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Roxanne (13 KP) rated Midwife on Call: Tales of Tiny Miracles in Books

Nov 14, 2018

This is the memoir of Agnes Light, a woman with a very strong passion for her working life. It's a story of her journey through life as a community midwife. This isn't the usual sort of book that I would pick up as I've never really thought about childbirth or the jobs of doctors and midwives. Since I am expecting my first baby I thought I would try and get some information, I've been trying self help books but have found them a bit too clinical and impersonal so I thought I would give this memoir a go. I was pleasantly surprised when I finished this...I really enjoyed it. I found the attitudes towards patients and staff within the NHS in the 60s to be fascinating compared to what it is like now. I knew it was different but just not how different. Agnes' journey was a brilliant read as it was like being in the room with these women as they gave birth, I felt really involved, emotionally and mentally. Some of her stories were heartwarming and filled with joy yet others were devastating and full of heartbreak. The reader is taken to both sides of the spectrum of midwifery, no stone left unturned. I like Agnes' attitude and outspokenness, she wasn't afraid to speak up for the rights of her patients. The only thing that grated on me a little bit was that she kept mentioning how open minded she is, how supportive and non-judgemental she is yet at one point she spoke about a certain scenario and explained how she wouldn't do it that way and she didn't understand why these women did the opposite to her...I wouldn't say that's very open minded as she wasn't aware of all the facts. I believe if she knew fully the circumstances of some of these women then she would of understood their reasoning for doing what they did. This is why I chose to give the book 4 stars instead of 5...I had a bit of a grumble. Overall, the book is fascinating and very descriptive, it doesn't sugarcoat things and it doesn't spoon feed you excess amounts of medical jargon so a pretty easy read. I found it very emotional in some places due to the trauma some of these women had to go through, it was always fully expressed and explained in great detail and so I wouldn't recommend this book to really sensitive readers, it could be quite overbearing at times, however, I found this was necessary in order to get the reader emotionally involved. I borrowed this from the library and am very glad that I did, I will be looking for other similar stories to read.

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We Need to Talk About ... Kevin Bridges

Kevin Bridges

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This is the comic autobiography of 2014. A comedian's autobiography? I wonder if he's ever used...

MaryAnn (14 KP) rated Made for the Journey: One Missionary's First Year in the Jungles of Ecuador in Books

Mar 5, 2019

In this deeply personal account of her first year as a missionary, Elisabeth Elliot shares the challenges she faced as she worked in the jungles of Ecuador to bring the Word of God to a people virtually untouched by the outside world. With fascinating detail, she captures the stark realities of life in the jungle, the difficulties she encountered while developing a written language for the tribe, and her confusion when God didn't "cooperate" with her efforts to accomplish what she believed was His will.

More than just a memoir, Made for the Journey is a beautifully crafted and deeply personal reflection on the important questions of life and a remarkable testimony to authentic Christian obedience to an unfathomable God.

My Thoughts: First written in 2004 as "These Strange Ashes"; this book give s the account of Elizabeth Elliot's first year as a missionary. Well written and very insightful, it gives the reader a closer glimpse of a woman who devoted her life to missions and serving God.

This is an enjoyable read and gives a comprehensive look at what a missionary can face in a foreign country.

It's a book of encouragement to those who are thinking or looking into following God's call to taking His word out into the world.

This is a book that all will enjoy

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Dana (24 KP) rated China Men in Books

Mar 23, 2018

This book was very interesting to read. As a memoir, it was great to be able to see into the author and her family's life. I had to read this book for one of my college courses and it has been very eye-opening to see what these people had to go through, not through the history books, the laws, or even the movies that have come out about the Chinese Americans. This very honest representation of their lives was well written and full of information. There were many things that I had learned differently or, in some cases, didn't even learn in my classes until now. It was all just swept under the rug by the writers of history

This book is set up with short vignettes that break up six other stories of, mainly, the men in Maxine Hong Kingston's family. It shows the struggle of Chinese-Americans in their immigration and their becoming American citizens when they first got here. The story touches a lot on the racism that they encountered as well. When there were stereotypes, Kingston was able to spin them to give them a sort of double-consciousness. There was the negative stereotyped version, then there was also the positive version.

This was a very interesting, and eye-opening book. If you want to learn more about the Chinese American history, pick this book up.

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Heather Cranmer (2721 KP) created a post

Mar 24, 2020 (Updated Mar 24, 2020)

Check out this fascinating interview with Lisa Johnson, author of the emotional and heartfelt biography POSTCARDS FROM LONNIE on my blog, and enter the #GIVEAWAY to #win a signed copy of the book - two winners!

https://alltheupsandowns.blogspot.com/2020/03/book-blog-tour-and-giveaway-postcards.html

**BOOK SYNOPSIS**
It all started on Christmas Day 1993. Lisa and Lonnie were sitting on their mom's rickety yard swing, when Lisa's curiosity took over. She asked Lonnie questions about his life on the street, about being homeless. To her surprise, he answered honestly, humorously, and thoughtfully.

That conversation continued throughout the next four years as Lisa wrote questions on postcards addressed to herself, then mailed them in packets to Lonnie at the flower shop on his corner. He wrote his answers and mailed them back. Lonnie answered a lot of questions and even asked a few, too. His detailed, matter-of-fact responses gave Lisa an unfettered view of a population living on the fringes of society and the issues they face every day.

Postcards from Lonnie is a dialogue between Lonnie, who speaks through the postcards, and his sister, who not only learns a lot about her brother but also about herself. Intimate and revealing, this is a unique family memoir and a universal story of love, respect, family, and ultimately hope.
--
#LSBBT #LoneStarLit

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AJaneClark (3975 KP) rated The Prison Doctor in Books

Apr 19, 2020

Easy read (0 more)

Would have liked more detail (0 more)

A quick and interesting read

From the back of the book: Dr Amanda Brown treats inmates in the U.K.’s most infamous prisons. From miraculous pregnancies to dirty protests, and from violent attacks on prisoners to heartbreaking attacks of self harm, she has witnessed it all from her patients. In this eye-opening, inspirational memoir, Amanda reveal stories, the patients and the cases that have shaped a career spent helping those in need. Despite their crimes, she is still their doctor.

I am not a regular non-fiction reader, but reading Adam Kay’s: This is Going to Hurt, inspired me to find and read further uniquely real life stories.

Dr Amanda Brown does not disappoint when recalling her departure from medicine in a general practice to handling very different and sometimes scary situations working as a doctor in prisons. We follow the doc on her journey from a boys youth prison, through Wormwood Scrubs and finally HMP Bronzfield. Dr Amanda Brown shares with the readers some of the highs and lows she faced when working with prisoners and briefly recounts the battles she faced with herself and with the politics of working in an institute with rules and regulations. For anyone that likes this genre I would definitely suggest giving this one a read.