I was very much intrigued by the concept of this story, however I was not engaged with the storyline at all. Nothing happened to the main characters, nothing exciting happened, and there was no arc to the plot at all. Ultimately I felt it was boring.

If you are a fan of Handmaids Tale you enjoys this! Imagine a world where parental policing is everywhere neighbors turning in neighbors, strangers reporting parents, every action every word judged. Then you get sent to a school to “learn” to be a better parent. The kicker you get to practice with life like doll robots. I couldn’t put this book down truly an original concept!

What does it mean to be a good mother? And what should happen to bad mothers? The School for Good Mothers tackles these questions in a new, interesting way.

Frida is a woman struggling to adjust to motherhood. A cheating spouse, a demanding workplace, and her own mental health challenges all contribute to Frida making a choice that results in a neighbor calling CPS. As a result of the investigations (and under threat of losing her daughter permanently), Frida is enrolled in a program designed to help her become a good mother. This is where the story takes a dystopian, troubling turn. The School For Good Mothers is a year-long, residential program that lumps offenders of all levels together. Parenting classes are frighteningly prescriptive, and the goalposts of success seem to be constantly moving. It’s unclear what success looks like, but failure is specific and constant.

There is a lot to wrestle with in this book. Frida is a difficult character with whom to empathize. As a mother, I am certainly sympathetic to the challenges of parenthood, among them the immense societal pressure to parent “correctly” or risk screwing up your kids. The line between negligence and mistake can be blurry and difficult to navigate, but the choice Frida makes is so clearly negligent that it is difficult to feel sorry or troubled when she faces consequences.

The depth and reach of those consequences, however, feels too big - outsize for the infraction - and so the reader ends up on Frida’s side, sort of. The School is a terrifying place, and the things that happen there are so clearly bad and wrong - but one is left wondering, what *would* be the right consequence? What *should* happen to parents like Frida? Whose kids should be taken away, and for what reasons? What should parents have to do to prove their fitness?

This would be a great read for fans of The Handmaid’s Tale. I also think that this book would be a wonderful book club book, as the scope for discussion is so broad and relatable.

The main character was hard to sympathize with. Overall the concept was interesting but went too far. The story became not believable and thus the characters harder to relate to.

Spoilers ahead!

Oh, my heart.

As a mother of a baby around the same age as Harriet, this book absolutely pierced my heart and made me consider what my life would be like if he was taken from me.
Frida’s journey is painful. I empathized with her and I also was guilty of the mother-judging. ‘I would *never* leave my baby, I’m not a bad mother’, I felt myself judge, just as she judged the baby hitters and other offending mothers. I am guilty of things the women running the facility would make me repeat, “I am a narcissist because I am on my phone too much” or “I am a bad mother but I am learning to be better at motherese”.
I appreciated that her crime was something that was bad, but also understandable. It made the consequences of the world more believable and terrifying. It spoke to how many mothers are deprived of resources, and shamed if they ask for those resources if they need them.
Frida could have put Harriet in daycare, but it is also a shameful act for mothers to do so. That thought process is rampant in society still. Her doctor pressured her to go off her antidepressants for her daughter’s health, which happened to me my first pregnancy as well. And I suffered, much like Frida, without help.
I wanted so much for a happy ending for Frida and Harriet. I didn’t think I would get one, it wouldn’t work with the overall tone. When Frida takes Harriet in the end, knowing she will be caught and how bad her consequences would be, I understood. That stolen time with her baby is worth it.
Simply put, this novel is devastating. It is beautiful. It shines a light on real injustice in society when it comes to family separation and parenting. I will be thinking of this novel for a long, long time.

A thought-provoking novel that is a dystopian perspective on parenting and society’s view of parenting.
I absolutely loved it.
before starting this book, acknowledge the fact that this plot takes place in an alternative world. take this plot with a dystopian perspective and lay the book’s world parallel with our current world. that should make it easier to understand and analyze.

This book was upsetting to me.. I read about 50-60 books a year and this is a book that had me so upset that I could not finish it.. I very RARELY do that!! The theme of the book was apparent right from the beginning. It was a typical sad divorce situation that led the mother to have breakdown and leave her baby alone for almost two hours. Her punishment was uncalled for and the fact that they use robots to look like the children that these poor mothers neglected was too disturbing for me. That is when I stopped reading. I am a teacher and I think it affected me in a negative way.

This book took me to some unexpected places. Ultimately it didn't take me quite where I wanted to go, but I found it an interesting ride nonetheless.

The first chunk of this book reads like something set in the here and now. Frida does an awful thing, (which will likely be hard for a reader to forgive) and has multiple conditions applied to her access to her child. All feels pretty straightforward.

The book really gets moving when Frida is shipped off to the School for Good Mothers. This where the book gets it's Handmaid's Tale vibe. And quite frankly, I wish it would have leaned harder into that vibe. There are truly awful mothers at the school, as well as some who just made very human parenting errors (again, something which I wish it would have explored more.) I thought the idea of the school and the execution of this portion of the book was excellent.

This book would likely be most thought provoking for mothers to read, who likely ask themselves what makes a "good" mother all the time. Is there a formula to good parenting? Must a woman lose her total sense of self in order to care and nurture a child? This book investigates some uncomfortable, heart-wrenching answers to those questions. (But unlike Handmaid's they're not necessarily terrifying answers).

This book gave me a lot to think about. It had the potential to take this idea into more extreme territory (a la The Handmaid's Tale) but instead stays more firmly rooted in reality. Other than the school, the rest of this world could exist within our own. Not necessarily an artistic choice I loved, but one I respected.

I received an ARC of this book courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Jessamine Chan's debut novel is intense, whip-smart, and would have read as science-fiction or satire five years ago. Reading this in 2021, the scenarios Chan's main character, Frida, is placed in are all too believable. Chan's writing is so descriptive that you become immediately invested in the characters and begin questioning your own morals and judgments as you find yourself rooting for various characters and putting yourself in their shoes. I had to put this book down several times to take deep breaths, and closed the book wanting to hug my loved ones and advocate for increased support for parents. Truly fantastic read.

Frida Liu is a newly single mother of a toddler after her husband takes on a younger mistress. Working from home while parenting her daughter, Harriet, presents several challenges. When Harriet develops an ear infection accompanied by non-stop screaming, Frida, in a moment of weakness and stress, leaves her home alone.

But the government is watching single moms like Frida and she is thrust in to a school for “bad” mothers. The resulting education reveals a dystopian nightmare for Frida and the other women in attendance. With her parenting rights on the line, will Frida be able to make it through the year of trials and challenges?

This book is wild! It sheds light on the stark expectations of single mothers and a scary view of how quickly the government can take control of a parent’s rights. Fans of The Handmaid’s Tale and Ex Machina will enjoy this book.

Thank you to NetGalley, Simon and Shuster and the author for this free digital ARC in exchange for my honest review.

TW: Suicide and physical abuse

This will be a spoiler-free review! I was given an e-arc of this book through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. :)

This book is about a mother who ends up losing custody of her daughter after leaving her alone for a few hours. She then has two choices to make: either she goes to the school for good mothers for a year or she never gets to see her daughter again. She goes to the school for obvious reasons, she can't lose her daughter.

I think the plot of this book is so unique and interesting! I have never read or heard of a book like this so it definitely drew me in from the beginning. The writing style is good and even though this book felt like it could drag on at times it still managed to keep my attention for the most part. It kept me wondering how it would end and how things would turn out for our main character Frida.

I did notice throughout the book how truly selfish Frida is though. She always claims everything is for her daughter but if you really look at her and the things she says you'll see she does everything for herself and it's always about herself. I think that also made it interesting because she's almost trying convince you, the reader, as well as everyone around her that she is in fact a good mother who can't lose her daughter. 

Honestly, there are a lot of things I could bring up but I don't want to spoil the book for anyone. I think this book feels like a classic. I wouldn't be surprised if in the future kids are reading this book in school and analyzing it, because it reads very much like a classic and there are so many things in this book that could be discussed on a deeper level. I think in that sense it's incredibly done.

I thought the ending was interesting as well...I won't give it away, but it was done well. It was another thing that could keep you wondering and thinking. I like how much this book made me think about Frida and her intentions. 

I may not have loved Frida, but I didn't hate her either. She did a lot of questionable things, but there were times where I could empathize for her and her situation. She definitely had some relatable moments and feelings. 

Overall this is a good book and an interesting read. I think it brings up some interesting ideas and it has a lot of things in it that could be discussed on a deeper level. I would recommend this book if it sounds like something you would like. It's not a new favorite of mine, but it's definitely not a bad book. :) I totally agree with it being a "modern literary classic".

Chan not only delivers on a dystopian setting but does it in a way that feels it could happen. It also asks the question of crime & punishment and what people really deserve.

Frida had a very bad day & left her baby alone for a few hours. That catapults her life into something unrecognizable as she's denied chances to see her daughter. She gets a chance to spend 1 year learning to be a good mother in a camp which will decide if she gets her daughter back.

The book is full of social commentary on racism & sexism--the fathers at another camp seem to have it easier, the white mothers to get more chances than the black ones. Frida is the only Chinese person there.

Most interesting to me was how real the prose felt & how close to this terrible place we are. Frida was a very relatable character, her internal narrative talking through a history of men barely interested in her, of sacrificing her body to feel cared for, of the burning anger of having been cheated on & having to watch that woman raise her child. Of what it means to be free.

Highly recommended for fans of dystopia fiction & things that feel just a little too real.

Frida has one very bad day of needing a moment to herself, and it changes her life forever. She lives for her daughter, Harriet, who is now left in the care of her husband and his home wrecker while Frida is sent to a facility to retrain parents on how to be effective. Filled with sentient robots, grieving parents, psychosis, upset children, and a world not too far from Atwood’s Handmaids Tale, this book will remain with me for a long time.

It is definitely a commentary on current day parenting expectations, especially through the influence of social media. As a teacher, I had an even more shifted perspective of this as I came to realize some of my own familial judgments across the years. This is a story that makes you think deeply about your own prejudices and parenting style. Thank you for the ARC, Netgalley and the publishers.

This novel is The Handmaid's Tale meets 1984 in that. it's dystopian in a future world where parents are sentenced to a year's worth of "classes" designed to make them atone for any endangerment they've been accused of. Frida's had a "bad day" and left young Harriet alone in a bouncy swing for 2 hours while she went to the office. So she's off to "school" where there is complete structure along with "children" with which they can learn to be better parents. This book was both haunting and chilling for me; as a teacher, parent, and grandparent, I understand how we can all have bad days (who doesn't?) but leaving a baby alone for that amount of time is hard to swallow. Regardless, the book explores the system and judgements placed on women (and men) who somehow fail to live up to society's standards and are labeled "bad parents." This one will resonate with me for a long time!

I was excited to receive this as an ARC. Frida has a really bad day and gets her daughter taken away. To get her back she must attend a school for bad mothers. This premise interested me. There were parts I really enjoyed. While she was at the school, I was torn between anger and sadness, and at times boredom. It seemed very drawn out. However, I was more invested than I realized and it definitely made me feel lots of different feelings. As parents, we all make mistakes and screw up. This book looked at how mothers are scrutinized for everything. If it weren’t for the parts that were drawn out, I would’ve given it 4 stars. At times, it was hard to feel much for Frida.

Yes!! This book hit all of the right buttons for me. The Oriental atmosphere is just so on point. I loved the theme of motherhood and raising a family regardless of the harshness of the situation. Would I recommend this? Definitely. I read a book for every country, so this truly gave me a lot of cultural perspective.

If you like “The Handmaid’s Tale” this book is for you. This a dystopian novel about a woman who leaves 18-month-old alone for 2-1/2 hours. She is sentenced to a year in the School for Good Mothers. It’s there where she is paired with her “robot daughter” who records all of their interactions. Cameras and guards are everywhere and her performance is evaluated frequently. Of course, she complies with all the rules with the hope of getting custody of getting her daughter back after her one year training. It would be easy to say “she shouldn’t have left her daughter alone“ but then we discover that woman are there for such minor infractions as their child falling off playground equipment. This is a truly frightening story about where our society could end up. I would have given it five stars if it weren’t for the fact that I felt there were some inconsistencies in the mindset of those who might create such a society.

The initial concept of the book drew me in. I was quite interested in reading a story of how unreasonable parenting expectations are put on mothers. The book opened with a very strong plot: daughter taken away when the mother was making a quick stop at her office. When the more dystopian aspects of the book began (cameras being installed in the apartment) I was quite shocked at the turn in the book. I didn't quite understand the dystopian world as the book portrayed. It almost felt like the present day except one town gone in an extremely wrong way. I wished there was a bit more world building, showing how the world turned to this point, thereby justifying the extreme surveillance. The book and the concept has a lot of potential if there is just a bit more justification for how it got to this point

I’m sorry. I really thought I’d enjoy this based on the description but I just couldn’t get into it at all. I struggled through a little over half and then just left it. I intended to go back but never did and don’t feel like I’m missing out. Just not the book for me.

Wow. I just finished reading The School for Good Mothers. It is such an interesting story. It is wholly original and yet feels like a familiar nightmare. This book is going to sit with me for a long time.

Frida Liu has had a very bad day. Exhausted from a day spent alone with her screaming toddler, she leaves her at home to get a coffee - and then stop by the office - and then it’s been two and a half hours and the police are bringing Frida in on charges of endangerment.

Frida’s battle to win back her daughter spirals into a dystopian nightmare. Author Jessamine Chan explores the modern world of American upper-middle class parenting and the pressures put on the modern day mother. The dystopian elements really worked for me, and I devoured the book in days once they got to the school.

While I really appreciated the critique of modern day parenting and how the government interferes - I also struggled with this element of the book. I am a teacher, and hope one day to be a mother, and it was hard to accept Frida’s “bad day.” In the novel, no one but Frida really accepts or empathizes with her decision to leave her toddler home alone for hours. I did believe that she loved her daughter, and I do understand feeling like you need a break from a child. I really had to work to accept that she would leave her daughter home alone. And yet, I think that is what made the book work in the end - you could disagree with Frida’s choice, and still empathize with her and hate what was being done to her.

To me, this book felt like a mixture of Handmaid’s Tale (the book) and Orange is the New Black (the show) - two stories that I deeply, deeply love.

Thank you, Jessamine Chan for this fantastic novel.
Thank you Netgalley and Simon & Schuster for the ARC. (Please keep them coming!)