The same with my good friend Karen and my patient Robyn . . . Their deaths weren’t my fault. I don’t have to be weighed down with them anymore. The two are at peace in the place where dreams live. Let them be.
Outside the wind screams, but it cannot get us. Our hearts are fiercer and we are together in this big warm room. The music rises . . . All around people are dancing, even Terry in her electric chair, spinning with Little Chris in her lap.
My feet hardly touch the floor and I throw my head back, understanding for the first time the folksinger’s words. Lead me to the waterside, Lead me to the morning light, Fill me with a sun so bright, It kills away the darkness of my night.
As we circle the room, it’s not Peter’s lead that I follow, but my own. The chains that have bound me to fear and grief fall away . . . and like a white swan, I soar.
The Beginning
Acknowledgments
First, I thank my family (especially my husband, Tom) for their
continuing support of my writing.
Next, I thank my early readers, midwives and friends,
for their appreciation and insight.
Poor Angus, the Canadian Celtic/Folk band, allowed me to use
some of their lyrics and I thank them for their inspiring music.
Finally, I thank my editor, Lucia Macro, and her staff
for their support and guidance,
and my agent, Elisabeth Weed,
for her faith in the book.
And now, a note to my dear readers:
Life is not easy.
What we need to remember is that no matter how dark the
night,
the sun will rise in the morning
. . . and there is joy.
P.S. Insights, Interviews & More . . .*
About the author
* * *
Meet Patricia Harman
About the book
* * *
A Letter from Patricia Harman
Reading Group Guide
About the author
Meet Patricia Harman
Patricia Harman, CNM, got her start as a lay midwife on rural communes and went on to become a nurse-midwife on the faculties of Ohio State University, Case Western Reserve University, and West Virginia University. She lives her Morgantown, West Virginia, has three sons, and is the author of two acclaimed memoirs. Her first novel, The Midwife of Hope River, was successful around the world.
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About the book
A Letter from Patricia Harman
The Runaway Midwife is a work of fiction, an adventure, a wild ride. While I was writing it, I tried an informal research study. I posted on my author Facebook page, “Has anyone ever thought of running away?” Within hours, I had hundreds of comments like “Sure!” and “Oh, yeah!” One or two women even responded, “Yes, and I did!”
I was amazed and yet maybe I shouldn’t have been. I’ve run away from my family twice. Maybe it didn’t last long. Maybe I went a few miles away. Maybe I even snuck home when everyone was away to do the laundry. But when things got too much, I’ll admit it, I ran.
Women are sensitive creatures. We’ve got that hormone thing going. We’re wired to nurture and protect. Most of us in the United States work full-time in male-dominated business and professional worlds and still do more of the primary childcare and homemaking. When it comes to caring for elderly relatives or even grandchildren that falls to us too.
And think about this: One out of five women has experienced rape or attempted rape. One out of four of us are taking a psych med, an antidepressant or antianxiety drug. Suicide is the fourteenth cause of death in females. Approximately 10 percent of us are trying to take care of a spouse, lover, child, or parent with substance abuse problems. Gosh! Just gosh!
Since I am a midwife, you may wonder if any of The Runaway Midwife is autobiographical. As far as I know, my husband, Dr. Tom, hasn’t had an affair. I haven’t ever had a patient die in labor, but in 2011, our physician partner, a beautiful and loving mother of three adult kids, who showed no signs of depression, committed suicide.
That was a bad year for us. A series of hospitalizations for illnesses and accidents followed our friend’s suicide and without knowing I was about to crack, I did. Fortunately, in my case, “crack” meant taking a leave of absence from work, driving to Canada in the middle of the winter, and beginning a new novel.
As a nurse-midwife, I’ve spent a lot of time talking to females. It seems like everyone is stressed and no one knows the way out. What I’m interested in is the solution.
Here’s what I believe. Women can’t just keep doing more and more, holding their chins high while crying inside. Maybe you’re doing just fine, but I can tell you your sister isn’t, or your coworker or your mom. Don’t you think it’s time to start a conversation?
Maybe part of the answer is in learning to listen to what’s going on inside of us instead of stuffing it down. Part of it is honoring our sensitivity. Part of it is letting others know when we’re hurting and asking for help. It’s time to give each other support for not being everything to everyone, all the time.
Reading Group Guide Discussion Questions
1.Clara makes a bold decision to fly away from her life. Do you think she made the right choice? Why or why not? Are there any circumstances you could discuss where you may have wanted to make the same choice?
2.In running away, Clara decides to make a break not just from her practice and friendships but from her daughter, Jessie, who she feels doesn’t really need her any longer. Discuss whether or not Clara is justified in leaving her grown child behind.
3.Clara seems to ft in easily with the locals on Seagull Island. Why do you think they are so willing to accept her, a total stranger, and not accept the members of the local commune? Does it seem plausible to you that the island has such a “long memory” for events that happened a dozen years ago?
4.The islanders call the commune members “hippies,” a phrase that has fallen out of general use. In what ways are they still somewhat living in the past? In what ways are they perhaps more accepting than those who live on the mainland?
5.Do you think that the islanders are hiding from life by staying so connected to their island lifestyles? Or does the outside world encroach there more than perhaps they’d like to admit?
6.The prospect of a casino getting built on the island strikes dismay in the hearts of many of the residents. But would a casino be an entirely bad thing?
7. Is it possible the Nelson heirs are more practical than grasping? Is it necessarily wrong that they want to sell out?
8.How do you think the rest of the islanders will react to learning the truth about Clara, who they know as Sara? Do you think there’s a possibility that there are others living there who have deep secrets of their own?
9.Have you ever lived somewhere that is “taken over” by summer people? Have you ever been a summer resident? How does that feel?
10.The death of Nita Adams was a touching part of the story. Is it realistic to think people can choose to die as they wish?
11.Did Rainbow’s home birth seem strange to you? Have you ever known anyone who gave birth at home with a midwife?
12.Clara ran away from her past, but discuss what you feel she may have also run toward in her journey.
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Praise for the Work of Patricia Harman
The Runaway Midwife
“In The Runaway Midwife, Patricia Harman delivers a fast-paced, engrossing tale of a woman on the run from a bad marriage and an estranged daughter. . . . The characters are convincing, the plot tight, and the conclusion convincing.”
—Roberta Rich, author of The Midwife of Venice
“From the mountains of West Virginia to a remote island in Lake Erie, The Runaway Midwife takes us on a journey from loss, grief, and guilt to one of love, forgiveness, and redemptio
n. Patricia Harman deftly tells the story of midwife Clara Perry, who discovers that she, too, can soar like the island’s wild swans.”
—New York Times bestselling author Mary McNear
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
“Who better to write of midwifery, the powerful bond between birthing women and their midwives, and the bond between those providing care to birthing families, than Patricia Harman? [ . . . ] Laced with drama, accurate detail, and imagination, The Reluctant Midwife will educate and engage readers eager to further explore Hope River.”
—Penny Armstrong, author of the classic A Midwife’s Story
“This title is sure to appeal to fans of American historical fiction or anyone else looking for a story with plenty of emotion, spunk, and community spirit.”
—Library Journal
“This poignant, powerful novel does not shy away from the gruesome facts of life and death. Fans of the BBC’s Call the Midwife and Carol Cassella’s medically minded novels will enjoy Harman’s inspirational and introspective story.”
—Booklist
The Midwife of Hope River
“. . . A beautifully imagined novel, a marvel of a debut, rich with fully realized characters and events. This is one I’ll read again, more slowly next time.”
—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, author of Critical Care: A New Nurse Faces Death, Life, and Everything in Between and New York Times opinion columnist
“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 Society
“A luminous novel of new beginnings, loss, love . . . and, yes, hope!”
—Gay Courter, author of the New York Times bestsellers The Midwife and The Midwife’s Advice
“Midwives are warriors in this beautifully sweeping tale.”—Kirkus
“. . . An uncommonly good piece of American historical fiction.”
—Library Journal
“It’s a page-turner.”—Alicia Bay Laurel, author of Living on the Earth
“This historical fiction is one that will remain with the reader long after the final page is turned.”
—Times Record News (Wichita Falls, Texas)
Also by Patricia Harman
Lost on Hope Island: The Amazing Tale of the Little Goat Midwives
The Reluctant Midwife
The Midwife of Hope River
Arms Wide Open: A Midwife’s Journey
The Blue Cotton Gown: A Midwife’s Memoir
Credits
Cover design by Elsie Lyons
Cover photographs: © plainpicture/Willing-Holtz; © anucha sirivisansuwan / Shutterstock (bird)
Copyright
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
THE RUNAWAY MIDWIFE. Copyright © 2017 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
EPub Edition January 2017 ISBN 9780062467317
ISBN 978-0-06-246730-0
ISBN 978-0-06-265961-3 (library edition)
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