Author Kim Edwards grew up in the Finger Lakes region. She is a critically acclaimed short story writer, best known for her collection “The Secrets of a Fire King.” Secrets also figure prominently in her novel now out in trade paperback, “The Memory Keeper's Daughter.”
The novel opens in Lexington, Ky. in 1964 during an unusual snowstorm. Dr. David Henry and his wife are expecting the birth of their first child. Norah goes into labor during the snowstorm, and David carefully drives her to the clinic where he works and where she will give birth.
When the doctor who was to deliver their child has a car accident, David and nurse, Caroline Gill, deliver the baby. A healthy, beautiful baby boy is delivered, and to David's shock, another smaller baby is also born. This baby, a girl, has the classic signs of Down's Syndrome.
In that instant, David makes a decision that will change the lives of those he loves forever; he tells his wife that she had twins, but that the baby girl died. He instructs nurse Gill to take the baby to a hospital that will care for the baby and to not tell his wife.
Caroline is shocked at this request, but her unrequited love for David compels her to do what he asked. She drives to the hospital and when she sees that the place is just a warehouse, not at all the caring, comfortable place that David thinks it is, she takes the baby girl back to her apartment. She believes that David will change his mind and want his baby back once he is over the shock of the situation.
Norah is distraught over the death of her baby girl, and without telling David, she plans a memorial service for her baby. Caroline sees a notice for the memorial service in the newspaper, and she realizes that David has told his wife that the baby is dead. She decides that she will take the baby, named Phoebe, and move away to Pittsburgh.
David is not a bad person. He grew up in terrible poverty in West Virginia. He had a younger sister whom he adored. She was a sickly child who died at the age of 12. His parents worried constantly about their daughter and were inconsolable following her death, so he believed that he was sparing his wife further pain by telling her that Phoebe was dead.
He knew that Caroline took Phoebe away, but he did not know where. She sent him occasional letters and photos, and he sent money for Phoebe's care to post office boxes in different cities. Could he have found them if he really looked?
David, Norah and their son, Paul, had a comfortable existence in Lexington. David made a good living and he threw himself into his work. He cared a great deal for his patients. Norah took care of their home and doted on Paul, but she always felt that there was a wall up between her and David.
Paul grew up feeling distant from his father as well. He felt that he and his father did not have much in common and that he did not please his father. Paul wanted to pursue music as a career, and David's memories of living in poverty brought out a fear that Paul could not make a comfortable living in music.
David took up photography as a hobby. He became obsessed with it; he could control everything in the frame of the photo even if he could not control other areas of his life. He became a huge success as a photographer, with showings of his works across the country.
Meanwhile, Caroline's love for Phoebe enabled her to have a wonderful life. Caroline fought hard to get Phoebe into public school and to get her the services that she required. People's attitudes towards children with Down's Syndrome were changing at this time in America, and Caroline is representative of the many parents who were fighting for the rights of their children to have a better life.
While reading “The Memory Keeper's Daughter,” the reader keeps waiting to find out if David ever finds his daughter or if Norah and Paul find out what David had done so many years ago. Edwards does a wonderful job making these characters real - people that you root for. Your heart breaks for all of them. The undercurrent sadness of the book is wondering what would have happened if David had told his wife the truth. How different would all of their lives have been?
There is an interesting interview with Kim Edwards on the Web site www.bookreporter.com. Her book is one of the beach reads that the site is giving away; click on “beach bags of reads contest” on the right side of the site to see the interview and try to win a copy of her book. The giveaway week is July 28.
According to the interview, Edwards says that her next book called “The Dream Master” is set in the Finger Lakes and once again will revolve around a secret. If it is as good as “The Memory Keeper's Daughter,” it will be a must-read for me. I give this book four stars.
Auburn native Diane La Rue's
lifelong goal is to read a book a week. If you have suggestions, e-mail her at laruediane2000@yahoo.com
When the doctor who was to deliver their child has a car accident, David and nurse, Caroline Gill, deliver the baby. A healthy, beautiful baby boy is delivered, and to David's shock, another smaller baby is also born. This baby, a girl, has the classic signs of Down's Syndrome.
In that instant, David makes a decision that will change the lives of those he loves forever; he tells his wife that she had twins, but that the baby girl died. He instructs nurse Gill to take the baby to a hospital that will care for the baby and to not tell his wife.
Caroline is shocked at this request, but her unrequited love for David compels her to do what he asked. She drives to the hospital and when she sees that the place is just a warehouse, not at all the caring, comfortable place that David thinks it is, she takes the baby girl back to her apartment. She believes that David will change his mind and want his baby back once he is over the shock of the situation.
Norah is distraught over the death of her baby girl, and without telling David, she plans a memorial service for her baby. Caroline sees a notice for the memorial service in the newspaper, and she realizes that David has told his wife that the baby is dead. She decides that she will take the baby, named Phoebe, and move away to Pittsburgh.
David is not a bad person. He grew up in terrible poverty in West Virginia. He had a younger sister whom he adored. She was a sickly child who died at the age of 12. His parents worried constantly about their daughter and were inconsolable following her death, so he believed that he was sparing his wife further pain by telling her that Phoebe was dead.
He knew that Caroline took Phoebe away, but he did not know where. She sent him occasional letters and photos, and he sent money for Phoebe's care to post office boxes in different cities. Could he have found them if he really looked?
David, Norah and their son, Paul, had a comfortable existence in Lexington. David made a good living and he threw himself into his work. He cared a great deal for his patients. Norah took care of their home and doted on Paul, but she always felt that there was a wall up between her and David.
Paul grew up feeling distant from his father as well. He felt that he and his father did not have much in common and that he did not please his father. Paul wanted to pursue music as a career, and David's memories of living in poverty brought out a fear that Paul could not make a comfortable living in music.
David took up photography as a hobby. He became obsessed with it; he could control everything in the frame of the photo even if he could not control other areas of his life. He became a huge success as a photographer, with showings of his works across the country.
Meanwhile, Caroline's love for Phoebe enabled her to have a wonderful life. Caroline fought hard to get Phoebe into public school and to get her the services that she required. People's attitudes towards children with Down's Syndrome were changing at this time in America, and Caroline is representative of the many parents who were fighting for the rights of their children to have a better life.
While reading “The Memory Keeper's Daughter,” the reader keeps waiting to find out if David ever finds his daughter or if Norah and Paul find out what David had done so many years ago. Edwards does a wonderful job making these characters real - people that you root for. Your heart breaks for all of them. The undercurrent sadness of the book is wondering what would have happened if David had told his wife the truth. How different would all of their lives have been?
There is an interesting interview with Kim Edwards on the Web site www.bookreporter.com. Her book is one of the beach reads that the site is giving away; click on “beach bags of reads contest” on the right side of the site to see the interview and try to win a copy of her book. The giveaway week is July 28.
According to the interview, Edwards says that her next book called “The Dream Master” is set in the Finger Lakes and once again will revolve around a secret. If it is as good as “The Memory Keeper's Daughter,” it will be a must-read for me. I give this book four stars.
Auburn native Diane La Rue's
lifelong goal is to read a book a week. If you have suggestions, e-mail her at laruediane2000@yahoo.com