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    Mothers' Group
    Mothers' Group
    Mothers' Group
    Ebook383 pages7 hours

    Mothers' Group

    By Fiona Higgins

    3.5/5

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    About this ebook

    The Mothers' Group tells the story of six very different women who agree to reguilarly meet soon after the birth of their babies. Set during the first crucial year of their babies' lives, the story tracks the women's individual journeys—and the group's collective one—as they navigate birth and motherhood as well as their shifting romantic relationships Each woman strives in her own way to become the mother she wants to be, and finds herself becoming increasingly reliant on the friendship and support of the members of the group. Until one day an unthinkably shocking event changes everything. This is an unflinching and compelling portrait of the modern family in all its complexity and intensity: love, sex, and marriage, and all the joys and tensions of raising children in an increasingly complicated world. Moving, provocative, tender, and utterly gripping, The Mothers' Group will draw you in and never let you go.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherAllen Unwin
    Release dateApr 1, 2012
    ISBN9781742696157
    Mothers' Group

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    Reviews for Mothers' Group

    3.5/5

    16 ratings5 reviews

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    • 5/5
      Set in the Northern Beaches suburbs of Sydney, The Mothers' Group by Fiona Higgins, introduces a disparate group of women who, despite their differences in background, lifestyle and circumstances, bond during their regular Mothers' Group meetings.The novel unfolds in alternating chapters, using the third person point of view, allowing each woman to share their lives. Higgins skillfully develops believable characters to whom the reader can relate. These are mothers you most likely know - the mother who insists on organic food and natural fibers, the mother torn between her career and child rearing - but here Higgins allows us to peer into the privacy of their homes and witness their relationships and hidden desires. Higgins also provides context for her six main characters by allowing us glimpses of their families, the partners and fathers of the children. The emphasis of the novel however is on the burgeoning relationships between the women as their friendships develop from tentative interaction to a solidly supportive network.While the mothers struggle with the challenges of first time motherhood and the changes it brings, they are unwittingly hurtling towards a shocking tragedy that threatens to shatter their friendships and change them forever. Even though I expected something terrible to happen, when it came I felt I was unprepared. Higgins deals with the aftermath sensitively and realistically with an ending that is hopeful, if not happy.The Mothers' Group is an impressive fiction debut from Australian author Fiona Higgins. An insightful portrayal of first time parenthood, relationships and friendships this novel makes for compelling reading.
    • 5/5
      I agree with the previous reviewer. A powerful story, thought-provoking, compelling, relate-able. I knew there were secrets and surprises being revealed, but I was shocked - I wasn't ready for what was coming. This book made me laugh, think, and cry (lots of crying!)But Higgins deals with events and issues gently, with insight and compassion. The book is rich with characters, beautiful friendships and storylines, and big themes. It's a good book. I'm so glad I read it.
    • 1/5
      I bought this book on Kobo on a whim, thinking I'd read a good review of it somewhere. I also thought that perhaps it might be nice to read something from the perspective of young mothers, as I generally don't read anything like that at all. Turns out it was probably not a book for me.

      Let me start on a positive note by saying that I did enjoy the fact that there is one chapter for each character that carries the story along in a chronological sequence. Overall, however, I found this book to be depressing and terribly written. It's jam-packed with clichés and tautologies.

      I found the first chapter, on Ginie, to be interesting; after that it got pretty boring. By the time the plot finally thickened, there was barely any book left to carry the story through to a satisfying conclusion.

      It was also overwhelmingly full of a really depressing view of motherhood; all the usual guff about how your life is over after you have children, nothing is the same, your identity flies out the window along with your ability to control your own bowels. Perhaps I am a ridiculous, naïve pre-children person; but surely it's not such a depressing disaster all the time? Also why did everyone in this book marry useless people that they weren't really happy with? If I have to read one more paragraph of dialogue where female characters complain about how men 'just don't get it' I think my face will explode.

      The women didn't really have very well developed identities either and I found that I was still getting them mixed up in the final chapter.

      In conclusion, I will avoid Fiona Higgins like the plague. I'd love to read an interesting, intelligent book that deals with the same issues as this book, but one that does so in a far more sophisticated and engaging manner.
    • 4/5
      This book is set in the Northern suburbs of Sydney.and tells the story of six mothers who meet as a mother's group after their first child is born, and become friends. The six mothers are different and varied. There is an older career mother, a Balinese bride, a mother suffering the effects of a very difficult birth, a mother with a very difficult toddler step child to manage, a single mother, and a mother whose marriage is in difficulties. Each of the mothers has a chapter to tell her story and I thought all the characters were beleivable and well portrayed. I had my favoourites. I felt the mother's did change and grow through the book. The unthinkabale tragedy towards the end of the book provided a crisis through which they were able to test the depth and strength of their friendship, and I thought the author brought the book to what was for me and satisfactory and realistic ending. A good read.
    • 4/5
      This book inspired an interesting discussion with our group. The topic of motherhood in today’s society brought out some valid points on social economics, multiculturalism, media paranoia and child rearing in general. The majority found it a compelling read with the latter half of the book snowballing to a brave move by the author in bringing her story to a tragic end. This went a long way towards taking the story up a notch in the believable stakes. We all thought the characters well rounded and we each found our favourites within the diverse cast. Was it a realistic look at motherhood today? We think so. The shared trauma seemed to add glue to the group and we thought this was a highly likely outcome. Even with the ‘over-predictable’ label from Delia, and Mary’s ‘not able to relate’ circumstances, we still awarded it four stars, so it certainly made it into the ‘worth the read’ category.

    Book preview

    Mothers' Group - Fiona Higgins

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