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The Secrets of Midwives


A story that will hold you captivated until the very end.
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Did having all three women's viewpoints give you a richer picture of the women's individual stories?

Created: 12/26/15

Replies: 22

Posted Dec. 26, 2015 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
davinamw

Join Date: 10/15/10

Posts: 3442

Did having all three women's viewpoints give you a richer picture of the women's individual stories?

Did having all three women's viewpoints give you a richer picture of the women's individual stories, and if so, how?


Posted Jan. 01, 2016 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
deeh

Join Date: 03/03/12

Posts: 239

RE: Did having all three women's viewpoints give you a richer picture of the women's individual stories?

Yes, I liked the difference of viewpoint in each chapter. Floss appeared to be a straightforward, hard-working woman who knew the ways of the world and accepted herself for who she was. Grace was the one who didn't fit the family pattern because she was much more dramatic, opinionated, and new-agey. It turned out that there were good reasons for that. Neva was the one who puzzled me the most. I guess she felt smothered by Grace's insistence that she reveal who the father of her child was, but it seemed like an over-reaction to me.


Posted Jan. 01, 2016 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
Maggie

Join Date: 01/01/16

Posts: 434

RE: Did having all three women's viewpoints give you a richer picture of the women's individual stories?

Yes I love books that are written this way. I certainly got to know each character, what they were thinking , feeling and knowing their past as they see it and not others. I love character driven books, they are my favorite.


Posted Jan. 01, 2016 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
dorothyh

Join Date: 01/23/15

Posts: 225

RE: Did having all three women's viewpoints give you a richer picture of the women's individual stories?

Having the 3 characters gave the story depth, each woman with their own views. They thought they were doing the right thing even if the others did not think so. Its what makes relationships


Posted Jan. 02, 2016 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
terriej

Join Date: 07/28/11

Posts: 422

RE: Did having all three women's viewpoints give you a richer picture of the women's individual stories?

I really liked the 3 women's different view points. I think it really added to the story. Women could relate to the book more easily because there were different personalities.


Posted Jan. 02, 2016 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
andreab

Join Date: 07/29/14

Posts: 101

RE: Did having all three women's viewpoints give you a richer picture of the women's individual stories?

Absolutely! By having the three voices the author gave readers a three-dimensional storyline. It's a great way to get to know the characters by seeing them from different angles.


Posted Jan. 02, 2016 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
kimk

Join Date: 10/16/10

Posts: 889

RE: Did having all three women's viewpoints give you a richer picture of the women's individual stories?

I think it's really difficult for an author to convincingly pull off three narrative voices - to make them distinct enough to fully differentiate them - but Hepworth accomplished this quite successfully. Her ability to make each of her narrators stand out was very impressive, and added to my enjoyment of the novel.


Posted Jan. 02, 2016 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
joyces

Join Date: 06/16/11

Posts: 410

RE: Did having all three women's viewpoints give you a richer picture of the women's individual stories?

I think the changing of viewpoints was great and made it easier to understand where each of these ladies was coming from. They were very different personalities, different ages and living in different locations which made them very distinct and strong characters and yet very attached to each other despite their differences.
Strong minded women with a common career interest but coming from different approaches.


Posted Jan. 04, 2016 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
MarieA

Join Date: 10/12/11

Posts: 256

RE: Did having all three women's viewpoints give you a richer picture of the women's individual stories?

I enjoy reading different viewpoints relative to the same issue. Human nature is such that individuals may see the same incident in a different light. This gives readers different perspectives enabling us to evaluate and decide on whose viewpoint is most credible. Each viewpoint in this novel allowed us to delve into the actions, motives, and personalities of the three characters involved in the story line of the novel. We were then able to better understand the characters and their relationship to one another.


Posted Jan. 05, 2016 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
Retired Reader, NE

Join Date: 09/16/11

Posts: 165

RE: Did having all three women's viewpoints give you a richer picture of the women's individual stories?

It was an interesting technique and served to move the story along. However, I feel having multiple viewpoints and time frames is being over-used in fiction today. The fame of "Gone Girl" has too many authors using this form of writing. Multiple viewpoints can be given without dedicating entire chapters to each voice. I admire authors who tell the story in a linear fashion. Using this technique in "Midwives" made it a quick read. I just hope that Hepworth doesn't make a habit of it.


Posted Jan. 05, 2016 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
Peggy H

Join Date: 06/13/11

Posts: 272

RE: Did having all three women's viewpoints give you a richer picture of the women's individual stories?

So many authors are using this multiple voices that one wonders if this is a main course in writing. Having said that, I found it effective in this story, especially because of the secrets all had.


Posted Jan. 05, 2016 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
louisee

Join Date: 06/29/15

Posts: 143

RE: Did having all three women's viewpoints give you a richer picture of the women's individual stories?

I agree with the last 2 posts - multiple viewpoints in this story is very effective but not in all the novels I have read recently. Having 3 characters being midwives and related gave the story a much richer picture in mother-daughter relationships as well as the practice of midwifery.


Posted Jan. 06, 2016 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
laurap

Join Date: 06/19/12

Posts: 407

RE: Did having all three women's viewpoints give you a richer picture of the women's individual stories?

I agree with louisee, Peggy H., and Retired Reader. In this case the three narrative voices added depth to the story and to the individual characters (one voice giving insight to another character's viewpoint at times). I think the family relationships between the characters -- daughter - mother- grandmother -- helped make that work. But multiple voices can be confusing, especially when combined with changing time frames.


Posted Jan. 07, 2016 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
rosemarys

Join Date: 05/29/11

Posts: 43

RE: Did having all three women's viewpoints give you a richer picture of the women's individual stories?

I love reading different character's perspectives, so I think this definitely added to the story line. In a family everyone has their own opinion and perspective, so the fact that we could read each character's thoughts enhanced the book.


Posted Jan. 08, 2016 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
melindah

Join Date: 12/25/12

Posts: 52

RE: Did having all three women's viewpoints give you a richer picture of the women's individual stories?

I like the different viewpoints as it sheds light on the characters in a way that one narrator cannot. The danger is when there are multiple narrators, the author has to ensure we get enough from each voice in a shorter amount of time.


Posted Jan. 10, 2016 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
sweeney

Join Date: 05/24/11

Posts: 185

RE: Did having all three women's viewpoints give you a richer picture of the women's individual stories?

I believe that having the three characters related and each having a viewpoint was effective, although the endings were a bit predictable.


Posted Jan. 11, 2016 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
dianem

Join Date: 10/25/12

Posts: 65

RE: Did having all three women's viewpoints give you a richer picture of the women's individual stories?

While each woman had a different story i liked how you can see how they related to each other.


Posted Jan. 12, 2016 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
LindaB.

Join Date: 06/11/14

Posts: 80

RE: Did having all three women's viewpoints give you a richer picture of the women's individual stories?

Yes, that is what made the story so engaging. I loved looking through the eyes of history.


Posted Jan. 13, 2016 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
PiperUp

Join Date: 10/27/15

Posts: 146

RE: Did having all three women's viewpoints give you a richer picture of the women's individual stories?

Yes. I was very impressed with how distinct each woman's voice was. Each character's voice offered you glimpses into who they were & how they interacted with each other. Very well written characters.


Posted Jan. 14, 2016 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
elainew

Join Date: 08/28/15

Posts: 15

RE: Did having all three women's viewpoints give you a richer picture of the women's individual stories?

I enjoyed hearing from all three women. It added to the story to hear their personal thoughts.


Posted Jan. 16, 2016 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
Suzanne

Join Date: 04/21/11

Posts: 281

RE: Did having all three women's viewpoints give you a richer picture of the women's individual stories?

I did like this method of defining the three main characters. I felt the women and their lives were more connected by the foundation Sally Hepworth was able to establish in this way.


Posted Jan. 16, 2016 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
juliaa

Join Date: 12/03/11

Posts: 276

RE: Did having all three women's viewpoints give you a richer picture of the women's individual stories?

I agree with the others that the multiple viewpoints worked well in this book, giving me more insight into each of the three women.


Posted Jan. 17, 2016 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
jodig

Join Date: 06/07/15

Posts: 30

RE: Did having all three women's viewpoints give you a richer picture of the women's individual stories?

I thought having the three voices made the story richer. It wasn't difficult to follow and it added to the genuineness of their issues and their secrets.


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