A Cloud in the Shape of a Girl by Jean Thompson: A Bleaker Anna Quindlen

A Cloud in the Shape of a GirlFiction – Literary
Release Date: October 23, 2018
336 Pages
Bottom Line: Read it.
Affiliate Link: Buy from Amazon
Source: Publisher: (Simon & Schuster)

This post contains affiliate links (plus: here’s your Amazon Smile-specific affiliate link), through which I make a small commission when you make a purchase (at no cost to you!).

Headline

Though not perfect, A Cloud in the Shape of a Girl is an astute observation of different generations of women’s roles in marriage and motherhood and reminded me of a bleaker Anna Quindlen.

Plot Summary

The story of Evelyn, Laura, and Grace Wise, three generations of women living in a small, Midwestern town and trying to find their place in life.

Why I Read It

A Cloud in the Shape of a Girl was blurbed by Tayari Jones (author of An American Marriage) and the premise of three generations of women appealed to me. However, it originally came to me unsolicited from the publisher and I hadn’t heard much about it, so it was a bit of a risk!

Major Themes

Marriage, motherhood, women’s roles, parenting, addiction, generational differences, small town life

What I Liked

  • I’ve been gravitating towards books about marriage, motherhood, and women’s roles lately (as evidenced by my recent post: The “Women Who Get Women” Authors Club) and that’s the crux of what this book is about.
  • Thompson beautifully unpacks the small, everyday trials of marriage and parenting: coddling your kids, bonding with your kids, different parenting styles within a marriage, different generational views on the roles of women, addiction, and mild alcoholism. So, don’t expect fireworks from a plot perspective…just astute commentary about life, especially for women.
  • Thompson reminded me of a somewhat bleaker Anna Quindlen (if you like happy books, this one is not for you!) and A Cloud in the Shape of a Girl reminded me of a less explosive The Wife by Meg Wolitzer (my review).
  • I love the focus on women of three different generations and think Thompson painted an accurate picture of the different generational outlooks on the role of women in the home. Grandmother Evelyn is actually very modern for her time and was career focused before reluctantly giving up it up when she became a mother. Mother Laura is a stay-at-home mom who coddles her husband and son. Laura’s husband, Gabe, is infuriated by Laura’s coddling of their son, but fully expects the coddling to apply to himself. Grace is Laura’s daughter who constantly barbs her mother for martyring herself in service to her husband and son and desperately wants to get out of her small town, but can’t seem to find the energy to make it happen.
  • These characters are all flawed and every one will annoy you in some way. But, they’re realistic and represent types of people I see often in daily life…the housewife who martyrs herself to serve her husband and kids, the husband who expects the service of his wife, the millennial who is used to his parents to doing everything for him, and the woman who “gave it all up” to care for her family and now feels stifled.
  • This would be an excellent book club selection!

What I Didn’t Like

  • I absolutely hate the title and the cover. I still don’t get the point of the title. It references a tiny, inconsequential scene in the book that I don’t think carries any overarching message. And, the cover gives off a buttoned-up, historical fiction vibe, when this book is not that at all.
  • The first chapter could have been cut entirely. It’s about a woman in the process of dying and it doesn’t use any names. Who is this chapter about? One of the characters we meet later in the book? Someone else? A metaphor? I couldn’t focus on what was happening because I kept trying to figure out who these people were. And, I still don’t know the answer!
  • There’s a bit of an annoying obsession with flowers that I didn’t really see a purpose for. 

A Defining Quote

Conversation between Laura and Grace:

“Nobody said you have to give things up for us.”

Oh but they did. The whole world did. It was beat into you so many different ways. In spite of a million women’s magazine articles about good career moves, and claiming your own interests and hobbies, and your right to your own sphere. Just try and get away with putting yourself first. Maybe younger women no longer felt such pressures. Maybe they were now free to be selfish. […]

“Well, don’t. Quit it.”

Good for People Who Like…

Quiet books, astute life observations, dysfunctional families, small town stories, stories about marriage and motherhood

Other Books You May Like

Another book about a woman feeling trapped by her marriage:
The Wife by Meg Wolitzer (my review)

Another story about the breakdown of a family with astute writing about the woman’s perspective:
Every Last One by Anna Quindlen (my review)

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10 Comments

  1. While I liked many parts of this book, it also really frustrated me. It saddened me that in three generations, the only one of the women who came close to even knowing what she wanted was Evelyn. The younger two couldn’t put the energy into looking at their own lives. I didn’t see myself or my friends in any of the women and I had to keep reminding myself that the time was current. It felt like the main part of the story was more from 20 or 30 years ago.

    Posted 10.18.18 Reply
    • Sarah Dickinson wrote:

      See, I did see people from my life. Especially in the mother – the one who coddled. And I saw parts of myself in various of the characters.

      Posted 10.19.18 Reply
  2. EXCELLENT Review! Doesn’t it anger you when the cover art is all wrong? I can think of other books that were trivialized by the cover art or, as in this book, made to seem to fit in another [wrong] genre. Just my 2 cents.

    Posted 10.18.18 Reply
    • Sarah Dickinson wrote:

      I know, right?! I remember Sweetbitter by Stephanie Danler had a cover that made it seem it was chick lit, but it was actually pretty dark and edgy. Oh – and Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo!

      Posted 10.19.18 Reply
  3. Brittany wrote:

    I like your “Good for People Who Like” section — that’s what convinced me to add it to my TBR. Otherwise, you’re right, it does look a little like a buttoned-up historical fiction novel.

    Posted 10.19.18 Reply
    • Sarah Dickinson wrote:

      Thanks! And sometimes I wonder what the publishers’ marketing people are thinking?!

      Posted 10.20.18 Reply
  4. Allison wrote:

    I’m glad I read your review because I’m not sure I’d have given this a second look, otherwise. Both this and The Wife are in the back of my mind for books that will resonate with my current life stage–when I’m ready for them. Sometimes books like this hit a little too close to home and are less escape than I’d like 🙂

    Posted 10.20.18 Reply
    • Sarah Dickinson wrote:

      Haha – I hear you! It’s definitely not escape reading…more “wow, someone else understands exactly what I’m going through” reading.

      Posted 10.20.18 Reply
  5. I’m interested in the themes this book deals with too, but I am also more of a happy books kind of reader. I also find reading about women who are denied opportunities because of the time they lived in can be too frustrating to be enjoyable. For those reasons, I’m still not sure about this one after reading your review, but I’m glad to hear it worked for you!

    Posted 10.27.18 Reply
    • Sarah Dickinson wrote:

      This one is definitely not for you if you like happy books!

      Posted 11.3.18 Reply

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