The School for Good Mothers By Jessamine Chan

About The Book

Frida Liu is a struggling mother. She remembers taking Harriet from her cot and changing her nappy. She remembers giving her a morning bottle. They'd been up since four am. Frida just had to finish the article in front of her. But she'd left a file on her desk at work. What would happen if she retrieved it and came back in an hour? She was so sure it would be okay. Now, the state has decided that Frida is not fit to care for her daughter. That she must be re-educated. Can this mistake cost her everything? THE SCHOOL FOR GOOD MOTHERS is an explosive and thrilling novel about the pressures of perfectionism, parenthood and privilege.

Review

A taut and propulsive take on the cult of motherhood and the notion of what makes a good mother. Destined to be feminist classic - it kept me up at night-- Pandora Sykes

This beautifully lucid, crisp first novel is like a Handmaid's Tale for the 21st century, but both easier going and more devastating. Is a mother's love ever good enough? Does becoming a mother mean mothballing all your former selves for good? There is fury behind Chan's precise and elegant prose, and sly humour too. A must-read -- India Knight ― Sunday Times

A haunting tale of identity and motherhood - as devastating as it is imaginative -- Afua Hirsch

Examining race, privilege and the pressures of perfectionism, it will resonate with fans of Celeste Ng's Little Fires Everywhere― Elle UK

A clever premise, well executed in lean, lucid prose - The Handmaid's Tale for the Squid Game generation― The Telegraph

About Author

Jessamine Chan

Jessamine Chan's short stories have appeared in Tin House and Epoch. A former reviews editor at Publishers Weekly, she holds an MFA from Columbia University and a BA from Brown University. Her work has received support from the Elizabeth George Foundation, the Bread Loaf Writers' Conference, the Wurlitzer Foundation, Jentel, the Kimmel Harding Nelson Center, the Anderson Center, VCCA and Ragdale. She lives in Chicago with her husband and daughter.