Rating: 
Summary: Eh. Good, not great.
Review: Let's not get carried away, folks. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed this book. Very easy to read, likable characters, good story. But I don't think the author did a great job in adopting the persona of a young teenage girl. There was quite a bit of hoopla when this book came out so I suppose that led to my disappointment. It's a good beach read but don't expect to be blown away.
Rating: 
Summary: Brillant and a wonderful read.
Review: I loved this book! The author made me really care about the characters and their situation
Rating:
Summary: A haunting, beautifully told story
Review: "Midwives" is a book so wonderfully told and so readable that the pages wafted by like a gentle breeze. The story is very compelling and engrossing, and the issues of medical ethics are revealed yet never at a cost to the basic plot. Every time I put this book down, I could not wait to get back to it. Particularly effective was the way that the author had the narrator, now an adult, show how the main event affected her when she was 14. A gloriously beautiful book
Rating:
Summary: haunting, impactful, amazing story and voice
Review: Midwives was amazing. I picked it up almost because I had read Water Witches and recognized the author's name. I was amazed. I am haunted by the story and the characters. It was so not the story I thought it was going to be, but ended up one of the best I have read in a very long time. I keep recommending it to everyone I know. I am so impressed at Mr. Bohajalian's ability to narrate the story using the daughter's voice--it was so accurate and very compelling. This book is certainly one I will read again and again. I can not wait until his next one and have scoured the library for all previous works
Rating:
Summary: Touching, uplifting and incredibly human
Review: In Midwives, Chris Bohjalian does something incredibly rare by capturing both person and place in this story of loss and redemption in a small Vermont town. The plot centers around a woman looking back at her fourteenth year when her mother, a midwife, was put on trial for causing the death of one of her patients. While the story is creative and well-told, it is the relationships between the characters which truly drive the book.
I often judge a book by how connected I feel to the characters, if they are people like those I know; if they are fully-developed and human. Midwives is filled with characters who resonate with the reader and with issues that get to the heart of the ambiguities and complications that life can be filled with. There are no easy answers in Midwives, nor in life, which is probably why I enjoyed the book so much. For those who enjoyed A Map of the World and One True Thing, this is a perfect addition to your library.
Rating:
Summary: A compelling story...but his WATER WITCHES is better!
Review: A compelling look at Vermont values and a glimpse into the question of home births.
I,m a fan of Bohjalian's writing but at times I felt the narrator - a 12 year old girl - did not ring true. This raises the question for me of why male writers feel they can capture the female essence! Readers would be better to explore Bohjalian's WATER WITCHES which is a provocative, stirring story
Rating:
Summary: Midwives by Bohjalian a stunning literary baby!
Review: Midwives by Chris Bohjalian is a beautiful book. From cover to contents, this Bohjalian's 5th literary child, is a wonder to read. Not for the weak of spirit, Midwives is thestory of Sybil Danforth, a midwife in Vermont as told by her now grown daughter, Connie. Connie was a mere teenager at the time that tragedy struck her family -- in the midst of helping a woman give birth, she dies and the baby lives. Sybil is charged with killing her.
This book was one I waited for, ever so impatiently, upon hearing about it. It was well worth the wait.
It's opening line sets the stage for a parade of strong, independent women to spring forth from the pages. ANd continues right to the gripping ending. Told through Connie's eyes and Sybil's notebook, this weaves a tale of love, and heartbreak, and intrigue in a small town in Vermont.
I can't wait for the next one!
Rating:
Summary: You've never read a story this subtle, horrifying and humane
Review: Don't let the bucolic title and setting fool you. "Midwives" has a chapter as horrific and unrelenting as anything Poe ever conceived. But Bohjalian is not using psychological terror for some "Pulp Fiction" effect. He is interested in the human heart, which he explores, in turn, with a surgeon's precision, a child's fascination, and a parent's love. "Midwives" is a horror story of best intentions gone awry in which all characters are allowed to wrestle with the truth. Set aside a long evening -- you won't be able to stop reading
Rating:
Summary: Compelling and unusual story.
Review: In "Midwives", Chris Bohjalian explores a subject which is of critical interest to all, yet has hitherto remained largely unexplored. Bohjalian weaves the complex themes of his plot into an exciting and engrossing story, while
avoiding sensationalism. In the hands of a less skilled writer, "Midwives" might have become didactic, but Bohjalian's skill is in mediating the literally vital issues of social responsibility, personal judgment and the value of one life over another with a strong and compelling narrative voice. There are unexpected flashes of humor throughout, and his characters are lively and fascinating. How this strange and frightening story will turn out is left a mystery until the end, and the tension is relentless. This is an enormously satisfying book, and it will be of interest not only to those who work in, or are patients of, the medical professions, but to anyone who wants to be admitted to a new and fascinating world. Unforgettable, and highly recommended!
Rating:
Summary: Birth and Death
Review: Birth and Death Midwives, by Chris Bohjalian, shakes all preconceptions one might have about the practice of midwifery. Regardless of any bias one might hold, for or against, the story of Vermont midwife, Sibyl Danforth, on trial for the death of one of her patients, brings us up short. With the jury, the reader is forced to examine the evidence. The events unfold, retrospectively, through the eyes of Sibyl's 14-year-old daughter, Connie - a fact which somehow makes the story more poignant and wrenching. This frightened young girl stands to lose her mother and her home, as well as her innocence. Author Bohjalian deftly gives the reader new background and information only when the story requires it, keeping the suspense from first to last. The characters are believable - if not people you know, people you can respect and to whom you can lend your sympathy. Your heart will ache for all the innocent victims as the story plays out. Oprah Winfrey chose well for her Book Club. Read this book.
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