quinndm's review against another edition
5.0
I wasn't sure I would respond to a story about a gay couple trying to have a baby... but it ended up being one of the best-written books I have ever experienced. It takes a creative genius to take a "simple" story about a gay couple trying to have a baby and turn it into this genius book! Debora's reason for carrying the baby was shocking and so tender (and original!). And so was everything that came after. This book could EASILY have devolved into the usual gay tropes of relationships and monogamy, but Michael Lowenthal took it all and created something I will think about for a very long time. A perfect little book.
shai3d's review against another edition
4.0
THE PATERNITY TEST is a no holds barred look at a long term gay relationship who is attempting to add a child by using a surrogate mother. Told from Pat's point of view we learn about the stress and tensions that both he and Stu undergo as they are waiting to hear that they are about to be a father.
I really enjoyed the book as it gave me an inside view of a different type of loving committed relationship. While a lot of the dynamics are the same a lot are not. And I am not just talking about them being gay, the reader is also shown the pressure that is applied within Jewish families to carry on the line to both the male and female children.
I do recommend THE PATERNITY TEST as it really takes the reader through the ups and downs of relationships when trying to have a baby. I rate this a 4.3.
*** I received this book at no charge from NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review. All opinions expressed within are my own
atschakfoert's review against another edition
2.0
Slow as molasses! Full of stereotypes and cliches, this is a novel that should have been excellent but fell flat instead.
jgeisler's review against another edition
3.0
This book is not for everyone, but I liked it. It provides insight into one gay couple's quest for a child, simultaneous with attempts to strengthen their relationship. My takeaway - regardless of sexual preference, some couples may really, really want a child, but their relationship is not ready.
savaging's review
2.0
People I trust love this book. But it didn't work for me.
Can we blame my anti-natalism? (I think the main characters want children to immortalize themselves, rather than because they actually want to care for a vulnerable creature. Am I supposed to feel bad about how difficult it is for them?)
Or how about my overactive feminism? (It's one thing for the flawed characters to treat this woman as a womb. But it seems like the author did sort of create a character who is a womb. I kept thinking I wanted her to be the narrator of the story, but then thought how all her pregnancy-longing would make me queasy. Also: that's not how diva cups work.)
Or class analysis? (ew the poors, who don't have estates, and New England streets named after them. Plymouth is so bad "I even saw a homeless man." Debora grew up exotically poor, so we're able to romanticize her instead of despise or ignore her.)
Or is The Paternity Test just sort of bad writing? Each emotion is over-explained, each metaphor overwrought, every action requires an adverb. While reading I would ask a friend "can you smile at me obtusely now?" "Ok, now say something triumphantly."
The beginning was especially rough for me -- I almost put it down. I kept reading and the plot livened up. The ending was the best part, stoic and realistic.
Can we blame my anti-natalism? (I think the main characters want children to immortalize themselves, rather than because they actually want to care for a vulnerable creature. Am I supposed to feel bad about how difficult it is for them?)
Or how about my overactive feminism? (It's one thing for the flawed characters to treat this woman as a womb. But it seems like the author did sort of create a character who is a womb. I kept thinking I wanted her to be the narrator of the story, but then thought how all her pregnancy-longing would make me queasy. Also: that's not how diva cups work.)
Or class analysis? (ew the poors, who don't have estates, and New England streets named after them. Plymouth is so bad "I even saw a homeless man." Debora grew up exotically poor, so we're able to romanticize her instead of despise or ignore her.)
Or is The Paternity Test just sort of bad writing? Each emotion is over-explained, each metaphor overwrought, every action requires an adverb. While reading I would ask a friend "can you smile at me obtusely now?" "Ok, now say something triumphantly."
The beginning was especially rough for me -- I almost put it down. I kept reading and the plot livened up. The ending was the best part, stoic and realistic.
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