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“I learned, I laughed,
I cried, but most of all I was deeply impressed by the artistry of the midwife
and her central role in women’s lives prior to the advent of commercialized,
institutionalized medicine. This novel will live in my heart for years to
come.”
— Amy Hill Hearth, New York Times bestselling author
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“A luminous novel of
new beginnings, loss, love…and yes, hope! Patricia Harman’s all-too-human
stories of birth mingle with the harsh realities of rural life in the 1930s…A
thoroughly satisfying read by a talented storyteller.”
— Gay Courter, New York Times bestselling author of The Midwife
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“Well-written and
heartfelt.”
— Boston Globe
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“[A] frank, absorbing
memoir from a midwife at a tiny West Virginia health clinic.”
— Cleveland Plain Dealer
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“Harman, a certified
nurse-midwife who has practiced in many rural communities, clearly has a
comprehensive understanding of midwifery…The stories of the births that
Patience handles in this difficult era are fascinating.”
— Publishers Weekly
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“Memoirist Harman,
herself a certified nurse-midwife, takes readers back to hardscrabble times and
adds plenty of medical drama and a dash of romance, to offer an uncommonly good
piece of American historical fiction.”
— Library Journal
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“Takes readers back to hardscrabble times and
adds plenty of medical drama and a dash of romance.”
— Library Journal
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“Harman, herself a
midwife, transports the reader to another time and place in this quiet story of
a white woman who fights to usher life into an impoverished, prejudiced world…The
author’s love for the profession shines through in this testament to the power
of women. A first novel well worth attention.”
— Booklist
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“Midwives are warriors
in this beautifully sweeping tale.”
— Kirkus Reviews
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“Will definitely renew
your faith in love, loyalty, forgiveness, understanding, and just plain hope.”
— Fran Lewis, author of My Name Is Bertha
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“As always when
writing of birth, the bleakest of times can be transformed by the power and
beauty of birth…The moments of joy between new parents and their baby, between
the mothers and the midwife, and between the midwife and her young assistant,
light up the pages. Amen baby!”
— Penny Armstrong, CNM, author of A Midwife’s Story
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“The Midwife of Hope River…is still on my mind days after finishing.
From start to satisfying conclusion, it is a beautifully imagined novel, a
marvel of a debut, rich with fully realized characters and events. This is one
I’ll read again, more slowly next time.”
— Johanna Moran, author of The Wives of Henry Oades