HISTORICAL FICTION BLOG #1 THE MIDWIFE'S APPRENTICE

HISTORICAL FICTION BLOG #1: THE MIDWIFE’S APPRENTICE


Bibliographic Data

Cushman, Karen. 1995. THE MIDWIFE’S APPRENTICE. New York: Houghton Mifflin. ISBN 0-395-69229-6

Plot Summary

In this historical fiction novel we are introduced to an unwashed, unnourished, unloved and unnamed girl who is so poor she must sleep in the dung heap for warmth. This girl becomes an apprentice to Jane the midwife and grows to learn that she is a worthy person, worthy of name, worthy of love and with a place in this world.

Critical Analysis

The setting of the story takes place in a village somewhere in Medieval England. The village is vividly described, as is the cottage that Alyce stays in with Jane the midwife, and later the Inn in the next village over. The characters seem real and believable and the reader is able to emphasis with the protagonist. She has nothing and has never been loved so the reader can understand why she has little self worth and runs away after failing to deliver Emma Blunt’s baby on her own. The plot is realistic to the time period and the main character, Alyce’s character develops from the beginning of the story to the end. At the beginning she feels unworthy of even a bed to lie on, and in the end she comes to know herself and understand that she is a worthy person. She makes a decision to not give up and to keep trying to better herself and her situation. The style and dialog capture the time but do not overwhelm the story. The characters does not use current slang in their dialogue, instead they capture the speech patterns of the era. For example Joan the Bailiff’s wife moans, “Let me die. By the bones of Saint Mildred, let me die. Or help me to die.” The story has a universal theme of growing and coming to know oneself that is as relevant today as it is in the historical context of the story.

Review Excerpt(s)

From Publishers Weekly

In reviewing this 1996 Newbery winner, PW said that Cushman "has an almost unrivaled ability to build atmosphere, and her evocation of a medieval village, if not scholarly in its authenticity, is supremely colorful and pungent." Ages 8-12. Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Like Cushman's 1994 Newbery Honor Book, Catherine, Called Birdy, this novel is about a strong, young woman in medieval England who finds her own way home. Of course, it's a feminist story for the 1990s, but there's no anachronism. This is a world, like Chaucer's, that's neither sweet nor fair; it's rough, dangerous, primitive, and raucous. Cushman writes with a sharp simplicity and a pulsing beat. From the first page you're caught by the spirit of the homeless, nameless waif, somewhere around 12 years old, "unwashed, unnourished, unloved, and unlovely," trying to keep warm in a dung heap. She gets the village midwife, Jane Sharp, to take her in, befriends a cat, names herself Alyce, and learns something about delivering babies. When she fails, she runs away, but she picks herself up again and returns to work and independence. Only the episode about her caring for a homeless child seems contrived. The characters are drawn with zest and affection but no false reverence. The midwife is tough and greedy ("she did her job with energy and some skill, but without care, compassion, or joy"), her method somewhere between superstition, herbal lore, common sense, and bumbling; yet she's the one who finally helps Alyce to be brave. Kids will like this short, fast-paced narrative about a hero who discovers that she's not ugly or stupid or alone. Hazel Rochman --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Connections

Other historical fiction novels by Karen Cushman

Catherine, Called Birdy by Karen Cushman
The Ballad of Lucy Whipple by Karen Cushman
Matilda Boone by Karen Cushman