Friday, March 20, 2015

TLC Book Tours Book Review: The Reluctant Midwife

The Reluctant MidwifeAbout The Reluctant Midwife

Paperback: 432 pages
Publisher: William Morrow Paperbacks
• Publish Date:  March 3, 2015
• Book Blurb:
The USA Today bestselling author of The Midwife of Hope River returns with a heartfelt sequel, a novel teeming with life and full of humor and warmth, one that celebrates the human spirit. The Great Depression has hit West Virginia hard. Men are out of work; women struggle to feed hungry children. Luckily, Nurse Becky Myers has returned to care for them. While she can handle most situations, Becky is still uneasy helping women deliver their babies. For these mothers-to-be, she relies on an experienced midwife, her dear friend Patience Murphy. Though she is happy to be back in Hope River, time and experience have tempered Becky’s cheerfulness-as tragedy has destroyed the vibrant spirit of her former employer Dr Isaac Blum, who has accompanied her. Patience too has changed. Married and expecting a baby herself, she is relying on Becky to keep the mothers of Hope River safe. But becoming a midwife and ushering precious new life into the world is not Becky’s only challenge. Her skills and courage will be tested when a calamitous forest fire blazes through a Civilian Conservation Corps camp. And she must find a way to bring Isaac back to life and rediscover the hope they both need to go on. Full of humor and compassion, The Reluctant Midwife is a moving tribute to the power of optimism and love to overcome the most trying circumstances and times, and is sure to please fans of the poignant Call the Midwife series.

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Review: I didn't realize when I picked up this book that it was part of a series, but not to worry you didn't need to read The Midwife Of Hope River.

This story takes place during the Great Depression in a small town in West Virginia. I've read a lot of books that take place during this time period, but West Virginia really was hit hard by the depression. As you see how hard the people worked and struggled to get by.

It really is hard to imagine how they lived on so very little, and my heart ached for so many of them.

Nurse Becky isn't quite the woman I expected her to be. She's a compassionate nurse, caring for her former boss because no one else will, including his family. She is a registered nurse, but she doesn't like delivering babies. That kind of struck me as odd, but it definitely allows her to fit the title of the book.

I loved her relationship with Dr. Blum, which is really just odd,

The story is told through snippets of patients or events, but not quite like a diary, except when Becky starts midwife duties, and then she sums up the deliveries. More important than those entries are the ones that Dr. Blum makes as he begins his recovery.

These books have recommended to people that like the Call The Midwife series, and I definitely can say that is a good rec. It also lets you see how midwifes worked in the US.

Most of all, this is a book that will really get your emotions in a twist. You will laugh and cry many times over while reading this book.

This was a really well written novel that I read in one day.

Rating: 5 flowers




39473About Patricia Harman

Patricia Harman, CNM, got her start as a lay midwife on rural communes and went on to become a nurse-midwife on the faculty of Ohio State University, Case Western Reserve University, and West Virginia University. She lives near Morgantown, West Virginia; has three sons; and is the author of two acclaimed memoirs. Find out more about Patricia at her website, and connect with her on Facebook and Twitter.

1 comments:

Heather J @ TLC Book Tours said...

Thanks for being a part of the tour for this fabulous book!

 
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