The Farm by Joanne Ramos

Golden Oaks—“the farm”—is run as an elite resort. Hired as surrogates for the 1%, the “guests” receive total care, including spa treatments, top medical care, and gourmet cuisine, in exchange for relinquishing their lives throughout pregnancy. These guests generally are women desperate to fortify their future, women like single mother Jane, a Filipina immigrant, Lisa, a repeat surrogate whose tendency to rebel is countered by her ability to produce beautiful, healthy babies, and Reagan, educated but troubled. Ramos portrays socioeconomic and emotional struggles, and the power of money to buy anything, even a healthy pregnancy, albeit with another woman’s body. There are lies to clients and to surrogates, and minor incidents throughout the story, but no major climax, and the ending seems disconnected. All in all, this story is very close to reality regarding the surrogacy industry, and a representation of injustice, worth the read on class, race, and feminist principles, but not necessarily for simple entertainment. I received a digital copy from the publisher Random House through NetGalley.