The Memory Keeper's Daughter
by Kim Edwards | Literature & Fiction | This book has not been rated.
ISBN: 9780143037149 Global Overview for this book
ISBN: 9780143037149 Global Overview for this book
2 journalers for this copy...
Journal Entry 1 by crimson-tide from Balingup, Western Australia Australia on Saturday, August 25, 2007
From Publishers Weekly:
"Edwards's assured but schematic debut novel hinges on the birth of fraternal twins, a healthy boy and a girl with Down syndrome, resulting in the father's disavowal of his newborn daughter. A snowstorm immobilizes Lexington, Ky., in 1964, and when young Norah Henry goes into labor, her husband, orthopedic surgeon Dr. David Henry, must deliver their babies himself, aided only by a nurse. Seeing his daughter's handicap, he instructs the nurse, Caroline Gill, to take her to a home and later tells Norah, who was drugged during labor, that their son Paul's twin died at birth. Instead of institutionalizing Phoebe, Caroline absconds with her to Pittsburgh. David's deception becomes the defining moment of the main characters' lives, and Phoebe's absence corrodes her birth family's core over the course of the next 25 years. David's undetected lie warps his marriage; he grapples with guilt; Norah mourns her lost child; and Paul not only deals with his parents' icy relationship but with his own yearnings for his sister as well. Though the impact of Phoebe's loss makes sense, Edwards's redundant handling of the trope robs it of credibility. This neatly structured story is a little too moist with compassion."
"Edwards's assured but schematic debut novel hinges on the birth of fraternal twins, a healthy boy and a girl with Down syndrome, resulting in the father's disavowal of his newborn daughter. A snowstorm immobilizes Lexington, Ky., in 1964, and when young Norah Henry goes into labor, her husband, orthopedic surgeon Dr. David Henry, must deliver their babies himself, aided only by a nurse. Seeing his daughter's handicap, he instructs the nurse, Caroline Gill, to take her to a home and later tells Norah, who was drugged during labor, that their son Paul's twin died at birth. Instead of institutionalizing Phoebe, Caroline absconds with her to Pittsburgh. David's deception becomes the defining moment of the main characters' lives, and Phoebe's absence corrodes her birth family's core over the course of the next 25 years. David's undetected lie warps his marriage; he grapples with guilt; Norah mourns her lost child; and Paul not only deals with his parents' icy relationship but with his own yearnings for his sister as well. Though the impact of Phoebe's loss makes sense, Edwards's redundant handling of the trope robs it of credibility. This neatly structured story is a little too moist with compassion."
Journal Entry 2 by crimson-tide from Balingup, Western Australia Australia on Sunday, August 10, 2008
Reserved for the OZ VBB.
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Update 18th August:
Selected from Round 10 of the OZ VBB by kirst040.
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Update 18th August:
Selected from Round 10 of the OZ VBB by kirst040.
Released 15 yrs ago (8/18/2008 UTC) at Balingup, Western Australia Australia
CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:
CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:
Initially released by mail at the Balingup Post Office on Tuesday 19th August; and then hopefully five or six days later into kirst040's letterbox in Sydney.
Also coincidentally qualifies for week #33 of the 2008 "Never Judge a Book by its Cover" Release Challenge.
Initially released by mail at the Balingup Post Office on Tuesday 19th August; and then hopefully five or six days later into kirst040's letterbox in Sydney.
Also coincidentally qualifies for week #33 of the 2008 "Never Judge a Book by its Cover" Release Challenge.
Arrived safely thank you.