[Ad-gifted] As we approach the summer holidays and find a large number of summer novels adorning the supermarket shelves you might feel overwhelmed with what to choose, and if you’re not necessarily a chic-lit or crime/suspense novel fan, then you might struggle to find your perfect summer read. So, let me take you to our latest review which is published by History Press.
Confinement by Jessica Cox is a historical fact-based book set in the Victorian era, exposing some of the untold tales around birth, fertility, maternal/child mortality of the time and many more topics around motherhood, such as breastfeeding, infant loss and the minds of postnatal women. In a time where intervention was limited and there was a clear class divide between that of the rich and poor.
To find out what I thought of this hardcover book keep reading…
What I thought about Confinement by Jessica Cox
This book portrays the darker sides associated with pregnancy and the clear class divide that occurred in Victorian Britain. I am a fan of all things around birth – and having birthed all three of my children at home with no intervention, I was interested to hear stories from when intervention was less common and how birth was perhaps a little scarier than it is now.
Although I found this book hugely interesting, I also found it to be dark and negative towards birth and pregnancy. I understand the difficulties of the time period surrounding birth and the fact that the rich were privy to more intervention than the poor, but we know that in many cases natural birth wasn’t always dangerous and bad, although you don’t get a sense of this from the book.
Equally, there is a big focus on the fickle nature of the medical services, and how so many doctors diagnosed women with issues that would essentially make them appear weak and inferior – a trait of the era and the perception of men over women at the time.
The book is a fascinating read, articulate and easy to follow for the most part – although it does jump within the paragraphs between decades which at times I found confusing, as J. Cox aims to make comparisons with a certain number of stories from wealthy mothers from one time period and poor mothers from another – I feel that with some of the time differences were around 70 years, which I feel would have seen significant scientific advancements and changes that aren’t really mentioned.
Another point to note having read this book is that it is sensitive read and discusses topics around miscarriage, abortion, abandonment and infanticide, as well as pregnancy, confinement and feeding – which might not be to everyone’s pleasing – but if you want to read a bit of history and find out about the stories told through the voices of the women of the Victorian era then this book is certainly worth your time. Although, I found some chapters hard to digest and I wasn’t always in agreement with some of the viewpoints portrayed by Cox, however, that didn’t stop me from enjoying this book and often going back and reading points that I found particularly interesting.
Where can you get a copy of Confinement by Jessica Cox?
You can buy your hardcover copy from Amazon at the current cost of £20.61 or the kindle copy at £9.99. Please check the website prices as this might change.
About the Book
Publisher : The History Press
Format : Hardcover
Number of pages : 320
ISBN-13 : 978-0750998574
About the Author
Jessica Cox is a Reader in English Literature at Brunel University, London. She specialises in books about Neo-Victorianism, maternal history, and Victorian sensation fiction.
She has three children which lends to her maternal history interest and she is passionate about the subjects she writes about. Her knowledge and research is always referenced giving great depth to her factual books and covering interesting alternative subjects around the pre-Victorian and Victorian era.
About The History Press
The History Press are publishers dedicated to all things historical. Here you will find publications that range from Ancient or Medieval history to entertainment history, for those that like something more lighthearted – history from the war eras including WW2 and the days of Napoleon. And if you want to know about past sporting history or a bit more about past Kings and Queens – they have it all.
Many books are available in a number of formats including hardback, paperback and ebooks. So you can read them from your electronic reading device and enjoy them when you’re on holiday or you can buy them as a gift in their hardback form, making them the perfect addition to a history lover’s bookshelf. If you’d like to see the books on offer head to their website.
Review by: Lex Ward
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Book Review: The Storyteller’s Supper by Taffy Thomas MBE
Book Review: Warwickshire Folk Tales by Cath Edwards
* We were given a copy of the book in return for a feature. All opinions are our own.
20 comments
Your review of “Confinement” by Jessica Cox was insightful and engaging. You captured the essence of the book’s themes and storyline, making me curious to explore it myself. Your concise yet informative style is spot on. Well done!
Thank you so much, glad you enjoyed reading my review
What a fascinating topic. It’s something I’ve never thought about but it would be an interesting read. I will have to read this one.
Hope you do give it a read
I dont have any kids yet or have nor experience birth but I’m fascinated about the topic! Nice book here.
Worth a read as it is interesting
Thank you for sharing this. Your review of “Confinement” by Jessica Cox was insightful and engaging.
You are welcome, thanks for your lovely comment
A book that sheds light on the dark side of pregnancy, wow! This is hugely interesting to me, I will check it out for sure. Thank you for the recos.
You are welcome, it is an interesting book
Sounds like a good book! Thanks for sharing! Will definitely look this up!
Hope you do as it is a good book
This sounds like an interesting topic, it is always neat learning about the things. I will add this to my to read list and check it out.
Hope you do and hope you enjoy the book
What a fascinating topic. To even begin to think what life was like then for women especially mothers, is eye opening and something I think we all need to learn more about. Thank you for sharing!
Agree, I have learn so much from the book already
Sounds like a fascinating book, but for someone who is quite scared about the idea of giving birth this is probably not the book for me haha. Esp if you think it’s quite dark and made out to be scarier than it needs to be x
Well it is not for the faint hearted, but lots of interesting stories in the book
Your blog has reignited my love for history. You have a gift for storytelling that keeps me hooked!
So glad it had Barbara, glad we are inspiring you