The Baby Lottery - Totally Not Chick Lit
Kate Trueblood understands the complication of balancing a career and family. She is the mother of two children, a writer, and an Associate Professor at Western Washington University.Trueblood’s most recent novel, The Baby Lottery, was chosen to appear as a Book Sense Pick in 2007, and she was selected for the Jack Straw Writer’s Series in the Northwest. This book deals with many of the issues facing women today, including pregnancy vs. abortion, career vs. family, and marriage vs. divorce. The story follows five old college friends as they struggle to come to terms with their lives.
Kate sees The Baby Lottery as a piece of literature that challenges social questions and does not fit into the category of chick lit, and we totally agree.
How would you feel if one of your oldest and closest friends chose to have a late term abortion? How would you react? Would you support her? Would you judge her choice? And, what about your own choices; are you content with the choices that you have made?
Kathryn Trueblood’s second novel, The Baby Lottery, is a piercing, insightful examination of the decisions women make about motherhood. Told through the voices of five different women, the story centers around one of the women’s choice to terminate her pregnancy. The bonds of friendship are tested and strained as each woman reacts to the abortion based upon her own circumstances and experiences. Each perspective is profoundly different, but each reaches the same conclusion; there are no easy answers.
Kathryn Trueblood is a truly gifted writer. She has crafted a story that grabs you and won’t let go; each page leaves you hungry for the next. Also, the language in The Baby Lottery is stunning. I found myself rereading passages just to savor the words. The characters are well developed, and I could relate to each of the women in some way. Entertaining and deeply provocative, The Baby Lottery definitely deserves a spot on your reading list. - By Kelli
Nan, the non-judgmental nurse; Jean, the bitter and opinionated ex-social worker; Virginia, the overworked and underappreciated lecturer; Tasi, the detached career-oriented professional; and Charlotte, the alcoholic enigma – this is their story. Their friendship has survived over the years through turbulent relationships, lost loves, life changes, career upheavals, motherhood and failed pregnancies etc. But when Charlotte announces her decision to have a late-term abortion, it acts like an earthquake, arousing varying reactions among her friends and shaking their friendship to the core.
With poetic language and realistic imagery, Author Kathryn Trueblood takes the readers on an unforgettable journey into a woman’s life – the choices she has to make, the consequences she has to endure, and most importantly, the life she can bring into this world or take out. The viewpoints and experiences of the friends provide an intelligent and varied perspective into the hot topic of abortion and other issues close to a woman’s heart. The characters all act and react in a way that feels so true to life. It’s easy to relate to them, finding a bit of Jean’s longing or Nan’s pragmatism in ourselves. Their pain is our pain, their lives are our lives. What I liked most and what felt very real to me was that the problems weren’t resolved in a bid to provide a happy ending, but rather the hope of a better future was conveyed.
Simple and elegant, this is a story that will live long in my memory for being one of the most engaging books on female relationships and motherhood. - By Rashmi
Win it! We’ve got two copies of The Baby Lottery to give away. To enter, leave a comment on this post by April 25. Any comment will qualify, but we’d love to read about your opinions on the book or the social issues therein.
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