Ami McKay, The Birth House

The Birth House

Ami McKay

Morrow, August 22 2006, $24.95

ISBN: 0061135852

In Scots Bay, Nova Scotia, Dora Rare lived up to her surname, having been the first female offspring in five generations. Because she was so rare, the midwife Marie "Miss B" Babineau mentors her in the art of herbal healing, including ending a pregnancy. In 1917 when Dora was eighteen, her father and five uncles, all shipbuilders, construct her home overlooking the Bay of Fundy, which soon becomes the local birth house.

Not long afterward, Dr. Gilbert Thomas arrives in the village setting up a practice in which he claims painless births at his clinic. He begins a clever campaign to undermine the competition by insisting he provides the most modern scientific techniques, while the midwives offer superstition, questionable methods, and pain though he ignores the comparative costs as his charges leave most locals financially strapped. As the women debate tradition vs. scientific progress, Miss B dies, making it even easier for Dr. Thomas to claim superiority, as his rival is young with limited experience.

This is a terrific historical tale that looks closely at the debate of "progress" vs. tradition, with the changeover during an age when doctors begin replacing midwives as health providers. The characters are purposely stereotyped to emphasize their perspectives on the debate. However, whereas Miss B and Dora seem kind and caring towards their patients, Thomas appears arrogant with more concern over his needs, though he is competent. Ami McKay has provided an interesting WW I Canadian tale that is apropos to much of the argument over medical scientific research (and other social issues) making headlines today.