Natural Disaster by Lisa Owens review: a comic and moving portrait of motherhood's chaos
By
Diana Evans
Summary
A review of Lisa Owens's second novel, which follows an unnamed mother of two on the last day of her maternity leave as she attempts a "yes day" full of treats and good feelings. The day inevitably goes wrong, with deficient treats and fleeting good feelings overtaken by anxiety, guilt, and humiliation. The novel is praised for its comic yet truthful depiction of motherhood in all its plodding, moving, and hilarious detail.
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Key quotes
· 3 pulledThe last day of maternity leave, and an unnamed mother of two decides to stage a 'yes day', full of treats and good feelings.
Of course it does not go according to plan: the treats are deficient, misjudged and underappreciated; the good feelings are fleeting, quickly upstaged by anxiety, guilt or humiliation.
Motherhood is represented in all its hilarious, moving and truthfully plodding detail, in the story of a mother and her two little boys
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