Birth House

As apprentice to the outspoken Acadian midwife Miss Babineau, Dora learns to assist the women of an isolated Nova Scotian village through infertility, difficult labors, breech births, unwanted pregnancies, and unfulfilling sex lives. During the turbulent World War I era, uncertainty and upheaval accompany the arrival of a brash new medical doctor and his promises of progress and fast, painless childbirth. In a clash between tradition and science, Dora finds herself fighting to protect the rights of women as well as the wisdom that has been put into her care.

In this breathtaking debut novel, Ami McKay has created an unforgettable portrait of the struggles that women have faced to control their own bodies and to keep the best parts of tradition alive in the world of modern medicine.

The Birth House is the story of Dora Rare--the first daughter in five generations of Rares. As apprentice to the outspoken Acadian midwife Miss Babineau, Dora learns to assist the women of an isolated Nova Scotian village through infertility, difficult labors, breech births, unwanted pregnancies, and even unfulfilling sex lives. During the turbulent World War I era, uncertainty and upheaval accompany the arrival of a brash new medical doctor and his promises of progress and fast, painless childbirth. Dora soon finds herself fighting to protect the rights of women as well as the wisdom that has been put into her care.

A tale of tradition and science, matriarchy and paternalism, past and future, The Birth House is "a dazzling first novel." (Library Journal), and a story more timely than ever.

As apprentice to the outspoken Acadian midwife Miss Babineau, Dora learns to assist the women of an isolated Nova Scotian village through infertility, difficult labors, breech births, unwanted pregnancies, and unfulfilling sex lives. During the turbulent World War I era, uncertainty and upheaval accompany the arrival of a brash new medical doctor and his promises of progress and fast, painless childbirth. In a clash between tradition and science, Dora finds herself fighting to protect the rights of women as well as the wisdom that has been put into her care.

1. How does reading shape Dora's view of the world? How does her love of books play into her relationship with her father? With Miss B.? With Archer?

2. After attending her first birth, Dora observes that, "How a mother comes to love her child, her caring at all for this thing that's made her heavy, lopsided and slow, this thing that made her wish she were dead . . . that's the miracle." What do you think she meant? Do you feel this is true?

3. Folklore, home remedies, women's traditions, herbalism, and a belief in the divine feminine are all part of Miss B.'s way of life. She is determined to pass these things along to Dora. Does Dora try hard enough to preserve them? Should she let them go?

4. When Archer asks Dora to marry him, he tells her that, "love takes care of herself." She chooses to say 'yes'. What does Dora's decision say about her situation and station in life? Should she have chosen to follow in Miss B.'s footsteps instead?

5. Dr. Thomas treats Dora for Neurasthenia (described as "Weeping, melancholy, anxiety, irritability, depression, outrageousness, insomnia, mental and physical weariness, idle talking, sudden fevers, morbid fears, frequent titillation, forgetfulness, palpitations of the heart, headaches, writing cramps, mental confusion, constant worry and fear of impending insanity"). What do you think of this diagnosis compared with Dora's behavior? Do you think his treatment was administered with the desire to heal Dora? Would a similar diagnosis and treatment be administered today?

6. Through a visit to Dr. Thomas's office, Dora discovers that women's sexual pleasure (specifically orgasm) is considered to be a medical function (or dysfunction). Ads of the time, such as the one for the White Cross Vibrator, reinforced this notion. How does Dora come to terms with these ideas? What kinds of taboos surround women's sexuality today?

7. Miss B. says to Dr. Thomas: "Science don't know kindness. It don't know kindness from cabbage." Dr. Thomas replies: "Science is neither kind nor unkind, Miss Babineau. Science is exact." How do these statements show the differences between Miss B. and Dr. Thomas? In moving the birthing experience from homes and birth houses to hospitals, what have women lost? What have they gained?

8. After Dora discovers Aunt Fran's affair with Reverend Norton she writes: "He's been seeing her. He's noticed her so much that now she's his." Why do you think she decided to keep it a secret? Should she have told someone? What would you have done?

9. Dora says this about her mother: "Everything I've learned from Mother, every bit of her truth has been said while her hands were moving." What does this say about her relationship with her mother? Is this kind of communication still an important part of women's lives?

10. The sisters of the Occasional Knitters Society support Dora throughout the book (keeping the secret of Wrennie's birth, taking care of Wrennie when Dora goes to Boston, meeting together for conversations and sisterhood.) What makes their friendship so strong? Are friendships like that possible today?

11. The author uses ephemera from Dora's life (invitations, news articles, sections from The Willow Book, folk tales, advertisements, etc.) throughout the novel. How did this affect your reading experience? Do you have a favorite from them?

12. There are many mentions of birthing folklore and techniques, from groaning cake to mother's tea, from Miss B. turning Ginny's breech baby to quilling. What wives' tales about pregnancy and birth do you know? Are there any that you'd swear by?

13. Dora is conflicted when Mrs. Ketch comes to her house for help. Given Dora's past with Mrs. Ketch, Why do you think she chose to assist her in helping her 'lose' her baby?

14. Maxine is very different from anyone Dora has ever met. Boston is very different from Scots Bay. What do Maxine and Boston bring to Dora's life? Have you ever made a change in location or met someone who immediately changed your life?

15. In both the prologue and the epilogue, we see how life has changed in Scots Bay. Other towns in other places have changed over time, some gone forever. Have we gained anything with these changes? What have we lost?

16. After Dora and Hart become lovers, he talks of marriage and she refuses. Why do you think she is so determined not to marry him?