Midwives

Gather initial thoughts and broad opinions about the book.

1. What emotions did you experience while reading Midwives? Which sections of the novel most impacted you, and why?

2. How would you compare Midwives to other courtroom dramas you may have read, such as To Kill a Mockingbird? Explore the similarities and differences.

Encourage readers to connect the book’s themes and characters with their personal experiences.

1. Have you ever experienced a situation that called for quick decision-making, as Sibyl does during Charlotte’s labor? How did you decide on a course of action? What emotions did you experience in the process?

2. One of the book’s key themes involves the impact of a family crisis on a teenager’s psyche. Did you find Connie’s internalization of the crisis relatable? Why or why not?

3. Despite the fact that Sibyl has little medical training, she decides to operate on Charlotte when she cannot find a pulse on her, with the intent of saving her baby. What would you do in Sibyl’s place?

4. Think about a time when your experience of an event was at odds with the “official” version. What did you learn as a result of this discrepancy?

Examine the book’s relevance to societal issues, historical events, or cultural themes.

1. Stephen links opposition to midwives with male bias against women’s agency, stating that “the history of midwifery in America is filled with the names of women lionized by their own gender and ostracized by men” (273). What are some real-world examples of the attitude Stephen highlights, outside of midwifery?

2. How does the book’s 1981 setting inform the narrative? Would the events unfold similarly in a 21st-century setting?

3. How relevant to the real world is the book’s depiction of The Debate Between Alternative and Institutionalized Medicine? Why do people sometimes mistrust doctors and hospitals? How does Sibyl’s clientele—she observes that lawyers, bankers, and doctors never seek her services but that farmers, artists, carpenters, and crane operators do, sometimes paying her by barter—reflect this context?

Dive into the book’s structure, characters, themes, and symbolism.

1. The novel has a retrospective first-person narrator. How did Connie’s narrative style impact your reading of the book? Would your reading experience have been different if the book were narrated by a third-person omniscient narrator?

2. What did you think of the relationship between Sibyl and Stephen? What does it add to the novel?

3. Snow and winter imagery recur throughout the novel. Examine how the imagery contributes to the novel’s emotional impact and themes.

4. Did the reveal of the contents of Sibyl’s journals at the end of the novel change your perception of preceding events? How?

Encourage imaginative and creative connections to the book.

1. If Midwives were adapted into a movie, whom would you cast in the roles of Sibyl, Connie, Rand, and Stephen?

2. Imagine an ending where Sibyl’s journals are read by Tanner and Sibyl is found guilty of involuntary manslaughter. How would the ensuing events change for various characters?