In her fifth and most ambitious novel to date, Jacqueline Friedland delivers a searing exploration of reproductive justice that reverberates with urgency and emotional depth. “Counting Backwards” masterfully intertwines two narratives separated by nearly a century yet bound by a heartbreaking continuity of female disempowerment. Friedland’s dual-timeline novel exposes a shameful chapter of American history while demonstrating how its legacy continues to haunt vulnerable populations today.
The Parallel Journeys: Jessa and Carrie
At the heart of this compelling narrative are two women whose paths to self-determination are fraught with institutional barriers. In present-day New York, Jessa Gidney is a corporate attorney whose carefully planned life begins to unravel after being passed over for partnership. While struggling with fertility issues in her marriage to Vance, she takes on a pro bono immigration case that leads her down a rabbit hole of medical injustice at a detention facility. Meanwhile, in 1920s Virginia, seventeen-year-old Carrie Buck—based on the real historical figure—finds herself pregnant, abandoned, and institutionalized, ultimately becoming the subject of the landmark Supreme Court case Buck v. Bell (1927) that legalized forced sterilization.
Friedland handles these parallel narratives with remarkable dexterity, creating a seamless interplay between timelines that highlights the shocking similarities between past eugenics practices and present-day reproductive injustices in immigration detention. The revelation that connects Jessa personally to Carrie’s history transforms from plot device into powerful catalyst for her moral awakening.
Unflinching Historical Examination
What distinguishes “Counting Backwards” is Friedland’s meticulous research and unflinching portrayal of America’s eugenics movement. Rather than sanitizing this disturbing chapter of history, she confronts the reader with the full horror of what was perpetrated in the name of “improving” the human race:
- The author skillfully recreates the 1927 trial that led to the Supreme Court’s 8-1 decision allowing forced sterilization, a ruling that has never been overturned
- Through Carrie’s first-person narrative, we experience the profound violation of bodily autonomy when she is deemed “unfit” to reproduce
- The book reveals how American eugenics research directly influenced Nazi Germany’s policies
- Particularly chilling is Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr.’s infamous declaration that “three generations of imbeciles are enough,” which Friedland incorporates with devastating effect
By grounding her fiction in thoroughly researched historical events, Friedland elevates “Counting Backwards” beyond mere storytelling into a meaningful examination of systematic oppression.
Contemporary Relevance
While historical fiction often risks feeling distant from current concerns, “Counting Backwards” achieves a rare immediacy through its contemporary storyline. Jessa’s discovery of unauthorized sterilizations at the Hydeford Detention Center mirrors recent real-world allegations from immigration facilities. Friedland expertly balances several timely themes:
- Immigration Justice: The novel explores how vulnerability to abuse increases exponentially for those without legal status
- Bodily Autonomy: Both timelines center on the fundamental right to reproductive choice
- Professional Sexism: Jessa’s workplace struggles highlight the continuing challenges women face in male-dominated fields
- Family Legacy: The book thoughtfully examines how we reckon with disturbing ancestral histories
The novel’s greatest strength lies in demonstrating how systems of oppression evolve rather than disappear. The eugenics movement may have faded from public view, but its underlying impulse to control certain populations’ reproduction persists in more insidious forms.
Character Development and Growth
Friedland crafts protagonists whose journeys feel authentic and earned. Jessa begins as someone whose identity is heavily invested in external markers of success—partnership at her law firm, a perfect marriage, a baby. Her evolution into a woman who makes difficult choices aligned with her values rather than others’ expectations forms the emotional core of the contemporary storyline.
Carrie’s narrative is equally compelling, showing remarkable resilience in the face of dehumanizing treatment. What could have been merely a tragic historical account becomes, under Friedland’s careful handling, a testament to inner strength and the capacity to find meaning in one’s own choices even when so many have been forcibly removed.
The secondary characters are richly drawn as well, particularly:
- Jessa’s grandmother, whose complex feelings about her family history add nuance to the generational themes
- Isobel, the detained immigrant whose dignity remains intact despite her circumstances
- Dustin, Jessa’s work colleague whose initial antagonism evolves in surprising ways
If there’s a weakness in characterization, it lies with Vance, Jessa’s husband, who occasionally seems more plot device than fully realized person. His resistance to Jessa’s case sometimes veers into caricature, though the novel ultimately provides enough context to understand his perspective, if not necessarily sympathize with it.
Prose and Pacing
Friedland’s prose strikes an effective balance between accessibility and literary merit. Her style is clear and propulsive, driving the narrative forward while allowing for moments of reflection. The alternating timelines create natural tension, with each chapter ending at just the right point to make the reader eager for the story’s continuation.
Particularly impressive is Friedland’s ability to capture distinctive voices for her two protagonists. Carrie’s first-person account maintains period-appropriate language without becoming stilted, while Jessa’s third-person perspective reflects her analytical legal mind and emotional evolution.
The novel’s pacing occasionally falters in the middle sections where some developments feel predictable, but this is a minor issue in an otherwise well-structured narrative. The final third accelerates with satisfying momentum toward a resolution that feels both emotionally authentic and historically plausible.
Thematic Richness
Beyond its compelling plot, “Counting Backwards” offers profound meditations on several interconnected themes:
- The insidious nature of institutional power: Both timelines show how systems ostensibly designed for protection can become vehicles for control
- The price of silence: Friedland explores how secrets—whether personal or historical—corrode individuals and societies
- Moral responsibility across generations: Through Jessa’s reckoning with her family history, the novel asks what obligations we bear for ancestral wrongs
- The challenge of forgiveness: Perhaps most movingly, the book examines whether it’s possible to move forward without forgetting past injustices
These thematic explorations elevate the novel beyond courtroom drama or historical recreation into a work that genuinely prompts reflection.
In Context: Friedland’s Evolution as a Writer
Readers familiar with Friedland’s previous works—”Trouble the Water,” “He Gets That From Me,” “The Gin Fling,” and “That’s Not a Thing”—will recognize her characteristic blend of accessible prose and emotional complexity. However, “Counting Backwards” represents a significant artistic leap forward. The dual timeline structure allows for greater thematic resonance than her earlier novels, while the integration of historical research feels seamless rather than didactic.
This novel joins a growing body of fiction examining America’s troubled history with reproductive justice, including Dolen Perkins-Valdez’s “Take My Hand” and Diane Chamberlain’s “Necessary Lies.” What distinguishes Friedland’s contribution is her direct connection between historical eugenics and contemporary immigration policies—a link that feels both revelatory and urgent.
Critical Assessment
Despite its many strengths, “Counting Backwards” isn’t without flaws. The central revelation connecting Jessa to Carrie’s story, while emotionally impactful, occasionally strains credibility. Some secondary plot points, particularly regarding Jessa’s pregnancy complications, feel somewhat contrived to increase tension rather than emerging organically from the narrative.
Additionally, while Friedland admirably avoids oversimplifying complex issues, the novel’s resolution may strike some readers as too optimistic given the entrenched nature of the systems it critiques. Real-world change rarely arrives as decisively as fiction sometimes suggests.
These criticisms, however, don’t significantly diminish the novel’s power or importance. They simply reflect the inherent challenges of addressing such weighty subject matter within fictional constraints.
Final Verdict
“Counting Backwards” is a remarkable achievement that blends historical examination with contemporary relevance. Friedland has crafted a novel that both educates and moves, forcing readers to confront uncomfortable truths about American history while offering a vision of how individual courage can challenge institutional injustice.
The book seems destined to prompt important conversations about reproductive rights, immigration policy, and historical responsibility—exactly what the best historical fiction should accomplish. At a time when women’s bodily autonomy faces renewed threats, “Counting Backwards” serves as both warning and call to action.
This is ultimately a story about finding one’s voice when systems of power demand silence. Both Jessa and Carrie discover that true freedom begins with the decision to speak truth, regardless of the consequences. In amplifying these voices from past and present, Friedland has created a novel that deserves—indeed, demands—to be read and discussed widely.
