I ended up reaching this two different times, the first time was before I gave birth to my first son and then a few days after. The way this graphic changed from the first and second reading was drastic and unexplainable. During my second read, I felt seen, I felt like I could relate to everything written in this book and had me in tears. This was an amazing story and really lets you in to see how having children can have an effect on a mother.

Thank you Netgalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I an unable to review this title, as it was archived before I had a chance to download and read it. This feedback is only to stop this title from adversely affecting my netgalley feedback rate. If in the future I have the opportunity to read this title, I will post a proper review here.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an electronic copy to read in exchange for an honest review.

I have 3 children and related to pretty every page of this book. It's a stark look at the excitement, anticipation, fear, and joy of creating life. It's all the things laid out in black and white illustrations. Brilliant.

I actually enjoyed this book and the art style. I am a mama to an only child and every experience is different but this felt like a solid read and connection.

A mom’s journey and thoughts whether negative or positive through motherhood. I wasn’t a huge fan of the art style and it’s hard to review one’s experience but im sure many people could use a book like this. I think this book would be a great gift to any new mom!

This graphic memoir about being a first time mom tackles the tough topics of mental health + postpartum adjustments as well as all the emotions and individual experiences Emma Alqvist felt and went through. More stories need to be told because no two experiences are the same and women’s voices during this time have been far too silent

As a new mother, this was perfect. I didn’t know what to expect going into this book but I am so happy I read it. It talks about pregnancy and postpartum emotions and even what it means to jointly parent when you are the one who grew this tiny human. I’m a big fan of graphic novels and I’m very happy I had the chance to read this.

I thoroughly enjoyed this honest depiction of being a first time mother. From abortion, to anxieties and worries about becoming a mother, to postpartum this graphic novel covered all the topics people don't frequently talk about honestly.

It was a refreshing change for this book to move away from how to parent and actually talk about the highs and lows the mother herself experiences.

An interesting diary of a mother. The brutal truth about being pregnant and having a baby, with a partner, and a job to do. Then there's social life and friendship. Maybe not everyone going through the same experience, but you can really see your struggles from her perspective. And maybe sharing the same feeling, moments and decisions as her. Told in the format of a "comic book", this is easier to digest.

This book has come at the perfect time for me as I am a new mom. What we as new moms go through is crazy and I constantly look at baby in total awe as my body built this other body. It's incredible.

This was a sweet book that goes into the ins and outs of pregnancy and having a baby. The author is full of wonder and insight about the experience. Would love to buy this for any of my friends who are thinking of having children.

A nice little graphic novel about pregnancy and new motherhood. A lot of the chapters felt super relatable. Definitely not for anyone who is squeamish about illustrations of birth.

I do enjoy a good memoir, and when it comes in the form of a graphic novel, even better. This one though was a let down. This is a story on motherhood, being a new mother and the thoughts that coincide with that time, displayed in a very simplistic visual format which some may like, most may not. I was one who didn't mind it however my main problem lies in the actual story which is non existent. There is no cohesiveness or general linearity when it comes to the story, just streams of thoughts attached to graphics that make up the novel. That is not a books.

The themes are poignant, dealing with the highs and lows of motherhood and so for that commend it but I didn't love the work. Thank you Netgalley and Princeton Architectural Press for the eARC.

this book talks about all the things that women go through during their motherhood but also about the ecological awareness that they can have. all these things are very important, that's why i read this book, to learn about things that i would live maybe. but finally i realized that all the subjects that were dealt with in this book, i already knew about them, and the book talks about them in a simplified way that i don't like too much.
Moreover, I didn't like the style of the drawings.
But this book can be interesting for some people who really don't know anything about motherhood.

I love graphic novels and their ability to bring a story to life. So when I saw this one and that it was about being a mommy, I thought it would be perfect for me! Well…..not so much.

Unfortunately this fell very flat for me, and I just didn’t like it very much. The artwork was very graphic, which didn’t bother me too much but I’m sure it wouldn’t be everyone’s taste. It felt very all over the place and like just a bunch of random thoughts on motherhood. Which I mean, I guess that is motherhood right? All over the place thoughts and mommy brain 😂

It did bring up some good thoughts that I’m sure every mother feels which was nice, it just felt like it didn’t follow any kind of plot or story line and was too all over the place for my liking.

I received an advance reader copy of this book to read in exchange for an honest review via netgalley and the publishers.

My Body Created A Human: A Love Story is an illustrated, graphic novel style book depicting what it is to be a mother for the first time. The author covers many topics in this book such as mixed emotions to having a baby, postpartum, changed within herself inside and out during and after having the baby, working, climate change, breastfeeding and more. I did find there was a few too many naked illustrations through this book than was really necessary and wasn't so sure about climate change being the most important thing to worry about as a new mum as my experience (as a mother of 2) i had far bigger worries, but we are all different and I'm not saying this isn't something to worry about after having a baby. Some parts of this book I found relatable but others were a miss for me personally.

This book did NOT do it for me. It felt like a scattered stream of consciousness mixed in with a few pen drawings. The author honestly came across as whiny and/or pretentious at various points throughout the book. For example, she says she feels superior to women who don’t breastfeed, but also feels jealous of them because they can just pass off the baby to their partners to bottle feed and she can’t. The author doesn’t at all seem to think of the fact that some mothers would LOVE to breastfeed, but don’t because they’re physically are incapable (rather than out of sheer convenience, as the author seems to imply). She also says she is mad at her partner for sleeping while she has to stay up and breastfeed, but later says that she is jealous of him because he stays at home while she goes to work. She says she is “mad at feminism” because she can’t stay at home with her baby. Once again, the author seems to fail to recognize her own privilege that her child gets to have a stay-at-home parents PERIOD. I wanted this book to be a deep and beautiful and profound look at motherhood, but it ended up mostly being one woman’s complaints with a few “Oh but I’m so happy to be a mom” comments peppered throughout.

I thought this book was very interesting! As someone with a uterus, who has the potential to become pregnant, I realized that pregnancy and the after effects of it are not discussed often. I am glad that the book touched on things like physical changes, lifestyle changes, and even changes within a mother's mood. It talks about things that are very important for mothers and partners to think about and discuss with each other when planning for a baby and after the baby has arrived. I really enjoyed the illustrations as they had lots of realistic aspects to them such as body hair, wrinkles etc. This book was very well done, and I recommend this to people who are thinking about having children in the future.

A sweet graphic novel about pregnancy and being a new parent, specifically a mom. I liked it a lot and recognized myself in her thoughts and musings. The art fit perfectly to the theme and it's a quick read if you want it to be and a longer read if you want to look up and reflect a bit.

/ Denise

As a soon-to-be mom, I appreciated Ahlqvist's frank and raw graphic novel about pregnancy and early motherhood, particularly the illustration style. That said, I found her perseveration on capitalism and climate change a bit out of place within the overarching theme of this book - and not really what I was expecting. An interesting read, but definitely not one I'd gift to other soon-to-be or new moms.