Three Women by Lisa Taddeo Review

I had no idea what I was getting myself into with this one. The cover did not catch my attention despite me knowing of this book's existence for a while, so I never bothered to read the inner flap until I saw it on a secondhand shelf. But I’m glad I read it despite being traumatized after.

Honestly, this book is so difficult to read. It’s a book written by a woman, for women. I sort of agree with reviews that complain about its false advertising. This book isn’t about “desire” so much as about how abuse shapes desire and actions in a woman’s romantic relationships, also that the stories are almost all about white women living in American suburbia. But I don’t agree that these women’s stories are therefore less valid or valuable to understand and learn from, or that discussing their stories takes away from marginalized women’s experiences. Yeah, much work needs to be taken and done to create a more equitable environment to discuss abuse and sexism of all forms and from all groups, but I really found these stories powerful and not even the stories themselves, but in the way they’re written about.

There is so much nuance in the way desire and hopes and dreams of women are discussed. The author blatantly, powerfully, refuses to judge these women in any way, shape, or form. She states how they feel without bias, making room for past, present, future, the current feelings that dictate their actions, the doubt, the reality foiled with the delusion. Yes, there’s little to no closure to any of the stories. But that’s life, that’s reality.

I will say that I wish there was more prelude to the horrific events that are discussed in the story. The marketing of the book on the flap does not accurately portray the contents as mentioned above, but nothing could have possibly prepared me. I suppose that in itself can be interpreted as how impossible it is to tell that such “ordinary” women carry such deep burdens mentally.