The Borning Room

Rating:
Summary: The Borning Room
Review: This is a story of a young girl, Georgina Caroline Lott, growing up on an Ohio farm in the nineteenth century. The entire book focuses on the events that take place in the family's borning room. A borning room is a room set aside for the miracle of giving birth and for the ill and dying. In the borning room the main character and her family faces events that center around life and death. Georgina deals with life, death, love, womanhood and marriage.
This first person narrative is very captivating and is written with very flowing details and in a style that is easy to read. Readers will empathize with Georgina as she travels through her own life cycle. This book can be enjoyed by all ages and is an excellent read.


Rating:
Summary: A moving and insightful historical novel
Review: "The Borning Room" is a superb historical novel by Paul Fleischman. The title refers to a room in a rural Ohio house where babies are born. The story is told by a first person narrator: Georgina Lott, who is born in 1851. Georgina's story spans from the time of her birth to the era of World War I.

With compassion and insight, Fleishman covers the cycles of life, death, and rebirth in Georgina's family as the decades pass. Through his characters Fleischman explores many important themes and events in American history: the abolitionist movement and the "underground Railroad," the Civil War, women's suffrage, folk medicine, ethnic diversity, and more. Benjamin Franklin's writings emerge as oft-cited texts for Georgina's family.

I was particularly interested by Fleischman's depiction of the increasing religious and spiritual diversity of the U. S. in the late 19th century. Some of his characters are religious nonconformists, or are interested in spiritualism. Fleischman is, I believe, historically accurate here. The 19th century was a time of great religious nonconformity and experimentation in the U.S. To better appreciate this aspect of Fleischman's fictional family portrait, consider the poems of Walt Whitman and Emily Dickinson, the essays of Ralph Waldo Emerson, or the spread of new religious movements like Mormonism and Christian Science in the 19th century.

Fleischman writes in a starkly beautiful prose, and has populated Georgina's world with some truly wonderful characters. Georgina herself is a memorable creation. She is, in my opinion, a "soul sister" to many other great female characters in American literature: Zora Neale Hurston's Janie (from "Their Eyes Were Watching God"), Willa Cather's Alexandra (from "O Pioneers!"), and many more. I highly recommend "The Borning Room."

Rating:
Summary: A moving and insightful historical novel
Review: "The Borning Room" is a superb historical novel by Paul Fleischman. The title refers to a room in a rural Ohio house where babies are born. The story is told by a first person narrator: Georgina Lott, who is born in 1851. Georgina's story spans from the time of her birth to the era of World War I.

With compassion and insight, Fleishman covers the cycles of life, death, and rebirth in Georgina's family as the decades pass. Through his characters Fleischman explores many important themes and events in American history: the abolitionist movement and the "underground Railroad," the Civil War, women's suffrage, folk medicine, ethnic diversity, and more. Benjamin Franklin's writings emerge as oft-cited texts for Georgina's family.

I was particularly interested by Fleischman's depiction of the increasing religious and spiritual diversity of the U. S. in the late 19th century. Some of his characters are religious nonconformists, or are interested in spiritualism. Fleischman is, I believe, historically accurate here. The 19th century was a time of great religious nonconformity and experimentation in the U.S. To better appreciate this aspect of Fleischman's fictional family portrait, consider the poems of Walt Whitman and Emily Dickinson, the essays of Ralph Waldo Emerson, or the spread of new religious movements like Mormonism and Christian Science in the 19th century.

Fleischman writes in a starkly beautiful prose, and has populated Georgina's world with some truly wonderful characters. Georgina herself is a memorable creation. She is, in my opinion, a "soul sister" to many other great female characters in American literature: Zora Neale Hurston's Janie (from "Their Eyes Were Watching God"), Willa Cather's Alexandra (from "O Pioneers!"), and many more. I highly recommend "The Borning Room."

Rating:
Summary: Fleishman Strikes a 5 again!
Review: As I read reviews of Fleishman's work, it seems that he definitely strikes more of a chord with adults, than with younger people for the most part. Reading his work as an adult is very meaningful, because I've experienced life a bit more and want to ponder on the world around me. I read this book and was struck by the wonderfully vivid accounts of nature. I truly felt I was there, walking among the trees, opening doors and windows and cupboard drawers. This is the first book I've ever read that I wanted to reread even before I had finshed it.

Rating:
Summary: Not Exciting
Review: I liked this book a little because it showed me how a girl, about twelve years old, lived in the middle 1800's. It has a slight glimps of social history and how she felt about the borning room. I would recommend this book to those who like books which the setting takes place in the 1800's. I rate this book a two because a lot of parts I couldn't understand, and it was very boring.

Rating:
Summary: the book was OK
Review: I thought the book in the begining swas chasllenging and boring. But in the end when the lady started having millions of babies it was a lot better. i thought the book was ok

Rating:
Summary: Very fine written book
Review: I was astonished at the quality of "The Borning Room", considering the theme - birth and death - rather difficult for children. Yet, the story is told so undramatically and beautifully, and births and deaths are so much woven into the fabric of everyday life, that after reading one feels less sad than moved by the beauty and importance small things in life gain in this story.

Rating:
Summary: Very fine written book
Review: I was astonished at the quality of "The Borning Room", considering the theme - birth and death - rather difficult for children. Yet, the story is told so undramatically and beautifully, and births and deaths are so much woven into the fabric of everyday life, that after reading one feels less sad than moved by the beauty and importance small things in life gain in this story.

Rating:
Summary: On my very short list of favorites
Review: I've been a high school English teacher for 11 years. This is one of my all-time favorite books. I read it aloud to my sophomore students 10 years ago, and we discussed all the different stages of life. Everything that really matters--life, death, meeting the one you love, and starting a new life--all happen in this one room. This is a really nice book by a very good young adult fiction writer.
I highly recommend it.

Rating:
Summary: YAWN!
Review: In the fifth grade my teacher (you know who you are)told us that we would be reading a book caled the BORNING ROOM."This sounds like a cool book ." I remember saying to myself.I thouht it would be a very good book because my teacher had picked great books for us to read such as the DOLLHOUSE MURDERS.Well,I was wrong.Every one in the class called it the "boring room." Once you read this ,you'll see why .If your the type of person who likes to play with thier pet fish on the weekends...this book is great for you. But the rest of the people on this World ,who are intersting,I suggest you go for another choice.