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Oh, Sister: The powerful new novel from the author of Another Life

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I’ve really enjoyed the first few episodes! Jamie is fab and she’s had some brilliant guests so far. The story and the writing is a little disjointed, moving around in time and from character to character, but it works. The women are on edge, their nerves frayed. They live their lives fearfully, looking over their shoulder and you feel that for them. The women’s mixed fortunes feel real - there’s no sugarcoating or Hollywood ending. The theme is the strongest part of the book. Based on the real-life Jehovah’s Witnesses, the fictional ‘Last Days’ group of the story is a typical male-dominated religious cult that twists Biblical scriptures according to their own convenience and indoctrinates their followers into blind belief. Their misogynistic decisions are infuriating. I loved how some of the “worldly people” of the book were able to question some of their claims logically. I'm going to start by saying this - this is a horror story. Not one with ghosts and full moons, but one even more terrifying because this is about the monsters that exist outside of nightmares. It is a searing statement about the dystopian hellscape that is reality for many women who live under the rule of religious fanaticism and fascism. To a lot of people, it might sound like something only from a speculative fiction story, but it's very real.

Oh, Sister by Jodie Chapman - Penguin Books Australia Oh, Sister by Jodie Chapman - Penguin Books Australia

This is a novel about what it is like to live inside a prison of the mind and how to break out of it - if you can. Isobel and Jen have spent their entire lives following the rules - of their marriages, and their religion.JEN, Isobel and Zelda are three very different women, yet they are bound together by their community, a religious sect called The Disciples Of The Last Days. Three women, with distinct lives, disparate desires, and different degrees of belief in this ‘community’ – a religious cult known as The Disciples of the Last Days – that controls their bodies, their personhood, their whole lives. Oh, Sister tells the gut-wrenching story of these women’s experiences of disfellowship and their difficult, intertwined journeys of coming to terms with the reality of their predicament and rising above it, above the misogyny, corruption, violence, and zealotry of it all. The author bases the substance of this supposed fiction off of her own upbringing as a Jehovah’s Witness; what may come across as the unimaginably dystopian suffering of her female characters is happening to real women in this very world that we call ours. This week I am joined by Jodie Chapman to discuss the stories that need to be told, the importance of writing truth, and her latest novel, Oh Sister.

Oh, Sister by Jodie Chapman | Goodreads

The three protagonists were varied and all at different stages in their relationship with their faith. Somehow, the writing was such that I felt a deep connection and kinship with all of these women, despite me having little to nothing in common with them. I immediately understood the struggles to equate the beliefs they had been taught with what they could actually see going on around them, but also not wanting to alienate themselves from their entire community. The decisions they have to make, or are made for them, are enormous, and I really felt for all of them. The character development and pacing is spot on, not at all predictable and I loved that! I loved how all of the women had a perception of each other that we could see why was the case whilst also understanding how wrong it was. I loved the way they all had similar realisations in different ways and at different times and just the growth!! Oh, Sister is a powerful realism novel about 3 women whose lives are influenced by their Jehovah's Witness community even after they are outcast from it. Jen suffered a miscarriage and decided to take a blood transfusion; Isobel's husband of decades has eloped, leaving her to fend for herself; and Zelda is trying to find herself on the outskirts of the world she's left behind. The women are of different ages and have different degrees of belief in their religion. This book is about religion and cult mentalities, the big and little things we do to try and take control, love, and unfulfilled expectations. The author was raised in a Jehovah's Witness community herself. Zelda has never done what's expected of her. Living on the outskirts of the community that she, Jen and Isobel were raised in, she's trying to find herself outside of the confines of the world she left behind.One is cast aside because her husband left her for a younger model, and she realises her life does not have to revolve around that man. Drawing on her own experiences, Jodie Chapman looks at a denomination of Christianity and how it treats its own when they go against the teachings of the Church. Although the specific religion is never named, readers can draw their own conclusions – although I would recommend doing further research if you’re interested. I've read a number of books about religious "cults" as some call them, and so far, I've enjoyed nearly all of them. You would think they would be a bit samey, and I suppose there are similar themes, but the authors all of their own personal experience and therefore they can put part of themselves in their books, giving each one the edge. So I have to admit I didn’t really know what exactly this book was about going into it, but I adored @jodiechapman’s debut so knew I was in safe hands. Turns out this may be even BETTER than Another Life 😲 Se potessi vorrei rileggere questo libro di nuovo, perché quando ho girato quell'ultima pagina ero devastata.

Oh, Sister by Jodie Chapman | Goodreads Oh, Sister by Jodie Chapman | Goodreads

Jen has gone through a traumatising experience, but instead of being looked upon as a victim, she is blamed for a decision she had no control over. We are thrilled to extend our congratulations to Jodie Chapman whose stunning novel Oh, Sister is published today in the UK by Michael Joseph, Penguin Random House.CN for this book/review: religion, miscarriage, sexual assault (including of a minor), internalised homophobia, pedophilia Content & Trigger Warnings: Miscarriage, Abortion, Sexual assault, Infidelity, Religious bigotry, Gaslighting.

Oh, Sister - Penguin Books UK

It was an absolutely fantastic read. The hypocrisy of religion, Christianity in this case, when it comes to women had me furious with the women who accept it and the men who are more than happy to dole out "punishments". The writing style is genuinely so compelling - it's quite literary. Time is spent on the little details and everything feels believable. Will they find the courage to move forwards? Or will a lifetime of expectation prove too hard to escape... You can tell Jodie has lived this. You can see her heart and soul and passion that comes through with every single word. I often found myself reading it through tears, for the happiness as well as the sadness and anger. It’s about finding yourself, finding faith in yourself, finding your own happiness, your own love, your own family, and your own future.This beautiful tale of love, loss and sacrifice will break your heart...With echoes of David Nicholls' One Day and Sally Rooney's novels * Daily Mail *

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