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The Shame: A Novel

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Alma and her family live a life close to the land. Then, one night, she abruptly leaves it all behind. This is a propulsive, funny, and thought-provoking debut about a woman in isolation whose mind - fueled by capitalism, motherhood, and the search for meaningful art - attempts to betray her.

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First published August 11, 2020

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Makenna Goodman

2 books67 followers

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5 stars
354 (19%)
4 stars
638 (34%)
3 stars
605 (32%)
2 stars
208 (11%)
1 star
43 (2%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 329 reviews
Profile Image for aly ☆彡 (on vacation).
428 reviews1,706 followers
February 14, 2025
So, I may have started a book that was not intended for me. As someone single and commitment-free, it's difficult to relate to a book that speaks about the inescapability of motherhood.

Even so, I have to admit that this book is thought-provoking, raw, and overall compelling. I enjoyed the psychological aspect of it as The Shame highlighted women's constant self-criticism and how commercialism and social media amplify it. You can see how Alma had a dream of her own, was jealous of many of the features of her life that she is most bored by, and was critical of her weaknesses. In a sense, she is well aware that comparing herself to a romanticized version of motherhood is harmful, but she can't help but fall into it.

I appreciate Alma's honesty and self-deprecating self. Even with the shorter length, you can see her complexity throughout as she was torn between doing what she wants and what she has to do that comes with the responsibility of being a mother. Alma's story felt surreal and it just elevated more the respect I have towards all mothers out there — those who always tried and remain unselfish, despite struggling themselves.

On the whole, if you're looking for a plot-driven book, I am afraid this book is not for you as The Shame is anchored around Alma's characterization. As much as I am yet able to wholly relate to the experience, I enjoy reading her journey of conscience that eventually forces her to face reality outside the filters afforded by social media. There was such an important layer to this read that made it a worthy one!
Profile Image for Parastoo Khalili.
204 reviews457 followers
September 14, 2022
این کتاب بده، داستان بده، ماجرا بده، اتفاقات بدن، شخصیت‌ها هم افتضاحن و اثر به شدت ضعیفه.
وقتی می‌گم به شدت بد منظورم اینکه تا کی ما باید درباره‌ی خانم خانه‌داری بخونیم که از هیچی زندگی‌ش راضی نیست و حتی از خودش هم راضی نیست و همش درحال مقایسه‌ی خودش با دیگرانه. تا کی باید بخونیم که این فرد خودش رو پشت انواع و اقسام ماسک قایم میکنه تا دیگران بهش ترحم نکنند. تا کی باید بخونیم که یهو یه اتفاقی میوفته (اتفاقی نسبتا عجیب و غریب) و این شخصیت داستان عاقل میشه و قدر خونه و زندگیش رو میدونه یا به قول خود کتاب برمی‌گرده سر خونه‌ای که «بوی گچ و لباس‌های آویخته، هیزم سوختهو بوی کپک و نا به مشامش میخوره«.
لعنت بهتون. چرا همچین اثری می‌نویسید؟ چرا از درد حرف میزنید وقتی خودتون چاره رو پیدا نکردید؟؟ چرا از بدختی‌ها صحبت می‌کنید و داستان رو همونجا رها می‌کنید؟ چرا نمیگید این زن چطور خود رو نجات داد؟ خودش رو نجات داد؟ خودش رو از کی نجات داد؟
چرا دست از سر این زن‌ها برنمی‌دارید؟ چرا دوست دارید همه‌چیز رو عجیب غریب و غیرعادی نشون بدید؟ چرا مارو راحت نمیذارید؟ چرا ما زن‌هارو راحت نمی‌ذارید؟
Profile Image for Sana.
316 reviews162 followers
October 13, 2025
از این کتاب خیلی نظرات منفی خوندم
و من فکر کردم قراره با بدترین کتاب دنیا مواجهه بشم ولی برخلاف تصورم خیلی دوسش داشتم.
عاشق توصیفات روزمره ی این زن شدم.
اتفاقی در کتاب نمیفته‌.ریتم کتاب کنده ولی همچنان تااخر دوست داری بخونی.
Profile Image for Jerrie.
1,033 reviews163 followers
September 14, 2020
This story was devastatingly relatable. The narrator has an idyllic life as a wife and mother in a charming Vermont home. Everything is perfect - and she's incredibly bored. After becoming obsessed with a woman on Instagram who seems to have the life she wants, she leaves her family one evening on a whim and heads to NYC. This had some really great writing about the day-to-day struggles of trying to figure out why having everything you want isn't all it's cracked up to be.
Profile Image for Laleh.
132 reviews12 followers
October 3, 2023
ادم ها از زندگی خودشون که خسته میشن و ارتباط درونیشون با زندگی خودشون که قطع میشه دنبال چنگ زدن به واقعیات دیگه ای میگردن،کاری که الما شخصیت این کتاب کرد هم همین بود:مادری که از همه‌ی روزمرگی‌های زندگی به تنگ امده و حالا در هنر،ادبیات و حتی فضای مجازی به دنبال زندگی دیگه ای میگرده و در نهایت این فضای مجازی و کاربرهای اون هستن که با زندگی های رنگین ولی دروغین این نوع ادم هارو به خودشون جذب میکنن و به فروپاشی میرسونن.کتاب مونولوگ بلندی بود که پیچیدگی خاصی نداشت بسیار روان بود.و من در نهایت فکر کردم در اتاق درمان نشسته ام و مراجعی داره زندگیش رو برام شرح میده چون بسیاری از اختلال ها و مشکلات از جمله ترس از مرگ،اضطراب و افسردگی و...وجود داشت که شخصیت این کتاب با اون درگیر بود.
پ ن: پیشنهاد خوبیه برای بچه های روانشناسی
Profile Image for Sara.
Author 7 books209 followers
August 30, 2020
This book is so freaking good. Fearless brilliant hilarious spot-on vicious irresistible. (Not to mention the goddamn sentences.) Blows the roof off the literary novel. Now everyone go read so we can discuss our collective obsession and envy.
Profile Image for Kimiya.
54 reviews207 followers
May 24, 2023
جایزه‌ی بی‌مزه‌ترین رمانی که از نشر بیدگل خوندم می‌رسه به شرم از مکنا گودمن.
Profile Image for Khadidja .
626 reviews561 followers
December 21, 2022
miss ma'am if you don't go to therapy i will put you in there myself
Profile Image for Melanie.
Author 8 books1,407 followers
September 28, 2025
“I keep looping around to the same feeling: fear, in general, about being an adult. The weight of motherhood is a backpack full of stones. Like soil, like a bomb. It’s the kind of feeling that grips me like I’m in a foggy valley early in the morning surrounded by thick white air, unable to see even my hand in front of my face, and I don’t realize that, a hundred feet up, the sun is out. I have no way of knowing. “Cherish it”, a woman told me at the market, smiling at the kids. I wanted to punch her in the fucking face.”

A mother of two speeds away in her car in the dead of night, away from her home in Vermont, away from her self, bound for the big fluorescent lights of New York City.

One night on the road with a tired heart and a mind on fire.

One night with a woman on the verge, a woman in disarray, a woman in the grips. A last attempt at reaching for what Gatsby called the green light, “the orgastic future that year by year recedes before us”. The self we could be, the self we will never be, the self - ironically - that in many ways we already are.

What Makenna Goodman brings to this eternal song of dissatisfaction are the shiny bright lights of social media and the “selves” of others which are reflected back to us. The “perfect” lives we lust after, the hall of mirrors where we chase authenticity. The pale green light of envy.

There is a heartbroken scene at the end of Clint Eastwood’s “The Bridges of Madison County” where Meryl Streep tries to put into words what happens to a woman when she starts a family. She says: “You build a life of details. You become a mother, a wife and you stop and stay steady so that your children can move.“

This wild little book adds its piercing and lyrical voice to the choir of Mothers/Writers like Claire Kilroy, Doireann Ní Ghríofa and Nicole Graev Lipson who balked at and understood this fractured truth: mothering grounds you to a halt while your mind aches to put its foot on the gas.

A lot of shame roams this foggy, liminal space but so do art and self-creation.

An intoxicating read.
Profile Image for Katie Mac.
1,059 reviews
July 20, 2020
This book, which explores the question "If you could escape your current life, would you?" reminds me of Ingrid Goes West with a dash of Ottessa Moshfegh's My Year of Rest and Relaxation. It's a slim volume that does an admirable job exploring the inner workings of a mother's mind. The book didn't always work for me (I was able to put it down easily), but it's a quick, worthwhile read.

Thank you to Edelweiss+ for the digital ARC.
Profile Image for Faezeh Nourikakhki.
21 reviews36 followers
October 27, 2022
تازگی‌ها کتاب‌ها هم شبیه کپشن اینستاگرام شدن، بی سر و ته!
یاد یه تکه از تنهایی پرهیاهو افتادم با این مضمون: که چقد کتاب خوندم به امید اشارتی از بالا!
ما هم چقد کتاب خوندیم به این امید که لابه‌لای این صفحه‌ها یه چیزی بخونیم که بهمون انگیزه بده و اینسایت، ولی هیچی به هیچی. آخر کتاب چی شد یهو؟؟ انقد راحت همه چی گل پ بلبل شد؟ پس چرا تو زندگی ما انقد راحت همه چی درست نمیشه؟:|
Profile Image for Amin Tuysserkani.
169 reviews3 followers
December 17, 2025
برای کار اول نویسنده خیلی خوب و قابل‌توجه بود. یک بخش‌هایی واقعا جسورانه بود و کاملا ��ین حس را می‌داد که نویسنده از زندگی خودش می‌گوید‌. در کل من لذت بردم. می‌شد امتیاز سه هم داد.
Profile Image for Marcus (Lit_Laugh_Luv).
466 reviews982 followers
April 25, 2025
This was fine...I feel no strong reception to it for better or for worse. The Shame dissects the shame and discomfort surrounding domestic life and motherhood. Alma has grown increasingly disenchanted with her life as a stay-at-home mother and can't help but feel stifled. She compares herself to the women around her who seem to have everything together and feels like her circumstances are a reflection of her failings.

This was significantly less weird than I expected, and much more mundane and realistic. While Alma's obsession with Celeste (a prolific mommy blogger) is the heart of the story, it doesn't really 'go there' and hit a crescendo. I didn't dislike the messaging or the execution, but I think unless you're a parent yourself, you probably won't relate to all the small moments of the novel.

I'm much more excited about Goodman's upcoming release Helen of Nowhere, but this was still a solid debut. It gets the message across in a tight page count, and has moments of humour and wit that help break up the monotony. If you enjoyed Banal Nightmare, I think you'll enjoy this too.
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as i age i find myself wanting children less and less... and books like this help solidify that <3
Profile Image for Ayeh Bandeh-ahmadi.
9 reviews2 followers
May 11, 2020
If only all medicine tasted this good. In beautiful and easy prose, THE SHAME transports the reader between instragrammable dinners and an idyllic Vermont farm, delighting us as it interrogates the dark poles that lurk beneath. A kind of ANIMAL FARM for the modern woman and those who seek to understand her. With light, humor and bite, THE SHAME examines the scars and wounds accrued by the young mother at its center, giving the reader a warm bubble from which to reconcile the costs of who we are to our partners, to our children, to those watching us at parties, on social media and in our own minds’ eyes.
Profile Image for Arash.
254 reviews112 followers
April 28, 2024
دویست صفحه بطالت محض
Profile Image for Ala es.
57 reviews2 followers
September 11, 2025
متاسفانه نشد که بیاد تو ده کتاب برتر امسالم متن قسمتای گیرا و زیبا زیاد داشت ولی در کل داستان انسجام نداشت و با شخصیت اصلی داستان (آلما) که به معنای واقعی کلمه یه استاکر عقده ای بود نمیتونستم همذات پنداری کنم
آلما یه جوری استرس میکشه و خود خوری میکنه تو طول کتاب که دیگه میریزین بهم قشنگ یه گوله تنش بوده دست و پا دراورده شده آلما
Profile Image for Colleen.
741 reviews15 followers
January 31, 2021
2.5 stars. I wanted to slap this woman. And then shake her a bit. (The character that is.) She's the most frustrating character I've come across in a while. She lives an instagram lifestyle, but is obsessed with another woman's perfect(-looking) instagram life. The book is marketed as being about the shame a mother would feel if she left her children. I didn't get that. The shame is her daily life. She's ashamed of her own mistakes and failings (although we get no evidence of them). She has opportunities to escape stay-at-home motherhood, which doesn't seem to be good for her, but she evades them because what if they're not good enough? I just totally lost sympathy for her. It's worth reading if you want something about obsession with other people's lives, particularly through social media.
Profile Image for مهشید.
567 reviews29 followers
October 25, 2023
شرم. کتاب شامل ناله‌ها و غرغرهای زن خونه‌ داریه که گرفتار روزمرگی شده. داستانی کاملا تکراری. این زن، زنی بلاگر که از نظر ظاهری شبیه به خودشه رو تو اینستاگرام پیدا میکنه و مدام سلستِ بلاگر رو دنبال میکنه و حسرت زندگیش رو می‌خوره. روزی تصمیم میگیره زندگیش رو رها کنه و بره سلست رو از نزدیک ببینه و با اون باشه. تو راه تا به سلست برسه، فلش‌بک‌هایی به زندگیش میزنه و در نهایت همون‌طور که انتظار داریم، میفهمه سلست فقط ظاهر خوبی از خودش ارائه داده. خب داستان تمی تکراری داره و حتی نکته‌ای نداره که کتاب رو از داستان‌هایی تو این تم متمایز کنه. من دوست دارم این سبک کتاب‌ها رو اما اگر بخوام به کتاب نمره بدم، نمره‌ش بیشتر از سه نیست. چون واقعا روایتی ساده و بدون نقطه قوتی رو داشت.
Profile Image for Mairi.
165 reviews22 followers
January 1, 2024
I thought the story could have been stronger but I adored the writing style. I think "women being bored and going slightly insane" is one of my favourite genres of book / film.
Profile Image for Kaila.
760 reviews13 followers
November 23, 2021
2/5 stars

This book really didn’t give me much. I’ve read multiple books recently with a similar slow and contemplative style, and with a troubled mid-30s to mid-40s heroine seeking change. I think maybe because I’ve read a couple of these books recently, I really compared this one to them, and it didn’t seem to hold up in comparison. I got to the end and felt like nothing much was really said. And while I often enjoy reading about ‘unlikeable’ heroines, I was just really frustrated about our main character on this one. There was just so much whining and insufferable decisions made, and in the end no progress. I understand and can sympathise with the idea of always wanting more and seeing another person’s life as more ideal than yours, but gosh did the book feel flat and frustrating.
Profile Image for Dorsa Ehya.
139 reviews22 followers
October 13, 2022
چهارستاره دادن به این کتاب کاملا دلی و سلیقه‌ای است!!
من نمی‌دونم چرا با اینکه یک دختر جوان ۲۵ ساله‌ام که هنوز ازدواج نکرده و بچه‌دار نشده و … چرا این‌قدر با کتاب‌هایی که درباره زنان و مادرانیه که احساس روزمرگی ناشی از بچه‌داری و خونه‌داری و دور شدن از جامعه داره خفه‌شون می‌کنه همزادپنداری می‌کنم و این کتاب‌ها این‌قدر به دلم می‌شینن؛ شاید چون واقعا فوبیای من همینه که روزی به این ملال نامتناهی دچار بشم

در انتهای کتاب یک مصاحبه هست با نویسنده که من حوصله‌ام نکشید بخونمش اما ابتداش یک مقدمه داره که توصیف خوبی از محتوای کتابه:

«این رمان طبقه متوسط سفیدپوست را تصویر می‌کند که خودش به جان خودش افتاده، و بیشتر به جان زن‌ها، زن‌هایی که توی گوششان خوانده‌اند که خودشان را در طبق پیشکشی بگذارند؛ و بعد هم به این و آن پیشکش کنند.»
Profile Image for Helena.
239 reviews
Read
October 31, 2021
it is pretty funny of me to finish my book club picks within like 2 weeks of the last meeting and to finish other peoples book clubs picks like 2 months after the last meeting
Profile Image for Masih Reyhani.
282 reviews12 followers
September 2, 2024
«شرم» رُمان خواندنی و جذابی است؛ که تمام همدلی خواننده را با «آلما» برمی‌انگیزد.

📚 از متن کتاب:
«در آرزوی چیزی بودن از رسیدن به مقصود، بهتر است.»

رمان روایت‌گر زندگی زنی به نام «آلما» است که همراه همسر و فرزندانش در یک مزرعه‌ی کوچک زندگی می‌کند. این خانواده که از زندگی شهری و شلوغی‌هایش به ستوه آمده‌اند در پی یافتن آرامش و مبارزه با دنیای سرمایه‌داری تن به زندگی در این مزرعه داده‌اند اما با گذشت زمان «آلما» متوجه می‌شود که زندگی روستایی هم به اندازه‌ی زندگی شهری خسته‌کننده و بی‌معناست. او کم‌کم احساس بیگانگی با محیط می‌کند و در نهایت در اثر فشار سنگین احساس فداکاری و از خودگذشتگی همسرانه/مادرانه‌ی خود با یک بحران هویتی روبرو می‌شود.

«آلما» در دام بلاگری به‌نام «سلست» می‌افتد و شیفته‌ی برش‌هایی از زندگی‌اش می‌شود که در شبکه‌های اجتماعی به اشتراک می‌گذارد. «سلست» هنرمند است، یوگا می‌کند، در مهمانی‌های جذاب شرکت کرده و غذاهای فرانسوی می‌خورد و همیشه در خانه‌اش گلدان‌هایی گران‌قیمت و زیبا دارد. علاوه بر این‌ها «سلست» دغدغه‌ی محیط زیست هم دارد!

این کتاب که نخستین رمان نویسنده است، علیرغم سادگی خود با ظرافت به مسائل عمیق و پیچیده‌ی روان‌شناختی، احساسات و افکار ابراز نشده و نقش‌های جنسیتی پرداخته است و هر خواننده‌ای را می‌تواند به تامل و تفکر وادارد؛ خاصه در جامعه‌ی این‌روزهای ما که بلاگرها می‌تازند.
Profile Image for Rhiannon Johnson.
847 reviews305 followers
July 23, 2020
I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.



The Shame allows readers to jump inside the mind of a homesteading artist mother to experience the constant hamster-wheel of chores, the minutiae of motherhood, and the juxtaposed thoughts regarding art, capitalism, and consumerism? This short novel (160 pages) follows Alma through her daily motions with flashbacks blended in (like uncomfortable faculty dinners) as she tries to decide if she should accept a project that doesn't align with her personal beliefs. However, I found her obsession with an online influencer to be the star storyline. This is a great little slow burn/quick read novel.⁠

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Profile Image for Negaratopia.
33 reviews1 follower
September 6, 2024
دیشب تموم‌ش کردم. قصه روایتگر یه الگو و چرخه تکراریه که همیشه و همیشه تکرار شده و اون ترس زنان خانه‌داره و مقایسه و چاقو زدن ذهنی، و اصلا هر انسانی که گاهی فکر میکنه دیوار‌های خونه و کار‌های تکراری دارن قورت‌ش می‌دن.

به نظرم کتاب ارزش یک‌بار خوندن داره و مخصوصا اگه دچار اسلامپ شدین چون روان و سبکه.
وقتی که داشتم قصه آلما رو می‌خوندم مدام یاد زن‌های خانه‌داری افتادم که خودشون رو فراموش کردن و یک آن متوجه این موضوع میشن و خسته و عصبانی و آشفته‌‌ن. سال‌هایی که رفته و تو تکه‌هایی از خودت رو فراموش کردی و جایی جا گذاشتی، مثل طاهره تو فیلم به همین سادگی و یا رویا تو فیلم کاغذ بی‌خط.
Profile Image for TraceyL.
990 reviews161 followers
April 4, 2022
Very good writing and character work, but plot-wise I needed more. This book is about a woman trying to live the ideal countryside family life, who becomes obsessed with a social media influencer who seems to actually be perfect. Once she started fixating on the influencer, I thought the story was going to lead to a big finale, but the story just kind of stopped.
Profile Image for Rachel.
Author 13 books1,399 followers
November 21, 2023
Other lives imagined and not lived. Imaginative, playful, funny, sad, lush. A lush novel of the consequences of normal choices, of taking a moral path. A beautiful and unfulfilling moral life escapable only via fantasy. The lush and tedious rhythms of a moral life on and of the land. A special gem of a book—puzzling, gorgeous, intricate.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 329 reviews

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