In The School for Good Mothers Jessamine Chen delivers a fascinating commentary on society’s expectations of parents through a dystopian lens.
I am a bad mother, but I am learning to be good. This is the mantra of hundreds of women at the government-sponsored School For Good Mothers. Each of them are willing to do anything to get their children back, including trying to survive a nine-unit course on the art of mothering. From caring for scarily realistic animated dolls to saving children from burning buildings to learning the different kinds of hugs and practicing them, perfection is expected at every step. If a mother cannot be nearly perfect, she might never see her child again.
I really enjoyed this book and thought it brought up some really interesting points that I had never considered before. The first half of the book was kind of boring though, but I thought the writing was pretty well done and the emotions were well communicated.