Journal of the Motherhood Initiative for Research and Community Involvement (JMI - York University)

Thomas, Trudelle

Book Reviews 
"homosexual" because it is "descriptive" and does not "connote a form of 
modern sexual identity" (63), Greenfield examines the threat that mother- 
daughter love "poses to compulsory heterosexuality" (60). 
In her chapter on The Wrongs of Woman, a book that focuses "on the law, 
which discriminates against women of all classes and favors men by treating the 
female body and its offspring as male property" (86), Greenfield discusses the 
"politics of maternal breastfeedingn and how breastfeeding influenced the 
passage ofthe Infant Custody Bill (1839). "Supporters ofthe actrepeatedly drew 
on images of breastfeeding to demonstrate the naturalness of maternal custody 
rights" (84). Greenfield believes Maria's famous court defense "logically extended 
. . . might include a defense of the mother's right to child custody" (99). 
Greenfield explores "the rise of maternal ideals" in Opie'sAdeZine Mowbray; 
Or, The Mother and Daughter, and she examines "inadequate mothers," like 
Lady Delacour in Belinda and Mrs. Mowbray, and the necessity of surrogate 
mothers. Savanna, an escaped mulatto slave, is the surrogate in Opie's novel. 
"Though [Opie's] novel condemns slavery, it also suggests the value of 
importing West Indian women to England to perform the maternal and 
psychological work biological maternity cannot guarantee" (134). Savanna's 
role "prefigures the 'racialized history of child care' that grew out of colonial 
slavery" (134). 
"The Fbddle of Emma: Maternity and the Unconscious" best exemplifies 
Greenfield's general thesis that "the mother's absence highlights her indispen- 
sability" (13). Emma's "internal troubles . . . stem from thevery motherlessness 
nobody acknowledges as a problem" (146). "Though there are a wide variety of 
ways to account for Emma's mistakes," Greedeld believes that each mistake "can 
be explained as her unconscious reaction to her mother's absence" (153). Since the 
novel encourages readers "to understand Emma as she herself cannot, Emma 
might be said to anticipate the role of the modem psychotherapist" (153). 
Underpinning Greenfield's compelling analysis is a wealth of careful 
research. Her three approaches-historical, literary, and psychoanalytic--will 
appeal to scholars in a variety of disciplines. 
A Slant of Sun: One Child's Courage 
Kephart, Beth. 
New York: William Morrow, 1998. 
Reviewed by Trudelle Thomas 
A Slant of Sun is a carefully crafted memoir by a mother who is coming to terms 
with her young child's developmental problems. As the book opens, Kephart is 
Journal ofthe Associationfor Research on Mothering / 199 
Book Reviews 
a freelance technical writer married to an architect from El Salvador. They are 
both ecstatic over the birth of their first child, a boy named Jeremy. The early 
chapters are a tender account of Jeremy's first years. 
When Jeremy is a toddler, Kephart notices disturbing quirks in his 
development: a tendency to withdraw, obsessions with certain toys or clothes, 
a reluctance to talk. At two and a half years old, Jeremy is diagnosed with 
Pervasive Developmental Delay-Not Otherwise Specified (PDD-NOS), a 
little-understood set of symptoms that includes social, language, and behav- 
ioural impairments. There is no clear course of treatment for PDD. Kephart 
writes, 'We  saw our child disappearing--a rapid descent into silence. We met 
with doctors. We were given terminology. The terminology was a dark room, 
a dead end, an imbroglio not an enlightenment" (234). The rest of the book 
describes the parents' desperate efforts over the next five years to "pull" Jeremy 
back into the world of human interaction. 
Late in the memoir, Kephart summarizes her quest: 'We haven't healed 
our son-we have given our son the room to heal himseE-a safe place, the 
right friends, information, conversation, a buffer from the world when he needs 
that buffer. We have learned to look for ... people and institutions that 
understand that kindness is the deepest cure, that there is always room for hope" 
(240). But along the way Kephart is not at all sure they will find kindred spirits, 
kindness, or hope. Much of the book recounts her difficult search for schools, 
therapists, and friends for her disturbingly "different" child. She often doubts 
herself; her marriage falters; neighbours and "professionals" are sometimes 
cruelly judgmental. 
As I read, I recalled the comment of poet Pattiann Rogers: "To write well 
of.. . [motherhood] requires overcoming the many examples of poor literature 
... To write with power of the subject means creating new perspectives." 
Kephart succeeds in creating a new perspective-no small accomplishment- 
an unsentimental close-up of the interplay between a mother and a young child 
at risk. 
Kephart is a gifted writer working with difficult material. Motherhood is 
by nature highly charged and this mother is often in agony-angry, confused, 
lonely, in the dark - even as she is fiercely committed to her son's well being. 
She conveys these emotions through understatement. One chapter, following 
Jeremy's diagnosis, is made up of nine lines, ending "I am earth beneath storm, 
the air inside a snapped reed. I scream my helpless anger into an empty room" 
(77). Kephart is equally skilled in conveying the joy of Jeremy's gradual 
recovery. 
Both mother and child come across as human. Kephart is a night owl and 
a loner who loves to ice skate. Jeremyloves a green hat, toy cars, the Red Baron. 
My favourite sections are Kephart's interactions with Jeremy as they talk or play 
in such places as their home, a park, or a fast-food restaurant. Their conversa- 
tions prove to be key to Jeremy's recovery, "stretching him bit by bit from 
compulsion toward conversation" (238). 
200 / Volume 5, Number 2 
Book Reviews 
This book is of special interest to any parent of a child with PDD, OCD, 
autism, or other "special needs," especially neurological needs. I could use A 
Slant of Sun in classes that address language acquisition, speech therapy, or the 
power of literacy. Potential readers include anyone interested in fine writing 
about one woman's discovery of her deepest sources of strength. A Slant @un 
was a finalist for a National Book Award (U.S.) in 1998. 
Before Deportation 
Feiner, Herta. 
Evanston: Northwestern University Press, 1999. 
Reviewed by Ruth Nemzoff 
Before Deportation by Herta Feiner contains eighty-five pages of letters from a 
German-Jewish mother living in Berlin to her half-Aryan daughters at board- 
ing school in Gland, Switzerland. The letters cover the period January 1939 to 
December 1942. Amidst the trivia of daily concerns and the usual parental 
affectionate expression of love is a powerful description of pre-deportation 
Nazi-Germany, with its insidious erasure of freedoms and rights for Jews in 
Germany. The Nazi machinery left few aspects oflife untouched. Their gradual 
encroachment in each sphere oflife occurred in small increments, allowing the 
Jews to adapt to the changes. They manipulated this human capacity for 
adaptation and ensnared the Jews in their trap. 
W e  learn, for example, that at first the Nazi government allowed the flow 
of mail; then they required a special stamp; next they limited the length of the 
letters; subsequently they limited the number of letters that Jews could send. 
Finally, they stopped mail delivery altogether. We learn that slowly the Jewish 
schools were diminished, first by forced moves to smaller quarters, then by staff 
reductions and, in time, by shortened school hours. 
At first the spouses or parents of Aryans were protected. Finally, no one 
was protected. We see the effectiveness ofthe gradually tightening noose when 
this loving mother actually asks her daughters to return to Germany in the belief 
that their Aryan status could protect both mother and daughters. 
Although this book is not as powerful or emotionally wrenching as Elie 
Weisel's Night, its very ordinariness demonstrates the thorough and methodi- 
cal way the Nazis were able to lure the Jews to their deaths. ?'his book helps 
answer the question, "Why didn't the Jews see what was happening?" 
Journal ofthe Association for Research on Mothering / 201 


English

A Slant of Sun: One Child's Courage

Hayes, Melissa Hamilton

Book Reviews 
Things M y  Mother Told Me 
Gillan, Maria Mazziotti. 
Toronto: Guernica, 1999. 
Reviewed by Melissa Hamilton Hayes 
Gillan begins this collection of narrative poems with something her mother 
told her: 'When you do somethingwith your hands . . . you have to put your love 
into it, and then, it will be sacred. See?" (7). In fact, this is what Gillan does in 
her poetry. Poetry may not be as tangible as her mother's homemade bread or 
summer vegetable garden, but Gillan infuses her poems with love - love for 
each word, each turned phrase, each recollection of a dying mother or a 
newborn baby-to create something sacred. 
Although the title implies a focus on her mother and their relationship, 
Gillan's poems are wide ranging in subject. This collection is about strained 
relationships, superstition, love, food, husbands, wives, and the pain of growing 
up smart and shy in a world that values outgoing girls with blond ponytails. In 
fact, a large part of this book is about growing up as an Itahan Catholic girl in 
Paterson, New Jersey. We learn about Gillan's immigrant roots and Catholic 
heritage, her youth and emergence into womanhood. 
This collection also concerns Gillan's life as a mother and recalls experi- 
ences both rewarding and heartbreaking. She writes of her strong daughter and 
her granddaughter: "you are sharp and smart, all energy and pepper, / a 
quicksilver girl with an open heart" (88). In "My Son Tells Me Not to Wear 
Journal ofthe Association for Research on Mothering 1 181 
Book Reviews 
Poet's Clothes" she expresses her frustration and anxiety as a mother: "I cannot 
/ find a way to make him understand that I love him . . . it's as though I am 
chasing / him down a path but he's always faster than me" (10). 
Her own mother's life and words, however, serve as framework for Gillan's 
volume. The poems tenderly recount her mother's life, the gifts she gave and 
what she taught her daughter: "treasure my children and keep them close . . . 
I know what my mother meant when she told me my children were the only 
treasure I'd ever need (95). Early poems in the collection recount her mother's 
prolonged illness and eventual death. In these powerful poems, Gillan uses 
lyrical free verse to capture the images and feeling of love between mother and 
daughter, a daughter's pain in letting go of a dying mother. In "Brushing My 
Mother's Hair," "Singing to My Mother," and "My Mother's Garden 11," 
Gillan captures the physicality and tenderness of care between an aging mother 
and her grown daughter and the visceral quality of their attachment. This is a 
moving collection that reveals Gillan as both mother and child. 
Double Jeopardy: Motherwork and the Law 
Turnbull, Lorna A. 
Toronto: Sumach Press, 2001. 
Reviewed by Fiona Joy Green 
In commonplace language, Lorna Turnbull-Assistant Professor of Law, 
feminist, wife, and mother of three children-critiques North American law 
for placing women in double jeopardy. Through the effective use of statistics 
and specific decisions made by provincial courts of appeal and the Supreme 
Court of Canada, she shows how the structure and practice of Canadian law 
and, to a lesser extent, American law takes power away from women. Her 
impressive study oflegal cases regarding pregnancy, breastfeeding, and taxation 
demonstrates how the subordination ofmothers is initiated and perpetuated by 
the law. 
Chapter one describes how the law fails to provide adequate support for 
those in caregiving roles. Chapter two defines law, its hierarchal structure and 
adversarial system, and the various ways feminist thinkers have challenged the 
supposed separation of law from the political sphere. Chapter three explores 
how the law embraces the social characterization of "good and "bad mothers 
and is not responsive to mothers' lived experiences. Focusing on the Canadian 
income-tax system, Turnbull provides specific examples of double jeopardy for 
mothers who are employed and unemployed. 
Chapter four explores how legal and cultural attitudes towards pregnancy 
182 / Volume 5, Number 2 


Things My Mother Told Me

Brook, Christine

Book Reviews 
can then focus their attention on other matters, but for children who currently 
are growing up with limited adult connections on which to rely for nurturing 
and pidance. The authors also discuss mothers as social activists. 
Most important, Mothersand Children gives voice to mothers. Jeannine 0. 
Howitz, for example, who considers herself a feminist mother, provides the 
reader with a compelling message: mothers' work is work. Through her 
narrative, we glimpse the struggles of a mother who is trying to make sense of 
(and survive) the social constructions of motherhood that contradict her views 
and experience. This book is inspiring and educational at a deep level. 
The New Midwifery: 
Science and Sensitivity in Practice 
Page, Lesley Ann, ed. 
Edinburgh: Churchill Livingstone, 2000. 
Reviewed by Christine Brook 
This outstanding book builds on Lesley Page's previous contributions in the 
fields of continuity of care, evidence based practice, and the humanization of 
maternity services. Written for midwives and midwifery students, the book 
addresses issues which will enable midwives to develop woman-centred prac- 
tice and to practice with increased autonomy, in keeping with changes to 
maternity services being demanded by childbearing women in many parts ofthe 
industrialized world. 
The bookcontains three sections: effective and appropriate care; transition 
to parenting; and adaptation and growth in pregnancy, birth and early life. The 
first section covers evidence based practice in the context of sensitive midwifery 
practice. The marrying of the humanization of midwifery practice with the 
scientific evidence for practice creates a wonderful juncture of the art and 
science of midwifery practice, contextualizing the professional need for scien- 
tific reasoning within the context of humanistic care. The second section 
focuses on the transition to parenting, in particular the social and emotional 
experiences of childbearing women and their families, and midwifery practices 
that can support and promote healthy adaptation. The third section focuses on 
the physiology of childbearing and midwifery practices to support early 
parenting. 
Throughout the book the primacy of the relationship between childbear- 
ing women and their midwives is recognized. This relationship can contribute 
towards enabling women to meet their needs and have a satisfactory, indeed life 
enhancing experience of childbearing and maternity care. A good relationship 
is not sufficient on its own, however, and the professional responsibility of 
midwives to maintain their scientific knowledge base is emphasized at all times. 
188 1 Volume 5, Number 2 
Book Reviews 
It  is also recognized that midwives require knowledge related to the social, 
cultural, psychological, and emotional experiences of childbearing women and 
their families, in addition to knowledge of the physical sciences and midwifery 
practice. 
It  is refreshing to see the physical aspects of childbearing presented at the 
end rather than the beginning of the book. The book commences with an 
emphasis on the woman-midwife relationship and midwifery practice. The 
contribution of political and organizational factors in affecting or mitigating 
against changes in maternity services is also discussed. 
All chapters are written concisely and present up-to-date knowledge, 
usually accompanied by an historical overview and suggestions for practice. The 
chapters written by midwives often include anecdotes from practice, which 
validate both midwifery practice and childbearing women's experiences, rein- 
force the usefulness of combining anecdotal evidence with scientifically vali- 
dated research, and make for delightful reading. 
This book would make a worthwhile contribution to the library of any 
midwife or midwifery student. 
Baby Catcher: 
Chronicles of a Modern Midwife. 
Vincent, Peggy. 
New York: Scribner, 2002. 
Reviewed by Michelle Moravec 
With her background in obstetrical nursing, natural childbirth education, and 
birth centre administration, Peggy Vincent's decision to become a licensed 
midwife with a specialization in home births seems almost expected; however, 
as Baby Catcher: Chronicles of a Modern Midwfe aptly illustrates, Vincent's 
experiences as a midwife were anything but the expected. 
As a young nursing student at Duke University, %ncent became disillu- 
sioned with traditional obstetric practices that gave labouring women no 
control over their experience of childbirth. The occasional pregnant women 
who "thrived on the challenge and the passion" of birth and refused to submit 
to the drugs and procedures considered necessary by the medical establishment 
showed Vincent that women could make their own decisions about what was 
best for their delivery. 
Inspired by the sweeping changes wrought by the various social move- 
ments of the 1960s, Vincent set out to transform women's experiences of 
childbirth. In Berkeley, California in the early 1970s, Vincent began working 
as a labour and delivery nurse just as the Lamaze movement gained popularity. 
However, her own labour and delivery convinced her that a formulaic approach 
to natural childbirth did not empower women anymore than the stuffy practices 
Journal ofthe Association for Research on Mothering 189 


The New Midwifery: Science and Sensitivity in Practice

Book Reviews 
patriarchal boy culture that divides sons (men) from mothers (women). People 
interested in peace studies, family patterns, family relations, gender relations, 
feminism, psychology, sociology, or women's studies will find this book 
invaluable to their research and teaching. Those more interested in the 
struggles of feminist mothers to raise sons in ways that challenge the status quo 
will also find this collection to be priceless. 
My Journey with Jake: 
A Memoir of Parenting and Disability 
Edelson, Miriam. 
Toronto: Between the Lines, 2000. 
Reviewed by Trudelle Thomas 
My Journey with Jake:A Memoir ofparenting and Disability is avivid, thoughtful 
account of author Miriam Edelson's ten-year relationship with her son, Jake. 
At age 34 Edelson is "hard-wired for kids" and is devastated when a doctor 
announces that her five-month-old son, her firstborn, may never learn to speak, 
walk, talk, or even eat on his own. Jake is born in1990with severe abnormality, 
lissencephaly, caused when his brain ceased developing mid-pregnancy. The 
fifteen chapters in this book are an account ofJake's impaired development and 
of Edelson's journey as a mother under extraordinary circumstances. Included 
are several black and white photos of the two of them. 
The first halfofthe booktenderly describes Jake's birth and first year oflife: 
his mysterious symptoms, such as low muscle tone and seizures, his diagnosis, 
the parents' grief process, and their difficult decisions regarding Jake's treat- 
ment. They choose several interventions including early surgery, a feeding tube, 
and residential care. The second half chronicles Edelson's efforts to maintain 
a strong and loving bond with Jake despite living apart, and her becoming a 
vocal advocate for the rights of "medically fragile" children in Canada. Along 
the way, she has a second child (an able-bodied daughter, Emma), lives through 
- 
an unwelcome divorce, moves in and out of her career as a trade union activist, 
and deepens her Jewish roots. 
What Ivalued most about the bookis Edelson's candour. She presents Jake 
as lovable, yet she is frank about the enormous challenges of parenting a child 
with severe medical problems. A fighter by temperament, Edelson at times 
slides into clinical depression; like so many contemporary women, she must 
work hard to find ways to keep her balance, including massage, exercise, 
psychotherapy, and full-spectrum light. I found it easy to identify with 
Edelson. 
Journal ofthe Association for Research on Mothering / 21 9 
Book Reviews 
The book is carefully researched, providing a tough-minded critique ofthe 
injustices and bureaucratic maze faced by parents of disabled children. Edelson 
criticizes the Canadian "top-down" medical model of health care and suggests 
alternatives. In Chapter 12, "The Ethic of Care," Edelson raises tough bio- 
ethical questions: Is it ethical for science to save an infant's life if it cannot equip 
him to live fully and independently? Under what circumstances is it preferable 
to provide only comfort care (and not intervention) to an infant who has no 
hope of a quality life? Who should decide-parents or doctors? She writes, "If 
we possess the power, as doctors and citizens, to keep vulnerable little ones alive 
then we must also exercise our judicious ability to maintain them in conditions 
which promote their dignity and well-being" (153). 
The book concludes with a seven-page appendix called "Resources for 
Parents" that features recommended reading, suggestions on how to get 
information and help, tips on "how to be most helpful to someone who learns 
their child is seriously disabled or may die," and "advice to professionals." The 
last two lists should be required reading for anyone in the helping professions. 
A sample suggestion for professionals: "Do not imagine for a second that you 
know what these families are going through ... . Give full explanations of 
diagnosis, treatment options, and relevant therapies . . . (197). 
My Journey with Jake is fascinating, enlightening reading for anyone who 
cares about children or the disabled. Policy makers, ethicists, and health care 
practitioners will learn from Edelson. (Edelson sits on the advisoryboard ofthe 
Journal of the Association for Research on Mothering.) 
Pregnant with Meaning: 
Teen Mothers and the Politics of Inclusive 
Schooling 
Kelly, D. M. 
New York: Peter Lang, 2000. 
Reviewed by Sylvia Moore 
In Pregnant With Meaning, D. M. Kelly studies inclusive schooling of teen 
mothers. She analyzes inclusive schooling from a critical feminist stance, 
probing both the needs of the mothers and the stigma they encounter. The 
stories she tells come from two schools in British Columbia which attempt to 
integrate teen mothers. Kelly asks the reader to consider what "inclusion" 
means for these young women and in what way their best interests might be 
served. 
One approach to inclusion is the "real-world microcosm" where mothers 
are placed in regular classrooms. Here they are not considered different from 
other students, they are exposed to the public, and the orientation of the 
220 / Volume 5, Number 1 


My Journey with Jake: A Memoir of Parenting and Disability

Jones, Susanna

Book Reviews 
Sing Your Own Song: A Guide for Single Moms 
Orange, Cynthia. 
Minnesota: Hazelden, 2001. 
Reviewed by Susanna Jones 
The subtitle ofthis book,A Guidefor SingIeMothers, is a misnomer. It suggests 
the book is intended for single mothers, when in fact the book will appeal to a 
much wider audience. I applaud Cynthia Orange for her candid and complex 
description oflife as a single mother. More importantly, her brilliant therapeu- 
tic insights and the plethora of resources she presents transcend the boundaries 
of single motherhood. Any wanna-be parent, soon-to-be parent, single parent 
post divorce, for that matter anyone seelung a thoughtful examination of 
parenting should pick up a copy of this book. 
The book presents both a macro view and a micro view of the family. In 
the opening chapter "Redefining Family," Orange provides a succinct analysis 
offamily formation-rooted in an historical context-and dispels the pervasive 
myths and stereotypes of single mother-headed families. Given that today's 
cultural wars continue to promote "traditional" family values-in fact we see a 
resurgence of this in marriage initiatives being promoted by the government - 
it becomes even more essential to normalize and legitimate single motherhood. 
Despite growing demographic trends, single mothers are continually placed at 
the margins of society. Single mothers need texts such as this that value their 
families and expose the joys and challenges of single motherhood. 
The remaining chapters proactively address common concerns of single 
mothers: the need for community, providing male role models for children, 
ensuring self-care for mothers, strategies for "raising resilient children," and the 
role of grandparenting and elder care in the lives of both the single mother as 
well as her child(ren). Each chapter is rich in information that strikes a beautiful 
balance between strategies for self-care and child-care. Each chapter also refers 
to seminal works and key resources, and includes anecdotes from single 
mothers themselves and concrete exercises (referred to in the text as "Take a 
Minute"). 
In chapter six, "The World Out There," Orange states, "According to the 
Children's Defense Fund's statistics for 2000, 50 percent of America's poor 
children live in female-headed families. Poor children in any family situation- 
single-parent, two-parent, or no-parent-are at a higher risk when it comes to 
getting an education and a good-paying job. It's poverty, not parenting that's 
the culprit, and single mother households bear the brunt of the burden of 
poverty" (126). The book highlights the need for community as a material 
resource and an emotional sounding board to help single mother families 
grapple with difficult situations. This push towards community is also a 
186 1 Volume 5, Number 2 
Book Reviews 
political gesture, one that fosters a new way of thinking and acting in the world 
that debunks the pervasive push to "do it alone." This book will be an 
inspiration to readers. 
Mothers and Children 
Chase, Susan E., and Mary F. Rogers. 
New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press, 2001. 
Reviewed by Erika Horwitz 
As a student and researcher, I always am searching for useful literature on the 
subject of mothers and mothering in Western society. Mothers and Children is 
an insightful book that reviews important topics aboht the social constructions 
of motherhood. Further, the authors seek to give voice to mothers themselves 
by including a series of narratives that illustrate their points. 
In part one, "The Social Constructions of Motherhood," Chase and 
Rogers suggest that ideologies and practices around mothering are historically 
and culturally specific. They point out that the current constructions of 
motherhood have a negative impact on mothers and their children. The authors 
examine feminist views about motherhood, the historical roots and impact of 
the social discourses of "good" versus "bad" mothers, and the subject of "father 
absence." I was particularly impressed by their emphasis on the importance of 
fathers' (or father figures') loving participation in the lives of children and by 
their arguments against the notion that nuclear families are superior to other 
types of families. This section of the book offers an excellent summary of the 
dominant discourse on mothering and its impact on the lives of mothers and 
their children. 
In part two, the authors explore the connection between women's bodies 
and motherhood. They point out how social constructions ofmotherhood have 
led to a view of mothers as asexual and they emphasize the importance of 
. L 
reclaiming mothers as sexual and erotic beings. The authors also examine how 
mainstream medicine has shaped reproductive and birthing practices and they 
highlight the importance ofchoice. Part two concludes with an examination of 
the complexities of infertility and the medical technologies aimed at "helping 
women to conceive. 
Part three focuses on the topic of "Mothering in Everyday Life." In 
discussing the actual experiences of mothers, the authors emphasize the 
importance of social change in supporting mothers and children. They discuss 
the relationships of mothers and children, "othermothering," and mothering as 
political action. This last section in the book illustrates the struggles of 
contemporary mothers. It  touches on the importance of involving others 
("othermothering") in raising children, not only for the benefit ofmothers who 
Journal oftbe Associationfor Research on Mothering / 187 


Sing Your Own Song: A Guide for Single Moms

Chrenick, Myrel

Maternal Metaphors: Artists/Mothers/Artwork

Edwards, Arlene E.

Mothering the Mind: Women of Colour Creating Supportive Communities to Increase the Academic Success Rate of Minority Students

Kruk, Laurie

Poem for September 13, 2001

Norman, Renee

Renee Norman 
When Geese Fly 
the 11 o'clock news: 
in a campground 
a young I l-year-old girl 
was 
when geese fly in v's 
they are like punctuation marks 
stop your gaze 
in the text of blue sky 
catch the eye 
with the possibilities 
my daughter read 
that when geese fly in formation 
they leave a space in the line 
for the geese that died 
in the fall 
when the geese fly south 
when the children return to school 
i will look for 
the gaps in 
the line 
116 1 Volume 5, Number 2 
these gaps are like the words 
i have crossed out of the lines 
of this poem 
X X X X X X X X X X X X  
victims of my verbal gunshot 
wham! 
a word goes 
a goose 
a girl 
all we hunters 
making our marks 
l l-year-old commas 
transform to periods 
fill stops 
Journal of the Association for Research on Mothering / 11 7 


When Geese Fly

Mikolchak, Maria

Book Reviews 
This book provides an historical perspective on the use, control, and social 
importance of contraception and abortion. It  covers the 1960s through to the 
1990s and considers the politics and policies concerned with family planning 
and abortion and their implications for women. The authors point out that 
sexuality is framed by "strong moral overtones in American society." They 
contrast "ideal" sexual behaviour with the "real" sexual behaviour of most 
adolescent and adult Americans, a contrast that has serious implications for 
fertility control policies. McFarlane and Meier argue that American public 
policies reflect the extreme moralistic beliefs of people but not their actual 
behaviour. 
Interestingly, McFarlane and Meier found that abstinence is ineffective as 
a long-term method of contraception; instead, the promotion of contraceptive 
knowledge, contraceptive development, and contraceptive services is far more 
efficacious for women. Their findings are supported by research that has 
"concluded that about 80 percent of the decline in overall pregnancy rates was 
due to improved contraceptive use." 
Expecting Trouble: What Expectant Parents 
Should Know about Prenatal Care in America 
Strong, Thomas H., Jr. 
New York: New York University Press, 2000 
Review by Maria Mikolchak 
Three years ago, pregnant with my fourth child, in perfect touch with my own 
body, and fully convinced that, at least in my case, the main outcome ofprenatal 
care would be a waste of time for me and profit for the obstetrician, I had my 
first prenatal visit after 32 weeks of pregnancy-in time to discuss practical 
matters ofwhere to give birth. 
Thomas Strong's Expecting Trouble: What Expectant Parents Should Know 
about Prenatal Care in America fully supports my attitude toward prenatal care 
that, at the time, many considered negligent of my own health and potentially 
harmful to my unborn baby. Strong's book calls into question the prevailing 
(and unconfirmed) assumption that prenatal care is a form of preventive 
medicine that can reduce the number of premature births and/or infant deaths 
in the United States. The author shows that in Europe, where the average 
number of prenatal visits is less than in the States, the mortality rate is 
significantly lower. In fact, the United States is ranked 23 among industrialized 
nations for its mortality rate. Strong suggests that it is the quality-not 
quantity-of prenatal care that is important. 
194 1 Volume S, Number 2 
Book Reviews 
There are many problems with prenatal care in the United States. First, 
obstetricians persist in regarding pregnancy as a disease rather than a natural 
condition for manywomen. The medicalization of pregnancy leads to the high 
cost ofprenatal care but it does not improve pregnancy outcomes. At the same 
time, obstetricians actually spend very little time with their patients. During a 
typical office visit, women are assessed by a nurse or technician and they see the 
doctor briefly. Strong argues that neither routine examinations nor an obste- 
trician's hasty appearance influence the outcome of pregnancies. 
Strong also raises two important issues related to prenatal care and health 
care in the United States in general. fetal interests often overshadow 
women's interests. Second, domestic violence, the single most common cause 
of injury to women, is ignored by most obstetricians. 
Obstetricians' expertise is invaluable for treating complicated cases of 
pregnancy. Strong argues, however, that the prenatal care of low-risk women 
(approximately 97 percent of all pregnancies), should be left to certified nurse- 
midwives who, as research shows, are the most effective providers of prenatal 
care. Mothers, too, should be trusted to make informed choices during 
pregnancy and delivery. Strong also points out that the role of the partner/ 
spouse should not be underestimated and that men should become visible in the 
pregnancy/birth process. 
According to Strong, to radically change the poor pregnancy outcomes in 
the United States it is necessary to address the larger social ills of racism, 
socioeconomic problems, and the inaccessibility of abortion. A third-genera- 
tion doctor and a second-generation obstetrician, Strong views women as 
agents in the process of pregnancy and birth and he addresses women's needs 
in prenatal care. 
The Birth Book: Everything You Need to Know 
to Have a Safe and Satisfying Birth 
Sears, William, and Martha Sears. 
New York: Little, Brown, 1994. 
Reviewed by robin a. cryderman 
As a staunch midwifery advocate, I was prepared to dislike a book that claimed 
to offer "everything" about birthing; I expected another medicalized birth 
training manual. However, this text, by a husband and wife team who have 
birthed eight children of their own and have published seven other books on 
pregnancy, babies, and child-raising issues, is an admirable achievement. Their 
text brings to life the motto of the International Childbirth Education 
Journal ofthe Associationfor Research on Mothering 1 195 
