Cushman, The Midwifes Apprentice Karen. . New York: HarperTrophy, 1996.



Plot Summary:
Set in medieval England a girl that is known as Brat with no name of her own was found sleeping in a dung heap.  Jane, the midwife, invites Brat to come and work with her but does not share with her the secrets of being a midwife.  She becomes known as Beetle to Jane, the midwife and is allowed to stay as a lowly assistant.  Beetle works hard for Jane, but she never feels like she is good enough.  One day Jane was out delivering a baby while another mother needed assistance.  Beetle was unsuccessful birthing the baby and felt like a failure.  She quit her job as a midwife apprentice and left without notice.  She went to work in an Inn.  While she was at the Inn, she had a chance to discover herself as a worthwhile person.  She gave herself a real name "Alyce''.  One day, while she was working at the Inn Magister Reese, asked Alyce what she wants.  She replied "I know what I want.  A full belly, a contented heart, and a place in this world." (p. 81).  And with that, she decides she wanted to go back and become a successful midwife's apprentice and make a place for herself in this world.

Critical Analysis:
The setting of the book is medieval England.  As the story begins, our heroine is asleep in a dung pile to keep warm.  Cushman does an excellent job of creating a character that is believable. She is hardworking but does not always have the confidence to feel satisfied.  Like many young teens, she is still in search of herself and seems like adults do not understand her.  The locations throughout the story such as the cottage of the midwife and the inn outside of town are realistic locations for this period.  The characters are believable and fit in with the story.  Jane the Midwife, Jennet the innkeeper, and Magister Reese all play a major role in shaping Alyce's future.

The theme of the story is how important it is for a young person to find the strength and the courage to be who they want to be despite what other's may think.  The plot of the story does a good job to explain Beetle/Alyce's dilemma without being bogged down in historical detail.  Cushman does an excellent job of bringing medieval England to life while focusing on Beetle.

The style and the language of the book play well to the setting of a place to readers that is in the distant past.  Sayings such as "A good nut year means a good baby year" (p. 54) shows how some of the superstitions of the time seeped into their everyday life.

The author's note does a good job of explaining the history of midwifery and how until recently most babies weren't born in hospitals.  The author describes the history of midwives in terms that a young reader can understand.   The author's note explains the superstition that was woven in through the story.  The story was authentic and the authors note tied the history to the story.

Awards and Reviews:
Newbery Medal (1996)
Dorothy Canfield Fisher Children's Book Award Nominee (1997)
Pacific Northwest Library Association Young Reader's Choice Award for Senior (1998)

"With simplicity, wit, and humor, Cushman presents another tale of medieval England. Here readers follow the satisfying, literal and figurative journey of a homeless, nameless child called Brat. . . . Earthy humor, the foibles of humans both high and low, and a fascinating mix of superstition and genuinely helpful herbal remedies attached to childbirth make this a truly delightful introduction to a world seldom seen in children's literature."
—School Library Journal, Starred

"This novel is about a strong, young woman in medieval England who finds her own way home. . . . Kids will be caught up in this short, fast-paced narrative about a hero who discovers that she's not ugly or stupid or alone."
—Booklist, ALA, Starred Review


Connections:
Pull other Karen Cushman books:
Catherine, Called Birdie ISBN: 0060739428
Matilda Bone ISBN: 0440418224
Alchemy and Meggy Swann ISBN: 0547231849
Graylings Song ISBN: 0544301633

Have a discussion with the students about what a midwife is and show internet information about some herbs and items used in medieval midwifery.

Have students create an advertisement for their midwife services if there was a newspaper in the medieval times.

Pull other Medieval Historical Fiction Books:
Crispin ISBN: 0786816589
The Inquisitor's Tale: Or, The Three Magical Children and Their Holy Dog ISBN: 05e5426167
The Knight at Dawn ISBN: 067982412X

Create a "Did you Know" bulletin board about Medieval times.







References:

Cushman, Karen. The midwife's apprentice. New York: HarperTrophy, 1996.

"The Midwife's Apprentice Editorial Reviews." Amazon. Accessed April 08, 2017. https://www.amazon.com/dp/006440630X?_encoding=UTF8&isInIframe=0&n=283155&ref_=dp_proddesc_0&s=books&showDetailProductDesc=1#product-description_feature_div.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Scorpio Races

Image
The Scorpio Races Bibliographic Information: Stiefvater, Maggie.  The Scorpio Races . New York: Scholastic, 2013. Plot Summary:   Every November the Scorpio races take place.   Tourists come from all over to the island of Thisby to watch riders mount their capaill uisce, magical water horses, and try to survive and win the Scorpio Races.   These water horses are deadly.   Their magic pulls them to the ocean where they want to take their mounts and drown them in the sea. The Scorpio Races are dangerous. Sean Kendrick watched his father die on a capaill uisce, and it is now his turn to race to win the water horse, Coll, that he has raised since it was a baby.   Since Sean lost his dad, he has been working for the Malverns to raise and breed horses.   Sean is known on the island for his unique abilities to deal with the capaill uisce.   Tensions rise between Kendrick and Malvern's son who is jealous of Sean.   Mr. Malvern makes a deal with Sean that if he wins on
Read more
Image
The Invention of Hugo Cabret: Book Review Bibliographic Information: Selznick, Brian. The Invention of Hugo Cabret. New York: Scholastic, 2007.   ISBN 0439819813786 Plot Summary: Hugo lives in the walls of a Paris train station in which he takes care of the clocks.   Stealthy Hugo must do what he has to in able to survive.   Hugo has one hope left: to repair an automated man that he believes may have a message from his late father.   With the help of a young girl, Hugo uncovers more secrets than he anticipated in this mysterious tale. Critical Analysis: The beginning of the book instantly takes you to a clear night in Paris.   The illustrations bring you to a bustling train station and introduce you to the stealthy Hugo.   Hugo sneaks his way around the station to his hiding place behind the walls.   The black and white illustrations set the mysterious mood and historical setting of 1930’s Paris.   The pictures help narrate the story as you follow Hugo on his jour
Read more
Image
Down Down Down a Journey to the Bottom of the Sea  By Steve Jenkins ISBN  0544709519 Bibliographical Information: Jenkins, Steve.  Down, Down, Down A Journey to the Bottom of the Sea . Boston New York: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2016. ISBN 0544709519. Plot Summary: In this book, Steve Jenkins takes us on a trip to the very bottom of the ocean.  “More humans have walked on the moon than have visited the deepest spot in the sea. (p.1, Jenkins)”.  Readers are taken on a visually stunning journey from the surface of the ocean down to the lowest depth.  Young readers can see what animals look like at each depth and what part of the ocean they are at on a scale at the side of each page.   Jenkins states in his introduction “In this book, we’ll descend from the sea’s surface to the sea floor and travel through one of the most extreme environments on earth.”  And what a journey it is! Critical analysis: Let’s talk about accuracy for a moment.  I am not a marine biologist or oc
Read more