Review: The Stud Book by Monica Drake

Title: The Stud Book
Author: Monica Drake
Format: Paperback
Publisher: Hogarth
Publish Date: April 9, 2013
Source: I received a copy from the publisher; however, this did not affect my review.

What's the Story?:

From Goodreads.com: "Sarah studies animal behavior at the Oregon Zoo. An expert on the mating habits of captive animals, she is increasingly desperate to create sweet little offspring of her own. Georgie is busy navigating the terrors of new motherhood—from misplaced postpartum painkillers to the potential sublimation of her identity—while her husband finds solace in bourbon and televised violence. (Dead girl on the screen? Take a shot!). Dulcet, defiantly married and childless, makes a living stripping down in high school gyms to sell the beauty of sex-ed. Nyla is out to save the earth while possibly losing her own teen daughter to the world of drugs and the occult. As these friends navigate a space between freedom and intimacy, they realize the families they forge through shared experience are as important as those inherited through birth.

     A smart, edgy, and poignantly funny exploration of the complexities of what parenthood means today, The Stud Book demonstrates that when it comes to babies, we can learn a lot by considering our place in the animal kingdom."

My Two Cents:

 "The Stud Book" is a look at what it means to be a parent or to want to be a parent or to want to be a good parent. The book looks at four women who are all in very different places in their life when it comes to having children. Each of the women have different views of their families and family life. This book has a sharp wit and the writing is promising.

I didn't really connect with many of the characters in this story except for Sarah. I do understand how it feels to really, really want to have something and to have it just not work out because of things that are really very much beyond your control. I'm not sure that this story was really geared for me and could see it being a better fit for someone who is already a parent. All of these women are very focused on being (or not being) parents. I'm not a parent and so it was hard for me to identify with the other women and there was not much of anything to endear them to me. Drake has a very dry humored way of writing about them though that kept me engaged. 

The writing in this book was good and definitely kept me reading. Drake has a very sharp and witty way of writing that kept me engaged even if the story did not necessarily grab me. I appreciate a good dry wit and this book had it! I would definitely read more by Drake in the future even if the story was not to my liking!