Rating: 
Summary: excellent story
Review: I was impressed with this story since it made me think a lot about the natural and yet dangerous aspects of delivering at home. I couldn't help being amazed that the writer was neither a doctor, lawyer (or a woman.) Kudos to Mr. Bohjalian.
Rating:
Summary: Wonderful Read
Review: On vacation in Hong Kong, I picked up this book at an airport bookstore. Kept me reading and enjoying the story. I enjoyed the way the author moved from past to present. I have passed this book along to others in my family to enjoy.
Rating: 
Summary: Captivating
Review: As an attorney, I found the legal aspect of the novel interesting. As a mother I found the story captivating. The novel was well written and the daughter's perspective was very effective in telling the story. I could not put this book down. Although the subject matter is heartwrenching, it is well done and worth your time.
Rating: 
Summary: Sure, it's entertaining
Review: I read it in one sitting and was entertained. But I can also go the movies and in less time get the same amount from a film. If you want an entertaining book to read while working out at the gym - this is a decent choice. If you want something that changes the way you look at the world - or yourself, then this is not it. It's not at all original and the characters and the plot are superficial.
Rating:
Summary: Compelling story told through interesting narrator
Review: 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.
Rating: 
Summary: I expected the wrong thing
Review: I would just like to say, firstly, that my lack of enjoyment of this book is entirely my own fault and not the writers. I thought Chris was an eloquent writer and the characters were wonderful. My problem was that my motivation behind reading Midwives was my interest in midwifery and my love of the natural birthing process. I am a nurse, and I was hoping this book would provide me with empowering stories of home birth and some history of midwifery. Both of which the book touched on, but it was not the main focus. I enjoyed the characters, but I found myself growing very weary of the courtroom drama and legal and ethical discussion. If you enjoy these qualities in a novel than this was a wonderful book, but if you are more interested in home birth, midwifery, etc. This is probably not a good choice. I just wanted to put that out there, so others do not get into reading it with the wrong expectations, as I did.
Rating:
Summary: My two cents
Review: Although there are 377 reviews of Midwives already, I must give my opinion. I found the book to be fascinating and very well-written. The time sequences--moving between past and present---were extremely well-done. I have done a little writing, so as I read, I contemplated the difficulty of the actual writing task. Mr. Bohjalian handled it all beautifully--the time shifts and the female narrator--which many people have commented on. I found the comparison to John Grisham to be distasteful. This book is definitely a cut above a "courtroom thriller." I find it interesting that few people have mentioned the moral dilemma Sibyl faced. If she had not acted at all, there would have been two deaths but certainly no lawsuit. If the situation had occurred in a hospital, the mother may have eventually been revived, but at what price? The result may have been two living but severely damaged humans. Sibyl made her choice and she was willing to act on it. It was everyone else who would not. I found this book to be morally thought-provoking.
Rating:
Summary: I just wanted to hear the verdict and be done with it!
Review: Sybil Danforth is a midwife who attends home births. She is involved in a case in which Charlotte Bedford, one of her birthing mothers, dies in childbirth while Charlotte's newborn infant son survives. Due to the unusual circumstances surrounding this birth, a lawsuit against Sybil arises. Sybil's husband hires Steven Hastings, a costly lawyer, and all parties tensely await the trial and its final outcome. MIDWIVES is a book which presents a critical look at a controversial profession. Although home birth is a more natural way of bringing a child into the world than hospitalization, it is not without its risks. In a rather slow-moving account of the Danforth family, the author describes how one home birth goes wrong and the suffering of all parties involved in this misfortune. Told from the point of view of Connie, Sybil's teenage daughter, the story lacks the suspense that normally pulls a reader to a book's finish. Rather, like Connie's family, the reader experiences the long, tedious wait for the final outcome.
Rating:
Summary: very moving!
Review: I listened to the audio version(in my car) of this novel,read by Kate Burton. She captured the nuance of the story so much that sometimes it was difficult to get out of my car. The story is about a midwife whose patient dies during childbirth. It is questioned if she killed the mother. The story is told thru the midwife's(sybil danforth) 14 year old daughter(connie). The author keeps your attention to the very end,wondering about the death of the woman. It also makes you think and rethink midwives vs hospital births. Loved this one.
Rating:
Summary: Oprah! My Hero?
Review: I have to admit when my mom bought me this book, I didn't really want to read it. I will also admit that the only reason I started reading the book was that my mom kept nagging me to read it. After I finally did pick up this book about a midwife accused of negligent homicide I was hooked. Where has Chris Bohjalian been hiding? He wrote one of the best fictional trial descriptions I have ever read. In addition, the plot twists and using the daughter of the defendant as the narrator of the story were very well done. I have nothing but praise for this novel. Who knows, I might even start watching Oprah every now and then.
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