As a new(ish) mom, I’m always on the lookout for books that share the intimate and less rosy parts of becoming and being a mother. This book is focused on the pregnancy itself, and promised to do just that.
I’ve never read anything by Lucy Knisley before, though I have a couple of her other books on my shelves. I tried them each, but neither really grabbed me. I thought that since the topic of this was more relatable to me than her others (one about cooking, the other about living in Paris), it might manage to draw me in where the others had failed. Besides, I’d heard mixed reviews of her other books, and this one was brand new and not yet tainted by outside opinions.
I decided to pick this up during Dewey’s 24 Hour Readathon because it’s always nice to have a change of pace, and a graphic novel is perfect for that. I managed to read the whole thing in one go.
Knisley’s story starts not with her pregnancy, but with her lack of pregnancy. She and her partner tried for a while to get pregnant, and then when they did her first pregnancy ends in miscarriage. Understandably Knisley suffered horribly after losing her baby. She talks a lot about what that experience was like, how lost she was, and how long it took for her to start feeling like herself again, let alone ready to try again.
When she does finally manage to get pregnant, that’s not the fairytale happy ending either. Her pregnancy is complicated, her birth experience downright terrifying. I won’t tell you exactly what happens because spoilers, but it’s not fun.
The book, though primarily a personal memoir, also includes a lot of background research and tangential information Knisley learned throughout the process. She talks about different birth control methods, statistics on miscarriage, historical approaches to women’s reproductive health and some disturbing information on modern birthing. Now, had I been in my early 20s and read this book it would have been eye-opening and impactful. But since I did Women’s Studies courses in college (including Women and Health) and have since gone through pregnancy and birth in a modern medical setting, I’d already discovered all of the information for myself. I ended up skimming these sections and getting a bit bored. That’s not the fault of the book, and I think younger or less informed readers will find this hugely important. This accounts for my lower rating, since my experience is my experience.
I’m glad I tried this book, and really wish I had access to it when I was younger. For readers who have gone through something similar, or who are just embarking on pregnancy and motherhood, this will give some important information, as well as setting realistic expectations and providing a necessary warning that will hopefully empower women to take a more active role in their own medical care during pregnancy. There are countless stories of women’s care during pregnancy and birth being botched, complications that could have been avoided, and emotional trauma that could have been eliminated or better treated. Maternal mortality in the USA is the highest in the western world, and it shouldn’t be. Pregnant women have so much they’re already dealing with physically and emotionally, they often aren’t taken seriously (particularly by male doctors) because they’re just “full of pregnancy hormones” and it can be overwhelming to learn how to advocate for yourself in the broken medical system in these circumstances. But it is necessary, and this book helps to highlight why. Definitely worth picking up if you have any interest in the topic, and would be a great companion to a college-level women’s studies course with a health focus.
If you work hard enough, if you want it enough, if you’re smart and talented and “good enough,” you can do anything.
Except get pregnant.
Her whole life, Lucy Knisley wanted to be a mother. But when it was finally the perfect time, conceiving turned out to be harder than anything she’d ever attempted. Fertility problems were followed by miscarriages, and her eventual successful pregnancy plagued by health issues, up to a dramatic, near-death experience during labor and delivery.
This moving, hilarious, and surprisingly informative memoir not only follows Lucy’s personal transition into motherhood but also illustrates the history and science of reproductive health from all angles, including curious facts and inspiring (and notorious) figures in medicine and midwifery. Whether you’ve got kids, want them, or want nothing to do with them, there’s something in this graphic memoir to open your mind and heart. – Goodreads
Book Title: Kid Gloves
Author: Lucy Knisley
Series: No
Edition: Paperback
Published By: First Second Books
Released: February 26, 2019
Genre: Graphic Novel, Memoir, Pregnancy
Pages: 248
Date Read: April 6-7, 2019
Rating: 6/10
Average Goodreads Rating: 4.45/5 (1,898 ratings)