Review: A House for Happy Mothers

A House for Happy Mothers by Amulya Malladi
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This was a heart-wrenchingly beautiful novel. Having never experienced the desire to be a mother, I couldn't empathise with Priya, but still had many feelings throughout the story. I could not imagine wanting something so badly that I went to such great lengths, but I also feel sympathy for those who must go this route for any reason. I think surrogacy is a beautiful thing and mutually beneficial, albeit highly emotional and controversial. The topic was made even more powerful by Asha's story against the background of Indian poverty. It was interesting to explore the thoughts and emotions of a character who isn't entirely on board with what she's doing, but feels obligated to do it anyway due to her circumstances. I enjoyed that the women did have a connection to each other, but felt Asha was more bitter than necessary. Though, it was also very refreshing to have a character that wasn't entirely selfless.

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