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rieviolet's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
It takes a moment to orient oneself with the rapid switch of POVs between mother and daughter; but, once you get used to it, you can see how well this stylistic choice supports the narrative and builds on it.
The author depicts the central relationship between mother and daughter in a very striking and heartbreaking way, shining a light on all its complexities and nuances. I also appreciated how Ikstena explored the influence of the historical context (the Soviet rule over Latvia) on the life of individuals.
This is a very bleak story, with strong imagery and symbolism, at times veering a little too far into harrowing and disturbing territory (for example the metaphorical parellel with the story of the daughter's hamster). I think that its shortness works in its favour. The author condenses various elements of reflection (freedom and domination, motherhood and generational trauma, struggles of mental health) in a little over one hundred pages and makes this gloomy and challenging narrative bearable for the reader. Despite everything, the ending still holds a faint glimmer of hope for the future.
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, and Pregnancy
Moderate: Addiction, Animal death, Bullying, Death, Domestic abuse, Mental illness, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Medical content, Abortion, and Death of parent
Minor: Alcoholism, Cancer, Child death, Infertility, Miscarriage, Forced institutionalization, Vomit, Antisemitism, Medical trauma, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, War, Deportation, and Pandemic/Epidemic
snapshotsofabookishlass's review against another edition
4.0
Graphic: Mental illness, Cultural appropriation, and Colonisation
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Infertility, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Forced institutionalization, Death of parent, and Pregnancy
____emily____'s review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Confinement, Drug abuse, Drug use, and Death of parent
Minor: Animal death and Domestic abuse
waybeyondblue's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Medical content, Medical trauma, and Pregnancy
Moderate: Cancer, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Transphobia, and Suicide attempt
clarereadstheworld's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
This is the second book I've read recently about the Soviet occupation of the Baltic states, and seeing the invasion of Ukraine by Russia makes reading these novels that much more unsettling. In Soviet Milk, a mother and daughter try desperately to succeed in leading happy lives despite the oppressive government, which dosen't allow for so much as an out of line thought.
I found the narrative a little hard to get into. The narrative voice switches between the mother and the daughter, but it wasn't initially clear who the section was focused on, and at first I found the short segments a little hard to grasp. However, I'm very glad I persevered, because once I got into it, the narrative opened up into a wonderful story of oppression and rebellion, of despair and hope, of suffering and love. The development of the characters was beautiful and tragic, but always spectacularly written.
The theme of Milk runs throughout the book and is a metaphor not just for a mother's love, but also a love of the mother land. Ikstena really captured the feeling of living under a dictatorial regime, where the walls have ears, and anyone could turn in anyone for doing anything even remotely suspicious.
The novel briefly mentions people holding hands for freedom. Upon doing some research after reading I discovered this was referring to the Baltic Way, when in August 1989, people in the Baltic states joined hands forming a human chain as a form of peaceful protest against the Soviet occupation. The chain connected the three Baltic capitals – Vilnius, Riga, and Tallinn, around 690km! It was a truly beautiful and moving moment in history.
Graphic: Mental illness, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Suicide attempt, and Death of parent