Reviews with content warning for Pregnancy - The Pull of the Stars

Reviews tagging 'Pregnancy'

The Pull of the Stars by Emma Donoghue

81 reviews

mrkthrnmln's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

I really enjoyed this. There is a lot of pretty gruesome birth stuff, so not sure I would recommend it for everyone, but it is super interesting to learn about this moment in time. I just wish there had been more about the doctor - the blurb makes it seem like the three women would be equally important, and she is really just a side character.

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amcaslow's review against another edition

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emotional sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.25

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yayathegreat38's review against another edition

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dark emotional sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

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rachbreads's review against another edition

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2.5

I’ve read two other books by Emma Donoghue - Room (my rating: 4/5) and The Wonder (my rating: 5/5). The Pull of the Stars (my rating: 2.5/5) is similar to The Wonder - set in historical Ireland, elements of religious/societal oppression, nurses, a single, small setting for most of the action. What The Wonder had that TPotS lacked is this delicious slow burn tension - there’s a big mystery at the heart of TW that the nurse is trying to figure out, and we as readers realllly want to know what’s happening which keeps you so engaged. Plus there are very few characters so you get really connected to them over the course of the book, as opposed to the revolving door of patients and doctors in TPotS where no one stayed around long enough for me to care about them.

What I liked about TPotS was also what I loved about The Wonder - she intentionally keeps the setting very small it almost feels claustrophobic. So we felt stuck in this tiny fever ward with Julia the same way in TW we felt stuck in this tiny bedroom with the nurse Lib. I will say overall that I was rooting for Julia - she really was trying her best and I wanted her to succeed.

I guess that’s why the ending let me down because Donoghue gave her a hint of happiness with Bridie and then took it away. I guess we could infer that she will be happy making a family with her brother and the baby but it still felt like a letdown. And I feel like we had no indication at all throughout the rest of the book that she would ever do anything like quit her job and take home a baby…

Other thoughts - why was Kathleen there? She felt unnecessary as a character other than to give us proof that there was also political unrest happening at the same time as the pandemic. It was interesting to read about the medical beliefs and procedures of the time with regards to pregnancy/maternity as well as the flu and compare them to present day practices - I’m sure she did a lot of research.

Overall, not a terrible book, and it had some interesting moments, but it probably won’t stick with me. I feel like mostly what I’m taking away is an increased horror of childbirth 😂

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