The Reluctant Midwife (35 page)

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THE MIDWIFE OF HOPE RIVER

Midwife Patience Murphy has a gift: a talent for escorting mothers through the challenges of bringing children into the world. Working in the hardscrabble conditions of Appalachia during the Depression, Patience takes the jobs that no one else wants, helping those most in need—and least likely to pay. She knows a successful midwifery practice must be built on a foundation of openness and trust—but the secrets Patience is keeping are far too intimate and fragile for her to ever let anyone in.

Honest, moving, and beautifully detailed, Patricia Harman's
The Midwife of Hope River
rings with authenticity as Patience faces nearly insurmountable difficulties. From the dangerous mines of West Virginia to the terrifying attentions of the Ku Klux Klan, Patience must strive to bring new light and life into an otherwise hard world.

The Reluctant Midwife

“An entrancing saga of birth and rebirth, of people you come to love as they confront loss and guilt, poverty and fear, silence and doubt. In caring for a devastated land and community, Nurse Becky Myers and the emotionally shattered Dr. Isaac Blum discover the unexpected, nearly inexplicable healing power of West Virginia's ancient mountains.”

—Pamela Schoenewaldt, author of
Swimming in the Moon

The Midwife of Hope River

“A beautifully imagined novel, a marvel of a debut, rich with fully realized characters and events.”
—Johanna Moran, author of
The Wives of Henry Oades

“Harman has created such a striking and original heroine that pregnant women everywhere will be wanting Patience Murphy to deliver their babies.”
—Theresa Brown,
New York Times
opinion columnist

“As always when writing of birth, the bleakest of times can be transformed by the power and beauty of birth.”
—Penny Armstrong, CNM, author of
A Midwife's Story
and
A Wise Birth

“I learned, I laughed, I cried. . . . This novel will live in my heart for years to come.”
—Amy Hill Hearth, author of
Miss Dreamsville and the Collier County Women's Literary Societ
y

“A luminous novel of new beginnings, loss, love . . . and yes, hope!”
—Gay Courter,
New York Times
bestselling author of
The Midwife
and
The Midwife's Advice

“Midwives are warriors in this beautifully sweeping tale.”
—
Kirkus Reviews

“An uncommonly good piece of American historical fiction.”
—
Library Journal

“This historical fiction is one that will remain with the reader long after the final page is turned.”
—
Times Record News
(Wichita Falls, Texas)

The Midwife of Hope River
Arms Wide Open: A Midwife's Journey
The Blue Cotton Gown: A Midwife's Memoir

Cover design by Emin Mancheril

Cover photograph © by Lee Avison/Trevillion Images

This book is a work of fiction. The characters, incidents, and dialogue are drawn from the author's imagination and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

P.S.™ is a trademark of HarperCollins Publishers.

THE RELUCTANT MIDWIFE
. Copyright © 2015 by Patricia Harman. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the nonexclusive, nontransferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, decompiled, reverse-engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.

FIRST EDITION

ISBN 978-0-06-235824-0

EPub Edition March 2015 ISBN 9780062358257

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