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migimon2002's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Suicide, Abortion, Suicide attempt, and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Death of parent, Forced institutionalization, Sexual assault, and Sexism
Minor: Infidelity, Infertility, and Cancer
torturedreadersdept's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Suicide, Grief, Self harm, Gaslighting, Homophobia, Suicide attempt, Injury/Injury detail, Cursing, Death, Death of parent, Dysphoria, Forced institutionalization, Medical trauma, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Sexism, Violence, Alcohol, Blood, Body horror, Bullying, Cancer, Confinement, Dementia, Vomit, Abortion, Infertility, Misogyny, Emotional abuse, and Medical content
Minor: Domestic abuse, Sexual content, Racism, Rape, Pedophilia, Murder, Infidelity, Incest, Sexual assault, Racial slurs, and Child death
repunzee's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Child death, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, Pregnancy, Abortion, Forced institutionalization, and Suicide
Moderate: Grief, Rape, and Gun violence
Minor: Cancer, Infidelity, Infertility, and Miscarriage
athenabe's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Graphic: Suicide attempt, Abortion, Misogyny, Pregnancy, and Suicide
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Medical content, Sexual violence, Grief, and Death of parent
Minor: Rape, Blood, Self harm, Cancer, and Child death
katiejohns's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Graphic: Suicide attempt, Grief, Abortion, Suicide, Infertility, and Pregnancy
Moderate: Cancer, Infertility, Death, Blood, Miscarriage, Sexism, Mental illness, and Death of parent
Minor: Rape and Infidelity
mdavis26's review against another edition
5.0
Graphic: Alcohol, Child death, Misogyny, Suicide, Sexual assault, Abandonment, Adult/minor relationship, Blood, Cancer, Child abuse, Death, Forced institutionalization, Infertility, Infidelity, Medical trauma, Miscarriage, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Medical content, Physical abuse, Police brutality, Abortion, Grief, Mental illness, Self harm, Injury/Injury detail, Pregnancy, Racial slurs, Rape, Religious bigotry, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide attempt
star_sword's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Moderate: Abortion
Minor: Death of parent and Cancer
mjlease08's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Graphic: Suicide, Abortion, Infertility, Miscarriage, Pregnancy, and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Sexual assault
Minor: Death of parent and Cancer
mrscooks_books's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Graphic: Infertility, Medical content, Suicide, Miscarriage, Cancer, Emotional abuse, Forced institutionalization, Death of parent, Medical trauma, Pregnancy, and Rape
unnamed_individual's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Looking for Jane is a historical fiction exploring reproductive justice. I left reading this story extremely sad about the state of my country, the United States of America. Many states are making abortions illegal, resulting in infections (for women with miscarriages who cannot access a D&C), unethical adoption practices, and a loss of female bodily autonomy. I recommend this book to everyone, from men to women, pro-choice to pro-life, and from the North Pole to the South Pole. Everyone should read it NO MATTER their religion, beliefs, or "morals."
Setting ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Looking for Jane explores reproductive justice between the 1960s and 2010s in Canada. I didn't realize it was in Canada (I am bad at geography), but I do not believe the location was as important as the story's message. The story always matched with the historical context of the year. The author also described the setting in enough detail to visualize the place, but not too much where I felt bored.
Plot ⭐⭐⭐⭐
The book is separated into four parts and in the voices of three characters, Angela, Evelyn, and Nancy. Each character appears in a different period where they eventually collide in the present. The story was a little slow, where some people would DNF. I love stories that make me feel like I am living the character's life; however, many prefer stories with an apparent rise and fall in the plot. The main plot is to reunite mother and daughter, who separated due to a lack of reproductive rights. There is a twist and a good one. I didn't find it obvious, but many people were able to see it happen. My issue with the twist was that the explanation didn't fit into the story. It seemed a little off. Another issue that I didn't quite think fit in was that Evelyn named her daughter Jane, but coincidentally the organization used the name "Jane." It seemed unbelievable to me.
Engagement ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Looking for Jane is a historical fiction that caters to the audience. I felt immersed in the book and finished it in 2 days; I didn't need to speed the audio to 2x because I loved how beautiful yet painful the story was. The author explored reproductive rights through the church's forceful adoption of Evelyn's baby, Nancy's experiences with abortion, and Angela's pregnancy. The entire story honed into reproductive rights. Another critical lesson was never keeping secrets. Hiding secrets is never the right thing to do. I left reading this book with a stronger sense of pro-choice rhetoric and sure of my choice to enter the healthcare field.
Characters ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Angela - though Angela was an integral part of the story, the angel who brings mother and daughter together, she was the weakest link. I didn't see as much character depth or growth. her lack of development may be because she is the only character in one "age." She doesn't grow through the years but in a few months. While she does a lot of research and uncovers many secretes, I was never excited to hear her part of the story. Nonetheless, she was a necessary part of the story.
Evelyn - I thought she had the most depth and growth of all the characters. Her story starts in her 20s and ends in her 80s. Her life was full of giving back to the world and changing women's lives, though she didn't seem to get anything in return. Evelyn was a strong woman, though she held many secrets, fearing what revealing them would mean. Evelyn's final confession to Angela is overwhelmingly beautiful and provides closure to the reader.
Nancy - Nancy represents the effects of generational trauma. There is beauty in seeing her learn the importance of not keeping secrets and realizing that holding onto the secrets is destroying her life. Her growth was also gradual, from her twenties to her sixties.
Style ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
The narrative is in the third person. The writing is easy to understand. If you listen to audiobooks, it is narrated by Sara Borges; her voice is descriptive and emotional, and the character's voices reflect their personality and background.
As you can see, my overall rating is 4.6 rounded up to 5 stars. This story maintains the historical context of the story, has a fantastic twist, and immerses the readers in the real-life experience of reproductive rights in women. I would recommend everyone read this book to see the perspectives of the embodiment of millions of women's experiences.
Graphic: Suicide, Abortion, and Suicide attempt
Minor: Sexual assault and Cancer