I don't know what most impresses me about author Chris Bohjalian's writing in this book:
--He wrote from a woman's perspective.
--He wrote with the knowledge of a physician.
--He wrote with the knowledge of an attorney.
And he pulled it off expertly!
When a woman giving birth
…more dies in the care of experienced midwife Sybil Danforth in a perfect storm (literally) of everything that could possibly go wrong, she is arrested and tried in a court of law. The story is told from the perspective of her daughter, Connie, who narrates the book as a 30-something adult recalling this tragic piece of their family history when she was a young teenager.
The plot moves quickly and holds the reader completely, and the characters are fully developed and three-dimensional. Best of all, the last three chapters are so riveting, you will not be able to stop reading. (If you're the family cook, I hope no one wants dinner when you get to that point of the story.)
This is not-to-be missed story of hopes and dreams, of tragedy and consequences, of the power of the law and the force of conscience. Most of all, it is a story of love. What we do and how we act under the most extreme circumstances is the true testament of who we are as human beings. (less)