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Ellen Isaacs | |
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This book is centered around a midwife who carries out a make-shift C-section to save a baby after the mother dies during childbirth. The question is whether the mother really did die beforehand, as the midwife perceived, or whether the C-section caused the death. The midwife is taken to trial and shunned by much of this small New England community, except for her core friends and allies. The book is the story of this midwife's trial and how it affects her family. When I first started this book, I wondered whether a politically correct view of midwives would hold my interest. I already believe midwives are a perfectly legitimate alternative to doctors, so I didn't think I'd be compelled by the controversy. Within a few chapters, though, I was drawn in not just by the story, but by the voice of its narrator. The story is told from the perspective of the midwife's 14-year-old daughter, who is writing this as a grown woman. The book moves along at a steady pace, gradually disclosing the details of the unfortunate birth as the trial unfolds. But it was not so much the outcome of the trial that made me want to turn the pages. Instead, it was the daughter's interpretation of the events, how it affected her development, and how she came to understand her mother's motivations that intrigued me through to the very end. I was even more interested when I realized part-way through that the author (Chris Bohjalian) is a man. I was impressed by how well he captured the workings of a teenage girl's mind. This is a good story, well told.
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