Dog Park: A novel

Olenka comes to the Dog Park every day. She sits and watches a family that brings their dog, hoping to get a glimpse of her child being raised by this family. One day, another woman sits down next to her and Olenka’s peaceful existence is shattered. This woman’s child is also being raised by this family and her life was ruined the moment she met Olenka. Olenka’s past is starting to catch up with her and she knows it’s only a matter of time until this life she’s built to escape comes crashing down around her.

I can’t say that I fully understood what was happening in this book. The point of view and changing timelines were hard to follow. However, it was an interesting look into the politics of Ukraine and the Eastern European fertility market, which I have very little knowledge about. The story ends in a confusing manner, where I’m not entirely sure what actually happened. If you would like to read about the difficult life of an Eastern European woman, which probably wasn’t dramatized too much, then you should read this book. I will warn you that it’s eye-opening and incredibly sad.