What Alice Forgot

jenrn1216

Hello all! I went on vacation last week and brought "What Alice Forgot" by one of my favorite authors, Liane Moriarty. Going into it, I had no idea it even touched on IF. After reading it, it has definitely made me think about things a little differently. While I've just recently started my IF journey, I honestly don't know how far I'll go. But, I do know that I'm not going to stress about it like I have been! I think it's a great read and can apply to anyone, even those not dealing with IF.

Curious if anyone else out here has read it and what you thought! 

laurad75

I read it earlier this year (it's was the summer of Lianne Moriarty) and I too was pleasantly surprised with the IF story line.  I think she did a really nice job with the topic.  A few months later I was in a small book store and bought another Moriarty book.  The store owner asked if I read What Alice Forgot and I told her about how I connected with that part of the story and she shared that she too suffered from IF.   

artemis618

I’ve not yet read it, but I’m now one of 53 borrowers waiting on 31 e-copies at the library!

morganelizabeth123

I read it and I loved it! I usually do not like how woman who are ttc are portrayed in movies and tv, and I found this character to be so much better than what I usually see.

funkykey

I hadn't read it, but I went ahead and read it yesterday morning after seeing this post.

There were definitely one or two sentences about IF that seemed a little off - at one point she said something about 7 failed IVF cycles, and then at another point she talked about there being 7 embryos - and I thought: "I need more specifics. How many embryos did she get per retrieval cycle?" But a regular reader (without as much IVF exposure) might not have even noticed.

I thought she dealt with the emotional side of it really well, and I actually wept through some of her descriptions. All of the bits about the woman suffering through IF being like a zombie walking really resonated with me - like not wanting to listen to music, not wanting to feel anything, wanting to be distracted to take your mind off of anything other than the pain of it.

Anyway, I really liked it! Thank you for the recommendation!

emmasemm

I just read it on the flight back last night and definitely the best written IF storyline I've read. To be honest if I hadn't seen your recommendations before @jenrn1216 @laurad75 @morganelizabeth123 I probably would have stopped the book when I came to the storyline - but I'm really glad I read it. Also had me in tears in parts (on the plane, but who cares!) but left me feeling good in the end. 
@funkykey I was also hoping for a few more details on protocols and number of enmbies per cycle, but eventually made peace that it's a mainstream book and not this forum lol

I had the idea to maybe gift it to my mother and sister for Xmas... as a soft way into the IF/IVF topic if I ever need one...

laurad75

I'm now reading Little Fires Everywhere and wouldn't you know it halfway through the book and an IF storyline shows up that I didn't see coming.  Ugh.  We really can't escape it.  

FuzzyDust

Read it after seeing this thread - thank you for the recommendation!! I like how it gives a perspective from both ways - those struggling with IF, and those who don’t, and don’t know how to help and how to talk about their own babies.

jenrn1216

I'm so glad everyone liked it as much as I did!!! ❤❤

adirat

Thanks for the recommendation! I also put it on reserve at the library. 

@laurad75 Yeah, that absolutely ruined Little Fires Everywhere for me. I just couldn't deal with it.

I would love to hear if there are other popular novels to stay away from because of their poor/inaccurate treatment of IF or loss... I remember hating a couple novels I read this summer because of how inaccurate and hurtful their infertility plotlines were, namely Wreckage by Emily Bleecker and Mothers & Other Strangers by Gina Sorell.

laurad75

@adirat I'm almost done with Little Fires and enjoying the book otherwise so I'm going to press on and finish it but I'm looking forward to moving on.  I have The Woman in Cabin 10 on deck so I might read that next.