The Birth House
The Birth House is the story of Dora Rare, the
first daughter to be born in five generations of the Rare family. As a child in
an isolated village in Nova Scotia, she is drawn to Miss Babineau, an outspoken
Acadian midwife with a gift for healing and a kitchen filled with herbs and
folk remedies. During the turbulent years of World War I, Dora becomes the
midwife's apprentice. Together, they help the women of Scots Bay through
infertility, difficult labors, breech births, unwanted pregnancies and even
unfulfilling sex lives.
When Gilbert Thomas, a brash medical doctor,
comes to Scots Bay with promises of fast, painless childbirth, some of the
women begin to question Miss Babineau's methods - and after Miss Babineau's
death, Dora is left to carry on alone. In the face of fierce opposition, she
must summon all of her strength to protect the birthing traditions and wisdom
that have been passed down to her.
Filled with details that
are as compelling as they are surprising-childbirth in the aftermath of the
Halifax Explosion, the prescribing of vibratory treatments to cure hysteria and
a mysterious elixir called Beaver Brew- The Birth House is an unforgettable
tale of the struggles women have faced to maintain control over their own
bodies and to keep the best parts of tradition alive in the world of modern
medicine.
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