I am reading Rachel Cusk's books in order, this is my 4th-- I did skip over her first memoir, for now. I'm just blown away by the insight of this author. She is able to put herself in the shoes of a pregnant incarcerated teen, a new father, a woman who was unable to have her own child, a grandmother, and two very different mothers of young children. I think there is something here for readers of any age, with or without children. I have never had a better sense of the kind of love that a parent has for their children, a love the overrides all other loves and needs in life, and as the author suggests, I do believe it is a form of self-love. It is interesting to think about how your love for your children changes your feeling for your partner. That dry Cusk humour is present throughout and she does not miss a beat in the portrayals of young children in this book. I'm not really sure what the connections really do for the story, and I'm not sure why the presence of the Victor character looms throughout the book. I will have to give it some more thought. I actually feel like I need to read the book a second time. ( )

This book of connected short stories is my first experience with Cusk. I will definitely read her novels as I liked her style. Each story offered a different glimpse of Cusk's creative abilities. The first story in the collection was my favourite. It is a 5-star story, to me. There were a couple of 4-star stories and a couple of 2-star and 3-star stories so I am having a tough time with my overall rating. ( )

This is well-written character-study of several different women and their deepest feelings about marriage and motherhood. ( )

I didn't get this. What I saw here was 5 loosely interconnected stories about some very unhappy people. I didn't see the "luck" anywhere. I'm kind of sorry I read this, for it was rather depressing and I don't think it said anything good about children at all. I'm glad it was short so I didn't waste more than a day on it. ( )