The Cracks We Bear

by Catalina Infante, Michelle Mirabella (Translator)

Motherhood is terrifying, thinks Laura, feeling small and helpless as she holds her newborn daughter. Instead of joy, she feels fear, and then anger at her own late mother for her absence. The Cracks We Bear opens as a story about new motherhood. Soon, however, it reveals itself to be an exploration of memory and trauma as Laura starts to recall her childhood in Chile. Born in exile to staunchly communist parents, she returns to Chile with her mother after the collapse of the Pinochet dictatorship. In the fledgling democracy she grows up in, topics of capitalism and communism are ever present. Laura’s reflections, born from personal experience, are interwoven with raw and honest memories of her family life. Borrowing elements from the Bildungsroman, and pulling from the Latin American short story tradition, Catalina Infante recounts Laura’s past in vignettes. Piece by piece, the short chapters come together like a reconstructed vase, bearing its cracks.

Genres: Fiction, Literature

99 pages, Kindle Edition

Published October 21, 2025

Reviews

[Cecilia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Una madre que perdió a su madre y que acaba de tener una hija nos muestra en esta páginas la maternidad sin filtros. Nos hace un recorrido por la figura materna a través de todas sus complejas esferas. Y es que realmente no conocemos a nuestras madres, o no del todo al menos, porque nos cuesta verlas como la persona más allá de la figura de madre, la persona que fue antes de ser madre y la que es ahora debajo de esas capas. Nos abre los ojos para ver que nuestras madres son mucho más que solo eso. 

También nos muestra cómo de teje la tan única relación madre-hija, tando desde sus recuerdos con su madre como ahora con su hija, y aquí destaco esta frase: "(...) a medida que ella crezca y yo me haga vieja nuestras diferencias irán acentuándose y ella encontrará su propio lugar. (...) no volveremos a compartir esta cercanía física, esta intimidad, Pero esa distancia inminente no importa ahora, no hará menos válido este momento"

Temas: feminismo, duelo, tristeza, duda, incomprensión, maternidad, puerperio, crítica social, exilio, política, búsqueda, humor, relaciones familiares complejas, distancia, silencios, cotidianidad.

Una novela conmovedora, profunda y poética, con capítulos cortos que la hacen muy adictiva de leer y que se siente como asomarse a una herida abierta dada la honestidad e intimidad con la que está escrita y que hace aún más fácil el dejarse llevar por sus páginas.

Espero puedan darle una oportunidad a La grieta.

TW: abuso infantil

[Janelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

The narrator of the novella is a new mother, her own mother died years earlier. As she struggles with a crying baby she reflects on the relationship with her mother and how much she actually she knew about her. This is quite a moving read, well written and also brings in other issues in Chile, politics, exile, history, feminism and protest.

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

A young woman struggles with early motherhood and reflects on the unknowability of her own late mother in this brief but compelling read.

In short chapters, the new mother, Laura, alternately details her present battle with a baby who doesn’t sleep and a partner who has temporarily moved out with an excavation of her mother’s shadowy past. Living in exile after the Pinochet coup and dying from cancer when Laura was just 18, the artifact’s of her mother’s existence have been locked away in a closet until now. Leafing through the photos, Laura dwells on the silence that reigned over her childhood and the internal void passed down from mother to daughter.

It’s not a novel subject, but Infante’s words are raw and unsparing. Plus a great translator‘s note to boot!

[Antonia · Rating 4 out of 5]

una novela difícil de leer, pero muy necesaria. hablar sobre maternidad (o maternidades?) nunca resulta fácil, incluso para quienes en redes sociales afirman que puede ser la experiencia más hermosa que podría vivir una mujer cis.
no soy madre, no quiero serlo, pero me resulta muy interesante esta mirada incómoda de maternidad que se está incorporando hoy a las narraciones.
política, feminismo, crítica; todo lo que necesito en un buen libro.

[Kate O'Shea · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

Perhaps it is because I am not a mother myself that I wasn't particularly engaged with Laura's story. Or perhaps I just wanted more of the history of Chile thrown in. Whatever the reason, this book simply didn't move me.

Laura tells us the story of her own broken upbringing in light of her feelings after the birth of her own daughter and the inability both she and her partner have to cope with a very restless baby together.

We do get some history of the political atmosphere in Chile before the family leave. Laura also tells us of the relationship she had with her mother, wondering if her own experiences will impact on her own daughter in the same way.

This book feels mainly like a discourse on the feelings, I imagine, the majority of new mothers get, of inadequacy, of feeling that nothing they do is right, a feeling that their baby may be better off without them or, at least, with someone else. Perhaps it is simply about loss of self through becoming wholly responsible for another, helpless human being whilst feeling helpless yourself.

This was well written and an interesting book but it simply didn't speak to me the way I had hoped. I am sure others with different life experiences will find it a more rewarding short novel.

Thankyou to Netgalley and World Editions for the advance review copy.

[June García · Rating 4 out of 5]

Me gustaron mucho las reflexiones en torno a la maternidad, al principio las sentí medias panfletarias, pero creo que después se desarrollan bien, especialmente en el contraste ser madre / ser hija. Tocaba hartos temas más, como el exilio, el abuso sexual y la relación con el padre, creo que estos tres pierden fuerza frente al tema central. Es muy melancólico y varias veces quedé media ahogada de tristeza.

[Linda Galella · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received a copy for review purposes. All opinions are honest and mine alone.


Altho’ this debut novel is not author, Catalina Infante’s, first published work, it is her first full length offering.translated into English. The book proper paginates at about 82 pages, not including publishing stuff and an informative, lengthy note from the translator. THE CRACKS WE BEAR might be short on pages but it’s long on emotion. Please do take the time to read the translator’s comments.

Laura is a young mother, ravaged by lack of sleep from a demanding newborn. She’s dealing with unnamed postpartum depression, the passing of her emotionally deficient mother, and a mentally ill brother, on top of the new baby. With nothing to draw on from her mother, Laura looks thru a box of pictures, postcards and trinkets belonging to her mother, for clues to jumbled memories about their dark, confusing relationship.

The story is told in short chapters that span the years from 1977 to 2003. The narrative jumps around as Laura’s thinking process does. It’s well marked but feels chaotic, much like Laura’s relationship to her mother; or lack thereof. There’s much to unpack and empathize with here, even if you don’t have a young baby right now. Many mother-daughter relationships have need for contemplative evaluation.

Only one character, Laura, is well developed. Secondary characters are used as vehicles to deliver memories about her mother. We learn very little about them. Uncovering the details about mom is painful, excruciatingly slow and gaunt. My mother was mentally ill and abusive. For thirty plus years I tried to investigate the “why’s and how’s”. Unlike Laura, I had many people who could have helped but they were clueless and/or fooled by her. Eventually, it was easier to pack her away and move on without her.

Laura comes to her own solution. Not your typical HEA, it is an achingly positive ending for a book that is largely dark; fraught with emotional abuse, mental illness, marital problems, sexual abuse and misery. This is not for the faint of heart but for those who can read to champion a protagonist that is looking to rise above the sins of their fore parents📚

Read and Reviewed from a NetGalley eARC with thanks to the author and publisher

[catastrophia reads · Rating 3 out of 5]

La maternidad, desde una arista incómoda, sombría, no esa mirada, tal vez, idealizada que se suele ver en redes sociales. Una pincelada en primera persona de una mujer que se convierte en madre primeriza, sus dudas que parecen jamás tener respuestas, porque ¿qué sabe una mujer de ser madre? ¿Será un instinto inherente, una fórmula a partir de la prueba y error?

Y tal vez sean preguntas retóricas, tal vez nunca se termina de aprender a ser madre, porque ni nosotros mismos, hijos e hijas de nuestras propias madres, nunca terminemos de conocerlas en realidad, porque es inevitable observarlas a través de ese filtro de maternidad, y olvidamos que son, primordialmente, mujeres.

La protagonista se enfrenta a todo aquel tornado de su nueva vida, sanar su relación con su propia madre, fallecida en su adolescencia; adaptarse a una relación de pareja trastornada, a los cercanos y sus preguntas que no quiere escuchar ni responder, a la negación de esta rutina, a querer alejarse de todo, y a la vez querer únicamente estar con su hija.

No soy madre, pero espero serlo algún día. Me aterra pensar que viviré una experiencia como la de Laura, pero también sé que no será como aquel cuento rosa del imaginario social.

[Richard Derus]

Listen to a reading from the book by the author and the translator:
https://youtu.be/MOJ4xh_UrHo?si=bCYni...

[Caitlyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

ARC review

3.75 stars

Laura has recently given birth to her first child and is feeling disenchanted by motherhood. Her anger and anxiety is compounded by memories of her own late mother and the strained relationship between the two of them before her death. The Cracks We Bear explore's women's roles as mothers and daughters, and how these intersect. Laura needs to confront the trauma she has been carrying with her in order to break the cycle of abuse and neglect for her own daughter.

This is a very short read, and the author does a fantastic job of making sure the reader knows who Laura is within a few pages. I think most mothers will really resonate with how Laura feels during the newborn trenches, myself included. This includes feeling overwhelmed by but unable to be separated from your child, not recognising your body after birth, and a general feeling of isolation. Laura's mother is remembered as cold and all-powerful, even as she succumbed to cancer. Laura's inability to connect on an emotional level with her mother has left her with with a lot of unresolved grief that she doesn't know what to do with because vulnerability was never modelled in her family. Catalina's writing is so raw and relatable, I truly didn't want this to end.

I personally really connected with and enjoyed the present storyline of Laura's experience of motherhood a lot more out of the two so I wish this was explored more, especially considering it didn't really feel like a resolution was offered despite Laura's soul searching. I'm honestly disappointed this is only a novella because I think there was a lot of room for development that we didn't get.

Overall, this is a great example of dual timelines in literary fiction and I think it'll be a big hit for a lot of women.

[☆ piupiu ☆ · Rating 4 out of 5]

only around 100 pages and each one felt like a shot to the heart. i think i have 80% of this book underlined. a new mother struggling to feel like a good mother is upset at her late mother for not being there to help her be a mother; we walk through her present and her memories to try and put the cracked pieces back together. yeah exactly. this book feels like exactly how you think it's gonna feel. every mother was a daughter first and will be a daughter forever

everyone read this

thank u to netgalley and the publisher for the arc :)

[Antonia Echeverría · Rating 5 out of 5]

Esta novela me tocó una fibra emocional, me fue difícil leer ciertos capítulos sin dejar caer algunas lágrimas. Es que las relaciones madre/hija son un tópico que es profundamente intrincado, pasional, personal.
Catalina Infante, en esta novela nos narra la relación de Laura con su madre, Esther. Laura, a su vez, acaba de ser madre primeriza de Antonia. En este escenario, como lectores somos testigos de cómo la protagonista navega dentro de las aguas de lo que implica ser madre, desde la relación que ella tuvo con Esther y cómo va creciendo su vínculo con Antonia.
"La Grieta" representa ese vacío: el que cargaba Esther por cumplir con su rol de madre, desde las heridas del exilio y también desde la docencia. La protagonista carga con esta grieta, la de la distancia imborrable entre ella y su madre, su alteridad y las distintas experiencias de mundo. Pero puede construir una narrativa para comprender a su madre desde su propio rol de mamá de Antonia.
Una novela que me hizo reflexionar un montón, me hizo empatizar, comprender ciertas cosas y preguntarme otras. Y también, sobre todo, me emocionó esta profundización de un vínculo tan potente como lo es el madre/hija. La recomiendo de todas formas.

[Mila Vargas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Libro sobre el viaje de la maternidad desde el punto de vista de una madre primeriza y, a la vez, hija única de una madre ya fallecida.

Laura, la protagonista, da a luz a Antonia y ese suceso vital la hace recordar y analizar su relación con Esther, fallecida de cáncer hace ya varios años. ¿Quién era realmente su mamá? ¿Se querían entre sí? ¿Esther fue feliz siendo madre de Laura? ¿Y ella? ¿Deseaba realmente ser madre? ¿Lo estaba haciendo bien?

Su psicóloga le habla sobre las grietas que van marcando y cambiando para siempre las relaciones humanas y, pese a que Laura no recuerde haber peleado nunca con Esther, a medida que avanza la historia, sus vivencias previas y las actuales con Antonia le van dando a entender que el silencio y la falta de vulnerabilidad alejan tanto a dos personas como el enfrentamiento directo.

El relato concluye el viaje emocional con un viaje tangible en busca de esa conexión inexistente e imposible de lograr después de la muerte. Así, Laura consigue finalmente aceptar y dejar ir las cosas que no pudieron ser y apreciar su vida presente junto a su hija, con la que al fin parece congeniar.

Aunque angustiante, disfruté del libro. Creo que nunca habrá suficientes novelas o ensayos sobre la complejidad de las relaciones entre madre e hija, y este la aborda muy bien. Pasa por todas las etapas del duelo y también retrata la ansiedad, pavor y adrenalina experimentada por las madres: ese lado desesperante y poco instagrammeable de la más primal de las experiencias.

Por último, incluye constantemente la interrogante del abandono a la mujer que se fue antes de parir por dedicarse de lleno a maternar; la pérdida de esa identidad autónoma, si acaso se puede y quiere recuperar; entre muchas otras preguntas sin respuesta pero sí mucha reflexión.

*

«Los niños a esa edad lo vemos todo, lo sentimos todo, lo sabemos todo, nos damos cuenta, no necesitamos que las cosas realmente pasen para verlas. No tenemos el mismo lenguaje ni capacidad de reflexión de los adultos, pero sabemos los hechos porque las verdades entran sin filtro en nuestro cuerpo. Los adultos, en cambio, tienen todas las capacidades y herramientas, pero prefieren no ver.»

«Por supuesto que no estoy haciendo las cosas bien. Me estoy equivocando. Ese es el rol de las madres, equivocarse. A punta de sus errores nos formamos como seres humanos, crecemos amoldándonos a esas equivocaciones.»

«Comencé a pensar que ser mi madre era algo que la agotaba, que si hubiera podido quedarse en ese pasado lo habría hecho. Me pregunto si esa duda la tenemos todas las hijas, todas las madres.»

[Adeana Libman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley, World Editions, and Catalina Infante!

The Cracks We Bear is a wonderful piece of translated fiction that follows Laura as she journeys through motherhood, grief, and the second coming of age we seem to reach when we become "real adults". Laura lost her mother at the age of 18, a formative age for a young woman, which in turn seems to impact how she views motherhood with her newborn Antonia. She also was raised in a tumultuous/traumatic lifestyle as her father was in political exile. She has difficulty connecting with her postpartum emotions and connecting with her husband in general after the upheaval of having a baby. So much of this book reminded me of Still Born by Guadalupe Nettel which was a five star read for me so it is of the highest compliment. I really felt for Laura throughout this novella, there is so much pressure on new mothers and she felt all of it without knowing that she had people to turn to and people who truly cared for her, likely due to her attachment styles which were shaped by her previous trauma. The ending was truly full circle and lovely, she was able to reconnect with her mother, husband, and daughter all at once and in their own unique ways.

I highly recommend reading The Cracks We Bear. It is a quick read that packs quite the emotional punch and ends with a warm feeling, just what I like!

[cronopia · Rating 5 out of 5]

"...una herida anterior a esa, una grieta oculta y silenciosa que siempre estuvo. Yo heredé ese vacío. Llevo algo quebrado desde que era un órgano extendido en el vientre de mi madre. Una pequeña fisura que nos obliga al silencio, como un agujero negro que está ahí para recordarnos la distancia inminente con todo. Quizás crecí en la parte donde ella estaba rota".

Cómo la vida misma con todos sus avatares, desde lo más íntimo sin florituras ni mentiras(aunque sea un ficción, todo se siente real). Realidades que nos representan a la vez que empatizamos con madres primerizas aunque nunca lo seremos. Eso es literatura dice un amigo.

[Lee Como Niña · Rating 3 out of 5]

Muy rápido de leer.

[Mary Rogers-G. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Libro hermoso que nos lleva a la maternidad real, esa de la que nadie nos habla.

[Fernando Gonzalez · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dificil hacer una reseña de un libro como este.
Toca temas que personalmente me quedan un poco lejos como la vivencia íntima de la maternidad, el desarraigo, la pérdida de la madre… sin embargo, a pesar de ello, el estilo narrativo, la pluma, la prosa poética te envuelve y te hace sentir cada emoción, sentimiento vivencia como propia. El gran mérito de la autora está creo en su capacidad de contar en simple lo complejo, en cotidiano lo profundo, y en bello lo doloroso y oscuro. Tremendo libro!


“La grieta" de Catalina Infante es un libro que explora los recuerdos familiares y la memoria desde una perspectiva fragmentada e introspectiva. A través de un estilo que combina la prosa poética con lo ensayístico, la autora nos lleva a una reconstrucción de la historia personal y colectiva, marcada por silencios, pérdidas y reinterpretaciones del pasado.

1. Estructura y estilo narrativo: La grieta se aleja de una narrativa lineal y en cambio adopta una estructura fragmentaria, donde la memoria se presenta como un rompecabezas incompleto. La autora utiliza una prosa delicada, con un tono melancólico y evocador, que enfatiza la idea de la memoria como un territorio incierto, moldeado tanto por lo vivido como por lo olvidado.

2. Temática central: la memoria y el olvido. La grieta como metáfora remite a las fisuras en la memoria y en la historia familiar. Infante explora cómo los recuerdos pueden distorsionarse con el tiempo, cómo los silencios en las familias pueden ser tan elocuentes como las palabras, y cómo el acto de recordar es también un acto de reescribir.

3. El rol de lo autobiográfico: Aunque el texto se siente profundamente personal, no se limita a lo individual, sino que resuena con un sentido más amplio de la memoria colectiva. En este sentido, la autora logra que su experiencia personal dialogue con temas universales como la identidad, la herencia emocional y los lazos familiares.

4. El lenguaje y la construcción poética: Uno de los aspectos más destacables del libro es su lenguaje. Infante usa imágenes poéticas y una prosa cargada de sensibilidad para transmitir la fragilidad de la memoria. Esto contribuye a una atmósfera en la que el lector se sumerge en una experiencia más sensorial que puramente narrativa.

5. El silencio como elemento narrativo: La ausencia de información en la historia familiar no es un vacío, sino un elemento narrativo en sí mismo. Infante juega con la idea de que el silencio es también una forma de contar y de recordar, lo que dota al texto de una profundidad emocional significativa.

*La grieta* es un libro que invita a la reflexión sobre la memoria, la identidad y la historia personal. Su estilo fragmentario, su riqueza poética y su exploración del olvido y el silencio la convierten en una obra que desafía las formas tradicionales de narrar y que deja una huella en el lector. Catalina Infante logra convertir la fisura de la memoria en un espacio de creación y reinterpretación, haciendo de *La grieta* un texto íntimo, pero a la vez universal.

[Madeline Elsinga · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rating: 3.5 stars

Thanks to NetGalley and World Editions for the earc! I’m continuing my reading around the world challenge and have been mostly staying in South America the last few books, this was no exception as I read it for Chile 🇨🇱

The Cracks We Bear is a very short novel exploring our main character, Laura, becoming a new mother-going through postpartum depression-while also grieving her own mother’s death. The book mainly has themes about being a daughter and a mother, trying to discover who she is now that she’s a mother, who her own mother was, their relationship, and what her own relationship with her daughter Antonia will be like.

There are chapters set in both present and past. With reflections of Laura’s childhood and last remaining memories with her mother, as well as discovering details of her mother’s life in exile during Pinochet’s dictatorship.

During the story there are also glimpses at protests against the Chilean government both from feminist and communist movements.

While it raises important discussions on motherhood and the raw look at postpartum, I didn’t feel fully engaged by Laura’s story. At times telling over showing and didn’t fully connect the dots between Laura’s own journey with motherhood with that of her mother’s. There was a lot of room left for development and the soul searching done by Laura, trying to balance being a new mother, petered out.

As the title implies there was imagery using the metaphor of people having cracks like vases but it didn’t quite land by the end; the metaphors usage was sparse and not cohesive making a full circle moment by the end.

While it’s difficult to fully round out characters and dive deeper into important stories like these in such a short page amount, it’s been done well before but sadly just not the case here.

TW/CW: death of parent, grief, medical trauma around childbirth, postpartum depression, police brutality, infidelity (brief mention), sexual assault

[Amy Quinn · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received this book from A Box of Stories in return for an honest review. When it arrived I was struck by the cover and wasn’t exactly sure what it was about. I read the description on the back and it scared me as it’s about a woman who had a challenging and short relationship with her mother and has recently become a mother herself. I have a challenging relationship with my mother so needless to say, I was nervous to read this one.

It is a short book with a heavy story within it.

Quotes:
“My therapist says relationships are full of cracks, that they’re not these finished, flawless works of art, but are instead these ordinary earthen jugs that have been pieced back together over and over again. The cracks are the mark of a shared bond…” page 45.

These next quotes hit me deeply. I wish more people did this, lived honestly and openly.

“We should’ve loved each other, yelled at each other, passed judgement on each other, looked each other in the eye, something.” Page 96

“It was simply about being present, even if distant or half-heartedly, but with honesty, which is the only way to really show up.” Page 97

As I said previously, this was a heavy book for me. When I first started it I felt like it was one to simply read to get through it. But then half way into it, it really hit me and I found myself rereading chapters and personally relating so much with the story.

Thank you Catalina Infante for this story, for your honesty through it. I was happy to read that this book helped you thrive in your creativity as you entered the world of motherhood. It is a unique, challenging and overwhelmingly place that at the core of it is full of love.

[Paola · Rating 4 out of 5]

A remarkable little story about motherhood, grief, and so much more!

This is one of those stories that simply speaks to women, both mothers and daughters, because the main character is battling with exactly those two roles. As a mother, Laura is dealing with postpartum depression, with how her marriage is barely surviving through this period in her life, with trying to understand how to even be a mother. That connects to her role as a daughter — how her mother raised her, what her childhood looked like, what she might resent her mother, but in the center of it all is the grief she's carrying in her soul. The author masterfully blends past and present, showing us parts of Laura's memories with her mother and how that reflects on her relationship with her own daughter. I loved the writing style and how the author managed to say so much in such few words. There are discussions about messy family relationships, politics, homesickness for both a place and a person, finding oneself, and, trigger warning, sexual assault.

I also loved seeing the author mention her connection to Croatia in the acknowledgements, and the translator's note was a must-read as well! All in all, I highly recommend reading this short but impactful story! Beautiful both inside and out!

A huge thank you to NetGalley, World Editions and the author for sending me an ARC of this book!

[SailorGora · Rating 5 out of 5]

La novela nos habla de la relación maternal, esto porque siendo hijas, nos es a veces difícil saber ¿Cómo era la vida de nuestra madre antes de tenernos?, ¿la conocemos realmente?, ¿Cuánto conocemos de nuestra madre?, ¿será lo mismo que le ocurrirá a nuestros hijos?, o ¿podemos mostrarnos sin pudor como realmente somos?, estas son algunas de las preguntas que pueden rondar dentro de la mente de los lectores, para mi que aun no tengo hijos, y tampoco se si los quiero, me hizo darle varias vueltas a cuanto se sobre mi mamá, y que me gustaría que me contara, encuentro que esto es lo más bonito que nos puede entregar el libro, porque a veces nos creemos eternos, y sentimos que nuestros cercanos nunca se nos van a ir, sin embargo la realidad aplasta las ensoñaciones en las que nos encontramos, y la verdad es que se agradece. Es por esto que encuentro que es un libro obligado, si bien la protagonista es una mujer y habla de su relación de mujer a mujer con su madre, también despierta del sueño a cualquier hijo. Por otra parte, me gusto la forma que tuvo la escritora, para ir entrelazando lo que es ser madre primeriza, y todo lo que eso de por sí conlleva la nostalgia de la pérdida y añoro de una madre.

[Dima · Rating 5 out of 5]

A first-person narrative told by a Chilean woman in her 30s, newly a mother, who reflects on her experiences both in the present and in the past with her own mother. The story explores womanhood, daughterhood, and motherhood. It is exquisitely told, delving into the cracks that form in a human being—why they emerge, and what it means to accept them and move on.

I really appreciated the narrative flow and the writing. This subject could easily have come across as preachy or overly sentimental. Books in this genre also often drift into post-modernism or surrealism—neither of which I’m fond of. Instead, this book was sober, fluent, fluid, and personable. I loved the protagonist and felt I could genuinely understand her struggles and inner debates.

What would have made it even better is if it were longer and richer. As it stands, it feels more like a proto-novel than a novel in its own right. I would have liked to explore more aspects of the protagonist’s experiences and personality, and to get to know her more deeply.

I highly recommend it to anyone interested in motherhood and in what it means to be a contemporary woman.

My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an early copy of this book in return for an honest review.

[Mike · Rating 4 out of 5]

Translated from the Spanish by Michelle Mirabella, The Cracks We Bear (2025) by Catalina Infante is a poignant tale of a mother-daughter relationship. It is a captive story of the life of a young mother and her family who lived in Cuba and France before returning to current-day Chile. It’s a tender literary echo of life, grief, and loneliness reflecting a certain time in history with its impact on one family. A small novella of 118 pages, this is a poignant tale of a mother-daughter relationship mirroring the wider societal happenings in 1990s Chile, a sublime, four star read. As always, the opinions herein are totally my own, freely given and without any inducement. With thanks to World Editions and the author for an uncorrected advanced review copy for review purposes.

[Ivannia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nunca había leído un relato sobre la maternidad y este me dejó con una sensación de querer saber más sobre su protagonista, su madre e hija. Es hermosamente nostálgico, te hace pensar y repensar la conexión de tus relaciones, especialmente con tu madre. Las madres a quienes miramos como si no fuesen más que eso. Me generó miles de dudas sobre ser mamá y al mismo tiempo una ansiedad de querer saber en primera persona qué significa. Es crudo y triste en sus pasajes sobre cómo cambian las relaciones, la vida y las grietas que van apareciendo o que se van profundizando. Bello en su honestidad.

[Maria Francisca · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lo definiría como un libro crudo, que a través de capítulos cortos retrata el periodo de post parto de Laura en relación con el duelo tardío por la muerte de su madre. Así, vamos viendo como el hecho de vivir por primera vez la maternidad la lleva a enfrentarse a la perdida de su madre y a analizar como esa relación la marcó y a la vez la preparó para ser madre.

Pese al tema, es muy rápido de leer, ya que son pocas páginas y además está escrito en un lenguaje muy cercano, con muchas reflexiones que encontré super potentes.

Sentí que me lograba traspasar la angustia o la ansiedad que Laura sentía y eso hizo que me mantuviera muy enganchada.

[Aoife · Rating 3 out of 5]

In this short read, translated from Spanish to English, we see a new mother navigate her new world of motherhood, back in her old home, amongst her mother’s possessions, someone she had detached herself from, by referring to her as Esther, so to reduce the magnitude.

We feel the claustrophobia of delayed grief, immense pressure and suffocation of caring for a new borns every need, as she works through her grief, we get a sense of the oxymoron of the overwhelming suffocation of motherhood, yet the intoxication of being needed/loved and cherished and how she hopes to be the mother she never had.

It was an eye opening read that encapsulates two complex journeys that can often feel like solo journeys even though this can be further from the truth, grief and motherhood.

[RecycledWords · Rating 4 out of 5]

Narrator Laura intermingles reflections on new motherhood with her memories of her own mother who is deceased. The reflections are told in the form of little vignettes which give the reader a quick snapshot of a moment of heightened importance for our protagonist.

Infante has created a well rounded main character that is easy to empathise with as she shows us these glimpses of her life. Laura doesn't shy away from shameful or negative thoughts and emotions and shares with the reader as though speaking to a trusted friend or writing in a diary. The need to get away from her baby and her partner and have some time for herself whilst struggling with the idea of being away from the baby and having her mother in law look after her are likely recognisable to many.

This book is slow paced and reflective and the short vignettes make it easy to pick up and put down but could also easily be devoured in a single sitting.

Thanks to NetGalley and World Editions for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

[Becki Sims · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn't gel with this story, some elements struck a chord but it did not live up to my expectations.

I felt sorry for Laura, as she seemed lost in the story. But nothing really grabbed me into the story emotionally.

Many thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for gifting me this arc in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.

[Felman Ruiz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Una novela corta sobre la relación con la madre, que nos construye un universo convincente, una madre primeriza que delata la grieta heredada por su propia madre y que nos lleva por los vericuetos de la feminidad, la maternidad, el legado.

De prosa limpia y económica, consigue trasmitir sobretodo el peso de la diversidad de vínculos en su vida y como cada uno refleja algo de si misma.