Who gets to decide what it means for a woman to be a good mother? That's the question at the centre of Jessamine Chan's searing novel The School For Good Mothers. Everything in Frida Liu's life is complicated: her job is a disappointment to her parents, and her husband doesn't even bother to hide his affair. The one thing in Frida's life that is perfect is her daughter Harriet, but when Frida makes one mistake, the government suddenly has the power to decide whether or not she's a good mother — and if she's fit to parent Harriet at all.