child welfare system, mothering and the bounds of love. This novel asks us to confront how we parent, which is no easy task and asks us to look at how we treat parents and mothers in today's world. I think Chan has raised many valuable points with this book. I have been that exhausted parent. I dont agree with what Frida does in this book but I do emphasize with her needs. Interesting read for sure!

Wowza! A Handmaids-esque look into the strain and double standards placed on mothers. This book is one of my recent favorites. I knew I‘d like it, but I didn‘t know the emotions it would pull out of me. I‘m angry for Frida and ready to fight the patriarchy. ✊💪. A perfect book for book clubs!! 🤩💯📚🤓

A “very bad day” led to a mother‘s worst nightmare. It was dystopian, but it felt like it could happen here today. I got some definite Stepford and 1984 vibes, and you can throw in some Twilight Zone (spoiler in comments). Disturbing, but one of the best books I‘ve read so far this year. #Libby #audiobook

🗣🗣🗣I am LOVING THIS BOOK!!!

I was lucky enough to interview the New York Times bestselling author of this novel and loooooved our conversation. Especially if you‘re a writer (or interested in her process), check it out: https://splitlipthemag.com/interviews/0322/interview-with-jessamine-chan

It‘s a three dog night for me, and I‘d have it no other way. Following up Bright Burning Things with this look into the pressures of motherhood. I didn‘t mean to turn this into a book flight, but the library hold came in and I must read this most anticipated gem 💎 Sixty pages in, and I‘m loving it!

Frida has a bad day, and leaves her infant at home alone. Her neighbor turns her in and she ends up sent to a rehabilitation school for bad mothers. This is dystopia but doesn't feel very far off, and I actually found it hard to read, but in your usual dystopian way.

Book 28

A dystopian world in which parents whose children are removed from them by the state must attend a school for one year in which they learn to be good parents by raising robot doll children. A unique, interesting story. Well-done.

This was hard to read! I read it for the social horror prompt for the PopSugar reading challenge, and I wouldn‘t have otherwise. It was creepy and sad, but I kept turning the pages!

I was supposed to wait and read this in March, but I started it and couldn't stop.

Although this is listed as dystopian, it's scary how real it feels. Chan delivers a heartbreaking tale of how one mistake changes a mother's life, and that of her daughter's, forever. Frida's love for her daughter broke me, and all of the hardships she and the other mothers had to go through angered me.

⬇⬇⬇⬇⬇ more below⬇⬇⬇⬇⬇

Such an interesting book so far…. I know it is a “dystopian” novel, but it‘s not so dystopian as to be unrecognizable, like it‘s just a click or two up the authoritarian scale from where we are now, causing a creeping sense of dread in me that I can scarcely define. My kids are grown now, but I recall the terror of the big mistakes I made, the pressure and the exhaustion feel so real in the novel that it makes the dystopian parts feel so close.

I burned through this fabulous audiobook in a day. It‘s dystopian, but in the way of The Handmaid‘s Tale or 1984, it seems just plausible enough to be truly terrifying. A very well written, heartbreaking debut that had me screaming and crying. I felt so much for Frida and the other mothers at the ‘school.‘ 😩

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2

My weekend audio book, I‘m really looking forward to reading for myself this book everyone seems to be talking about!

Had I realized this was dystopian, I never would have started it. But I got sucked in and there was no turning back. (But it did stress me out. ?) Having "a very bad day," frazzled single mother Frida leaves her toddler home alone for a few hours.She is charged with abandonment& neglect and sent to a year at a reformatory school for parents. She must pass to have any hope of regaining custody. Chan does a good job of taking current parenting?

I barely made it through the first 25% of this book which dragged on with painfully real dystopian setup about a mother being separated from her child by CPS. So glad I didn't DNF though because once I got past that, the interesting stuff began. A penitentiary program for "bad" mothers using artificial children for training, impossible tests, and unequal, gendered expectations set the mothers up for failure. Horror in the truest sense. TWs below.

01. The School for Good Mothers, The Bone Spindle, and Tender

02. The Red Palace by June Hur

03. My holds just came in on The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman and Light Years from Home by Mike Chen

#WeekendReads

Love seeing my current reads alongside my fellow bibliogolists!

It‘s been nice belonging to a library again. Last time I was around there were no ebooks, so notifications like this are a delight.

Society puts so much pressure on parents, but especially mothers. This heartbreaking story plays that pressure out to a dystopian conclusion. This one will stick with me for a long time.

🎧 Tagged and Confessions on the 7:45 by Lisa Unger.
📚 Once More Upon a Time by Roshani Chokshi.

#weekendreading
@Andrew65

Frida has a day of being overwhelmed by single parenthood and ends up plunged into a draconian process to try to prove she can be a good mother and deserves her child. This is a fabulous debut, with the dystopian element so mild (and an accurate reflection of our society) it feels real. I couldn‘t put it down.

So much to check out! https://electricliterature.com/62-books-by-women-of-color-to-read-in-2022/

A chilling read! The school part was kind of standard dystopian fare but well done, and it made me ponder the awfulness of teaching parenting skills (or anything!) from a place of judgment instead of from a place of support. For me, the true horror came from the narrative outside the school, where mothering and womanhood were subjected to a super creepy Panopticon of surveillance in service of one definition of perfection. Feels too possible!

A n emotional moving read from the first pages.A mother to a toddler newly divorced alone with her eighteen month makes a terrible mistake leaves her child alone for two hours.The police are called her life unravels a story women mothers will relate to.A-five star read for me highly recommend.

The Millions' book preview for the first half of 2022 is here!

https://themillions.com/2022/01/most-anticipated-the-great-first-half-2022-book-...

Still stunned by how good this one was! It actually made me cry several times - a true sign of a good writer in my opinion. Such an interesting commentary on the pressure to be a perfect mother. Can‘t wait for people to read this one! #arc ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Full review at ErinKonrad.com

Holy Sh!t!!! What a mind-f*&$!!! So many emotions followed by the common "omg there's only 34 pages to tie this sh!t together" anxiety. 5 ?

I liked the beginning (Frida Liu, educated as she is, was a hot mess), and I liked the end. I liked the idea of the story and find it Jenna bookclub discussion worthy. However, the dystopian middle was tedious for me. Except for silicone Emmanuelle, the author didn‘t convince me to care about the supporting characters in the school so those page didn‘t resonate for me. Dang, I guess had a bad reading day ;(

#Pantone2022 Harbor Blue

Starting this at lunch today. 🤩🤩🤩🤩

Happy Publication Day! Whew- this is not a light-hearted read- but it‘s certainly darkly captivating. In the same vein as THE HANDMAID‘S TALE, this is set in an alternate reality. Frida, a single mother, struggles when her toddler is ill and leaves her sleep-deprived. After a very bad day, her maternal rights are called into question. The only chance she has is a year long school to help her learn to be a better mother. The year is heartbreaking…

So excited to read this book & enjoy my wonderful holiday gifts from friends.Happy Holidays everyone 🧑‍🎄🎄💃

I loved the book for all the emotions I had reading. This is not a joyful read by any means, but such a powerful story that does not feel so far fetched. If you love The Handmaid‘s Tale by Margaret Atwood, Vox by Christina Dalcher or Red Clocks by Leni Zumas this might be the book for you. This will be a great book for book clubs as there is a ton to unpack and debate throughout.

Love unexpected book mail, especially when the cover art is so pretty 🪴📖📫💕
#bookmail #arc #2022 #covercrush

This is a dystopian look at how policing parents could go really wrong. Frida has a melt down one day and makes a mistake. Her child, who was not harmed, is taken away and she is sent away to parenting school for an entire year. It's pretty ridiculous. But it's meant to be. I really liked it.

#BookSpinBingo square 19
@TheAromaofBooks

Pub date is 1/4/2022
#ARC #Netgalley

Sooooo many good books about motherhood this year. This one has some Handmaid‘s Tale vibes. #ARC #netgalley

My first 2022 bookmail

Wow. Just finished this one—both haunting and chilling! The Handmaid‘s Tale meets 1984. Frida had a “bad day” and left her young child alone for 2 hours and is then sent to a year-long school that teaches parents to be “better.” Good look at a dystopian society that is judgmental and frightening in its severity!
Thanks to #NetGalley for this ARC