There is sometimes a soft spot in me where if the pinhole rips open by way of children’s laughter or the way they hold a flower or wonder over soap bubbles floating into open air, that I imagine myself a father and I want to leave them all the things I love. This is that kind of book. From mother to daughter. Wanting so much to say I’ve carried you in me and I’ve lived a life and this is all I’m feeling. Feel it with me, please.

A lot about motherhood. A lot about the body. A lot about the body during motherhood. Heartwarming. Absurdist. Reaching breaking point of laughing or crying, that great in between that Slate is so good at.

I have long adored Jenny Slate--her standup, her acting, the way her characters are vibrant and fully-realized beings. I didn't care for Little Weirds overall, though there were flashes of brilliance and combinations of words and images that could only come from Slate's mind. Lifeform takes those moments of brilliant whimsy and expands them, creating with them a work that takes the reader through the beginnings of love, the creating of life, and the loss of loved ones. This book was far more structured than LW and ends up being quite profound.

Here's a snippet of Slate on grief:

"It seemed cruel to me that we patiently live through periods of anguish and shock when we lose our family members, and we keep facing it, believing that activity and time will settle it all down for us. We make a deal with fate: I'll keep this flame that signifies the one you took. I will let it scorch me in my heart if you let it die down naturally, and eventually there will just be a scar on my heart, and I will always know what I have lost. But by then, I will feel only the emptiness, not the terrible scald. I will let the fire of the loss run its course. This is the debt I will pay so that I can have a more bearable sadness."

This one is a beaut.

Jenny Slate is such a treasure. I was delighted to be able to get an ARC of this book to read her take on love, pregnancy, and new motherhood. I’m sure this book won’t be everyone’s cup of tea, as Slate’s writing can take sometimes bizarre or absurd twists along the way. However, I found her writing to be profound, beautiful, and enchanting. At times, her imagination reflects a childlike wonder that is steeped in wisdom. This was a quick read and I can’t wait for my friends to read and share their thoughts on it with me.

This book was wild. I think the description uses the term "genre-bending" to describe these essays, and that feels completely spot-on to me. There's a structure - the book is organized in five acts/sections (Single, True Love, Pregnancy, Baby, and Ongoing) - but within those sections, there's a mix of essays, letters to a doctor, descriptions of dreams, and a few snippets from a hilariously weird play. If you really like things to be plot-driven, I wouldn't recommend this - this felt more like tumbling down a hill than reading a structured narrative (in a good way). Once I got into the vibe, I just let Slate's free-wheeling prose carry me through.

When I saw Jenny Slate announced a new book, I got so excited. The way she tells her story feels so whimsical and creative - it makes reading fun.

Most importantly, I love how her writing submerges you in a vivid description and then suddenly brings you back to a feeling so deeply relatable that you’re taken aback. Like we were talking about Stonehenge or a lunch date or a stork and now suddenly I’m crying because I too worry about giving birth/being a mom/being a person. I hadn’t thought of it that way before but now I can’t see it any other way.

It really is a joy to read her work.

Thank you to netgalley & Little, Brown and co for this ARC.

Jenny Slate's first book, Little Weirds, completely changed my life. When I saw Lifeform was going to be released later this year I jumped on NetGalley for the opportunity to read it first and it did not disappoint. Slate's writing story is laugh-out-loud funny, devastating, and beautifully conceived. It's honestly so hard to describe so I recommend that you read it to fully understand the gravity and weight her words are on paper.
In Lifeform she talks about the various transformations of her life from singlehood, finding a life partner, marriage, pregnancy, and motherhood. It is beautifully composed and, for me personally, resonates in many ways.

Not to be controversial or start a whole thing, but Jenny Slate is doing what Miranda July thinks she’s doing. That whole intense, weird quirkiness but with meaning behind it? I just think Slate is so much better at it and comes across as way more natural and sincere. I remembered only sort of liking Slate's other book “Little Weirds” and giving it 3 stars, so I revisited my review for that one. I think this release is similar but her ideas were a bit more organized, and she perhaps had a better grasp on what she was truly capable of as a writer.

The various pieces can be a bit rambly and stream of consciousness in parts, but are then deeply poetic without warning in the best way. There’s an amazing essay in which she reimagines part of the plot of Ghostbusters, specifically from the POV of Dana. (I sometimes do that with movies I like, too! Inserting myself into the plot and completely rearranging things or continuing after the credits.) There is also a genuinely beautiful piece about the aging and death of family members that I found very moving. (Though this may be the one and only thing to be aware of as far as possible trigger warnings. It's also deeply sad.)

There WERE a couple of parts during which I had a difficult time following her. I couldn’t really picture what she was describing or figure out what she was trying to say. But the rest of the book more than made up for these moments. It’s kind of tough to explain unless you just read it, but the way she talks about things like Anxiety, aging and Depression is so real and harsh and relatable. I also really like the dark humor in her writing, because one moment she’ll be going on and on about how she’s the happiest she’s ever been and then immediately she’ll be talking about being painfully aware of her own mortality. (For example.) But the actual jokes are quite weird and funny.

I’m visiting Boston in October, because I used to live there and I miss it. I recently found out that Jenny Slate will actually be there promoting this very book the night BEFORE I arrive! Sadly, I’ve already purchased my plane tickets. The absolute tragedy of this timing is almost poetic and I think she would appreciate it.

4.5 stars

Thanks so much to Netgalley and to the Publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review! All opinions are my own.

Jenny Slate’s writing is ethereal, gentle, and strange in the very best way. She captures the intersections of reality and imagination in such a whimsical-yet-analytical form, and it always makes my heart sing just a little bit. I loved the first half of this book, particularly the sections about the raccoon and eavesdropping at lunch. There is just a human quality to these essays. However, as a young woman who is really struggling with the concept of the desire to not ever have children, I did not relate to the second half and found myself skimming it at times. This has nothing to do with the writing or Slate’s talent, but my own aversion to the idea of myself as a mother at this point in my life.

I knew when I saw that Jenny Slate was releasing a new book, that it would be strange, poetic, and deeply affecting. That is exactly what this turned out to be. She uses the absolute strangest metaphors and allegories to push forth some of the most beautiful, relatable experiences of womanhood. Her imagery is quirky and memorable (i.e, the baby seal). Some of the stories were a bit more difficult to understand, but that could be me not being a mother preventing me from understanding. Overall, I loved this book and will cherish it. I think it would make a great gift to a mother-to-be!

This was an entertaining and insightful quick nonfiction read. I haven’t had the best luck reading nonfiction by celebrities but this one felt like a door that was opened into Slate’s world and it felt like a friend was telling their story.

Jenny Slate is my own personal brain goblin. The way this woman writes is magic to me. I am going to stop at the 50% mark because I'm noticing a lot of differences between the version on my phone and the computer. With any other book I'd just power through but I can't risk reading an unfinished version or a weirdly cut off version of this book. It's too important.

While Jenny Slate's stand-up comedy and comedic acting roles are very accessible and hilarious (Marcel the Shell with Shoes On! Mona-Lisa Saperstein!), her writing is often the complete opposite. While I found her debut selection of stories LITTLE WEIRDS delightful, though somewhat.. weird (of course), I found her latest LIFEFORM even more weirder and harder to crack. While I certainly don't mind surreal, Slate truly takes the whimsical surrealness she is known for to a whole new level.

I was so excited to dive into her thoughts about being a new mom, especially since I'm currently pregnant. I related to some parts, but not all. The stories are fantastical and strange, and I'm sure some people will be VERY into this vibe, but it just wasn't working for me at the end of the day. I'm not mad I read it though. I still admire how inventive and creative she is, and how she makes me laugh a lot in other ways!