- Paperback: 300 pages
- Publisher: Merton Books (3 July 2002)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 1872560105
- ISBN-13: 978-1872560106
- Product Dimensions: 21.4 x 15.6 x 2.2 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (289 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 73,056 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
Call The Midwife: A True Story Of The East End In The 1950S
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More About the Author
Product Description
Sunday Express 7th July 2002 - Fiona McDonald Smith
Jennifer Worth can rival James Herriot with her descriptions of childbirth in the Poplar tenements.
The Guardian 2nd October 2002 - Mark Chadbourn
I loved the people, the nuns, the tough dockers, the prostitutes and pimps, seen with the fresh eyes of youth.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
224 of 234 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
'Call the Midwife' is a most extraordinary book and should be required reading of all students of midwifery, nursing, sociology and modern history. It tells of the experiences of a young trainee midwife in the East End of London in the 1950's and is a graphic portrayal of the quite appalling conditions that the East Enders endured. Some of the stories told by the author are so distressing that I have lost sleep over them and I find myself longing to know what ultimately became of Mary, the young Irish girl imprisoned for stealing a baby (her own baby having been removed from her when the nuns caring for her were unable to place her in a job that would allow her to keep her child). What happened to Mary's daughter? By my reckoning she should be a woman in her 50's now - was she ever told that she was adopted, that she had been removed from her adoring mother without Mary's consent? I have had nightmares too about the two little boys sheltering behind a chair to escape the violence of their mother's partner; what became of them, did they go on to inflict the same brutality on their own children? As a graduate of Modern History (and student midwife), I thought I knew a good deal about recent British history. How very wrong I was. This book gave me much pause for thought: the heroism of the nursing order of nuns that Jennifer Worth worked with; the courage of Jennifer Worth and her colleagues in delivering babies in the most appalling conditions; the survival instinct of the East End women - it was a complete eye-opener. Oh, that those who pursue financial gains through our litigious culture could read this book - huge families living without the basics of sanitation or even roofs (tarpaulins providing their shelter), Conchita and her 25 pregnancies. I await Jennifer Worth's promised follow-up with great anticipation - my only observation being that she needs to let us know what became of her 'heroes' and 'heroines' - did Conchita live to a ripe old age, did Mary ever escape the clutches of prostitution once released from prison? Come on Jennfer, please tell us. And congratulations on an incredible book - this student midwife looks in awe upon your skills, your courage, your ability to deliver a baby in the most desperate circumstances. And I salute the women of the 1950s East End.
75 of 79 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
This is the only book of its knid I have even heard of, let alone read. It's a true account of birth and babies in the East End of London in the 50s. Poverty and squalor were common, and there was very little ante or post-natal care. Midwives supervised home births by arriving on bikes, somethimes throught thick smog. I loved this book, which reads like fiction but is true. Anyone who has ever had anything to do with a baby being born - particularly mothers - or anyone who fancies an interesting slant on history should read this. She writes in a chatty, informal style and I could not put it down.
40 of 42 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I purchased this book after watching the first two episodes in the BBC adaptation of Call the Midwife and I have to say that I found the book even better than the TV series. The author writes with a great depth of knowledge and warmth about a world of poverty and deprivation into which she stepped in the 1950's. The descriptions of London's east end are descriptive and at times shocking to the modern reader. This is a fascinating memoir with some great characters. Loved it!
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
missing an arc to the story
I can see why this has appealed to so many readers - stories to tug at the emotions - a woman forced into the workhouse and her four separated children will die one by one before... Read more
Published 12 hours ago by P. Bird
Call the Midwife: A True Story of the East End in 1950
Brilliant book so much more detail than what was in the TV programme could not put it down once i started
Published 2 days ago by Audrey
Loved it!
I can honestly say I loved this book.
Very interesting and felt I nearly knew the people in it.
Really good read.
Very interesting and felt I nearly knew the people in it.
Really good read.
Published 3 days ago by Belfast Castle
What a wonderful story
Initially wasn't keen on the narrative structure of this book (the author chops between the protagonist's pov, without the benefit of hindsight and a kind of historical reference... Read more
Published 4 days ago by Patesy
Very interesting read
Very well written and informative giving a very good insight into life in the fifties. Highly Recomended.A good book for Schoolchidren to read.
Published 7 days ago by S. J. Latyszonek
Britain of our times
Excellent reading the author gave an excellent description of what Britain was like in the 50's You could almost smell the stench and the poverty of the time. Read more
Published 10 days ago by linbar
call the midwife
wonderful book couldnt put it down, still waiting to watch the dvd but will be hard pressed to beat this book
Published 12 days ago by julieaky
written as a diary?
I rarely find the tv drama/movie as good as the book, in this case I think the script writer did an amazing job considering the book content. Read more
Published 12 days ago by Anne Bradley
Excellent read
Excellent book about the history of the Docklands in London. Very detailed so makes fascinating reading for someone living in London. Arrived as promised.
Published 12 days ago by thetalady
Superb Book
This is such a great read, from begining to end the book draws you into the East End of London in the 1950's. Read more
Published 12 days ago by Tonya Craig
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