This book was fabulous! Heartbreaking and beautiful at the same time. I think this book will help a lot of people and offer hope. Highly recommend!

A complex perspective on a hot and timely topic. I deeply appreciated the author's nuanced take on a politically divisive issue and the way the issue is explored through narrative. The book is well paced and I enjoyed the shifting perspectives between the two sisters! It's extremely character driven and centers on the stories of how the two sisters manage their unplanned pregnancies. It's a short read but there is a lot packed into the book. While I enjoyed it this topic matter isn't necessarily for everyone!

This is my first time reading anything by this author and I was very impressed. I really enjoyed the story and the way it was laid out. The pacing was steady, the characters relatable, and a very timely subject.

A story about two sisters told in parallel. Heartfelt and heartbreaking, we don't ever know what is in the heart of others.

I really wanted to like this book but for the life of me — I could not get into it. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this arc ebook in exchange for an honest review.

Not every author can pull off writing "unlikable" protagonists; this book just didn't have enough emotional depth for me to be able to sympathize with how terrible the protagonist is. And my goodness, where was the editor? These characters' thoughts go on and on and on, but it wasn't interesting and didn't help me understand the sisters any better. Just an overall bad reading experience. 1.5 stars.

How to Care for a Human Girl is an intense story with complex, difficult topics; maturing sisters and the men in their lives; plus difficult decisions and the implications. Ashley Wurzbacher has written a compelling drama that is interwoven with interesting, real-life relationship studies and facts.

Thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for the opportunity to read this ARC.

I thought this book was definitely ok. This author took difficult, timely issues and turned them into something that was relatable while showing both sides of the coin. The story is told in parallel and goes back and forth into the past with their mother and gives a voice to each sister. I cannot really say I cared for the girls much. I felt that they both really lacked depth and realism. I think the emotion was definitely there, however the actions and behaviors did not balance out with their emotions. This made them both unlikable for me and made me struggle to become invested in the story past a certain point. There was a lot of repetition and stalling throughout with the plot that made this book drag in parts. I definitely think this author has talent and would like to see what else she can do. This was not a bad first effort for a novel. Thanks for the ARC, NetGalley.

Contemplative, moving, unsettling at some points. A great novel. Thank you for the opportunity to read and review

Jada and Maddy had a complicated sibling relationship. Jada had to practically raise Maddy as their mother had cancer and was unable to properly care for either of them. Then, two years after their mother’s passing, they both find themselves navigating unplanned pregnancies. Jada is married and Maddy is 19 years old, fresh out of high school, and pregnant by an older, married man.

The story flips from past to present as we learn about the struggles in their relationship, their choices and why they made them, and traversing through grief and finding their way back to each other.

I can see how this book could be difficult to read for some folks, but it’s written beautifully, even through the hard stuff. I give it 4 stars. Thank you, NetGalley and Atria Books for the ARC.

Two sisters, similar circumstances, two totally different paths of life being lived. This book really struck a chord (in a good way) with me. The writing was really captivating. The author is so descriptive and beautifully captures the emotions of the two sisters. I really loved the way the author intertwined studies with feelings, as I tend to nerd out on those kinds of things. I also really resonated with growing up in a family whose beliefs you independently outgrow.

That being said, this book won’t be for everyone. It kind of bummed me out at how short it was, as I would have loved to see more character development. I also at times was unsure if the author was trying to push a political/social agenda of some sort. The end had me very confused because I thought for sure I’d figure out where they were going with that, but it definitely leaves you questioning.

Thanks to NetGalley/Atria Books for an ARC of this book!!

Thank you Netgalley for this ARC of How to Care for a Human Girl by Ashley Wurzbacher.

This is a story about two sisters who find themselves unexpectedly pregnant at the same time, and how each of them deals with it. And even though they have a tumultuous relationship, through these pregnancies, they are able to find each other again.

I hate being that guy, especially since the overall consensus of this book is positive, but I didn't get it! I could not relate to anyone in the story. I did not understand their decisions or relationships, and I didn't really like them either. I'm sure that this will speak to a lot of people, Im just not one of them.

Maddy and Jada, two sisters who find themselves pregnant simultaneously, struggle with their own decisions regarding whether or not to keep their baby. With Jada obtaining an abortion without her husband’s knowledge and her sister planning an abortion as well, both sisters eventually come together and try to repair the damage that had initially caused them to grow apart.

Wurzbacher beautifully wrote this novel, and even though I loved everything about it, I sometimes found it too wordy. While the backstory tended to overshadow the current struggles the characters were facing, it lent some insight into their fractured relationships. It helped build a foundation that allowed the story to grow and move in the direction intended.

Overall an outstanding and insightful read. The perspective of both characters in different stations in their lives and the stereotypes that come with youth or the traditional and stable married couple was intriguing.

The publisher provided ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you Ashley Wurzbacher, Atria Books and NetGalley for allowing me to read this ARC e-book. They say cousins are your first best friends and for two sisters that seems like it would be perfect especially becoming pregnant at the same time, yet nothing is that perfect. For two estranged sisters who both have unplanned pregnancies two years after the untimely death of their mother this will not be easy or anything like they thought. With each sister not knowing what they want and both not even sure who each of them are they work on supporting each other through their decisions, learning who each other truly is and building each other back up. It was a wonderful story to read especially if you have dealt with any sibling issues. Extremely eye opening.

Jada and Maddy are sisters, both grieving the loss of their mother and trying to get by. Jada, an adult woman in graduate school, with a husband, and a home, and Maddy, a very young adult fresh out of high school, having an affair with a married man, cleaning houses and volunteering at a bird rehab/sanctuary.

I enjoyed this one, but wanted more from it. Although I knew about the decisions that both women made, I still left this feeling like I didn’t know much at all about the main characters, other than their pregnancies and I found the ending far too open with too many pieces of the story unanswered/open to be satisfying.

This was a struggle to get through. Jada and Maddy are so insufferable. They read like middle schoolers than adult woman. Jada hides in a closet from her husband. Really? I found this book to be insulting to women which is perplexing since this novel is written by a female author. I didn't find the characters relatable, and I also wasn't pulled in by their backstory. I ended up not caring about their circumstance by the end. This book should've been great. Women's rights are important to me, but this book lacked empowerment, and the sensitive subject matter of abortion was handled inappropriately. The only positive is the gorgeous cover art. A very forgettable novel.

Thank you, Netgalley and Atria for the digital ARC.

Thanks to Atria Books and Netgalley for allowing me to read this book ahead of its release in return for an honest review.

This book hit so many marks for me and I really enjoyed it. I loved the pacing and how it flips back and forth from the present and the past.

This book follows two sisters, Jada and Maddy, through their unexpected pregnancies and what they do about it. They are both in vastly different places in their life. Jada is married to a man who was the safe choice and is attempting to figure out whether marriage was the right decision for her; and Maddy is in her early twenties and recently dumped. The book looks at their difficult shared past, the death of their mother, and whether their new circumstances can bring the two together again.

Although there is a lot in this book that is highly stressful, Wurzbacher presents it in such a kind and meandering way that it’s almost understated. I think this style really helps the book. There is also just the right amount of interpersonal drama.

I really like how we get to see things from both sisters perspectives. This really helps to move the plot along and gives you a better understanding of what’s going on.

Overall this is a really lovely book. There’s a lot in it that really does it for me, but I would say that this isn’t a book for everyone.

I received an ARC of this book from Netgalley in exchange for my honest review.

REVIEW TO FOLLOW.

I enjoyed this novel and appreciated its focus on pregnancy, abortion and women's bodies. I don't think I would use it in my college classes, but I did find it to be an interesting reading experience.

Things this book deals with incredibly, fantastically well: What it means to be a woman, and a daughter, and maybe a mother (or maybe not a mother). That there's a difference between wanting something, and being told by the world we should want it, and how the cognitive dissonance between those two things can overwhelm us.. That the value of having options reaches a point of diminishing returns quite quickly (aka the science of choice overload).

It's a familiar enough story in its parts: smart girl leaves small town, but doesn't fit in new life, or in old. Unplanned pregnancy (pregnancies in this case) and what to do about them. Losing a parent.

But Wurzbacher handles them all so beautifully, interconnects them in a way that feels very true, and gives the most balanced and nuanced depiction of where our choices really come from and why we all make different ones. Amazing.

Per publishers request, I won't post this on socials until release day.