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I seriously read this book within one weekend. The hype regarding how hard it is to put down is legit!
Baby Teeth is author Zoje Stages' debut novel, and man, is it wild! I'll start with the premise. Suzette is a young 30-something mom to her only daughter, Hannah. And Hannah has some problems (kind of an understatement.) Suzette struggles with her health physically and her emotions surrounding raising her daughter as a stay-at-home mom and homeschool teacher. Her (extremely oblivious) husband, Alex, adores his only child and would prefer to be blind to any and all problems that surround their daughter's behavior. Including, but not limited to, being expelled from multiple schools, showing signs of low empathy towards anyone excluding him, and having malicious feelings toward her mom.
This book is layered with emotions and tense characters. I struggled to be as patient as Suzette seemed to be with her husband, whom she all but worshipped, and she also showed concerning behavior to Hannah at times while struggling to fully immerse herself in the role of mom. One scene, in particular, in which the reader experiences Suzette's rage through Hannah's eyes, is alarming and a bit revolting. It sets the stage for why, so many times during the chapters devoted to Hannah's POV, the child states that 'mommy's mask slips when daddy isn't around.'
However, Hannah also shows signs of an emerging psychopath or sociopath, depending on why and when her behavior of callousness towards anyone but her father began. It's eerie how well the author portrays the mind of a highly manipulative child who regularly shows well-thought-out, planned, and brutal attacks on those around her. It makes sense that Entertainment Weekly said this book was "We Need to Talk About Kevin meets Gone Girl meets The Omen."
What I really loved about the book was that, even though no one would ever want to be in this tortured family's position, I could still find relatable characteristics in the characters. Even young Hannah, who suffered bouts of confusion about why she felt the way she felt at times. I especially felt empathy towards Suzette, who struggled with the new identity that all moms adopt after childbirth. It's a surrendering of oneself to put someone else's needs above your own, especially when your kids are little. Most moms I know talk about a moment when their kids get older, where they feel themselves literally 'snap back into their own body.' The statement makes sense to me, and I know I have felt that coming back to myself as my children need me for care less and less. It's just more rewarding when you actually bond with your children instead of constantly butting heads or clambering for attention, as Suzette and Hannah do for the somewhat unaware Alex in this story.
I would highly recommend this book, and just be ready to want to simultaneously punch and hug every character you encounter. It's a book of contradictions and questions, but it's worth it!
