A father makes the split second decision to relinquish his newborn daughter upon realising she has Down's Syndrome. Unbeknownst to him, the nurse he entrusts to take his baby away to an institution instead disappears to another city to raise the child as her own. Compulsively readable and deeply moving, this is a brilliantly crafted story of parallel lives, familial secrets, and the redemptive power of love.
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Crafted with language so lovely you have to reread the passages just to be captivated all over again . . . this is simply a beautiful book (Jodi Picoult)
I loved this riveting story with its intricate characters and beautiful language (Sue Monk Kidd, author of the best-selling The Secret Life of Bees) --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.
I loved this riveting story with its intricate characters and beautiful language (Sue Monk Kidd, author of the best-selling The Secret Life of Bees) --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.
From the Publisher
Kim Edwards's stunning family drama articulates every parent's
silent fear: what would happen if you lost your child and she grew up
without you? Compulsively readable and deeply moving, 'The Memory Keeper's
Daughter' is an astonishing tale of redemptive love that will touch the
hearts of readers everywhere.
--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.
silent fear: what would happen if you lost your child and she grew up
without you? Compulsively readable and deeply moving, 'The Memory Keeper's
Daughter' is an astonishing tale of redemptive love that will touch the
hearts of readers everywhere.
--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.
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First Sentence
THE SNOW STARTED TO FALL SEVERAL HOURS BEFORE HER labor began. Read the first page Browse Sample Pages
Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover
THE SNOW STARTED TO FALL SEVERAL HOURS BEFORE HER labor began. Read the first page Browse Sample Pages
Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
42 of 43 people found the following review helpful
By Julia Flyte
TOP 50 REVIEWER
Format:Paperback
The Memory Keeper's Daughter starts in the 1960s. It is a stormy night and the doctor's wife has gone into labor. David (the doctor) is forced to deliver his wife's (Norah's) twin babies with only his practice nurse (Caroline) for assistance. The first baby, a boy, is delivered without issues but the baby girl has Down's Syndrome. David's immediate reaction is to protect his wife from what he perceives to be a tragedy, so he gives the baby to Caroline and asks her to take her to a home for the mentally ill. He tells his wife that the baby girl died at birth and that the body has been disposed of.
Caroline goes to follow the doctor's instructions but is unable to get to the home. Instead she makes a spontaneous decision to look after the baby herself, and leaves town. Over the years she raises the girl on her own, keeping in occasional contact with David. Norah remains unaware that her daughter survived the birth and has to deal with her own grief for the baby she lost. David suffers guilt and confusion about whether he made the right decision and his need to keep the secret creates a rift in his marriage to Norah.
I enjoyed reading this book. The central premise is so intriguing that I wanted to see how the story would pan out. The book follows each character in turn over the years as the two children grow up. It's a well written book and the characters held my attention and sympathy throughout. I was very curious to see how the story would be resolved. My main gripe was with the ending, which I felt was a bit lame. I wanted a greater sense of resolution than was delivered. However overall I still liked the book. Other reviewers have complained that it was slow moving and I suppose it is, but I didn't find this a problem when I was reading it. Read more ›
Caroline goes to follow the doctor's instructions but is unable to get to the home. Instead she makes a spontaneous decision to look after the baby herself, and leaves town. Over the years she raises the girl on her own, keeping in occasional contact with David. Norah remains unaware that her daughter survived the birth and has to deal with her own grief for the baby she lost. David suffers guilt and confusion about whether he made the right decision and his need to keep the secret creates a rift in his marriage to Norah.
I enjoyed reading this book. The central premise is so intriguing that I wanted to see how the story would pan out. The book follows each character in turn over the years as the two children grow up. It's a well written book and the characters held my attention and sympathy throughout. I was very curious to see how the story would be resolved. My main gripe was with the ending, which I felt was a bit lame. I wanted a greater sense of resolution than was delivered. However overall I still liked the book. Other reviewers have complained that it was slow moving and I suppose it is, but I didn't find this a problem when I was reading it. Read more ›
10 of 10 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
It touches upon controversial issues and challenges certain conceptions. The development of some characters is quite interesting (the unknowing wife for example) however not all characters are engaging or credible. I grew tired of the somewhat naive and one sided statement of the book. It was quite predictable and it fails to really connect the reader to all of the individuals in the plot.
58 of 62 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I am surprised that this book has received such mixed reviews.
Personally I really enjoyed it, but then it is a subject close to my heart, as my niece has Downs Syndrome.
Set in the 1960's it is quite an eye-opener how views have changed towards such disabilities since then. The fights of those parents for their children's rights are largely responsible for the opportunities available to such children today.
On a snowy winter's evening Nora Henry goes into labour. With the help of a nurse her doctor husband delivers her a healthy son, but there follows an unexpected twin sister who has Downs Syndrome. As was frequently the case at that time, the Downs child, Phoebe, is sent to a home to be cared for. The job of taking her there is entrusted to the nurse, Caroline, who takes one look at the place and decides to care for Phoebe herself.
Meanwhile David Henry makes his big mistake and informs his wife that their daughter was stillborn, setting in motion a chain of events that has repercussions for years to come.
Even though there are reasons in David's past that might explain his response to the birth, it is hard to feel great empathy for him after this event. However, his fascination for photography has interesting symbolism which is explained towards the end of the book.
Caroline and Phoebe made the more enjoyable reading for me, as they struggled to make a life away from Phoebe's home town.
Nora, the bereaved wife, was the least interesting and a rather frustrating character.
The other person in this situation was the brother, Paul, who always felt distant from his distracted parents and who compensated by putting his whole being into his music.
A fascinating book, with plenty of food for thought, though it could have done with being 100 pages shorter.
Personally I really enjoyed it, but then it is a subject close to my heart, as my niece has Downs Syndrome.
Set in the 1960's it is quite an eye-opener how views have changed towards such disabilities since then. The fights of those parents for their children's rights are largely responsible for the opportunities available to such children today.
On a snowy winter's evening Nora Henry goes into labour. With the help of a nurse her doctor husband delivers her a healthy son, but there follows an unexpected twin sister who has Downs Syndrome. As was frequently the case at that time, the Downs child, Phoebe, is sent to a home to be cared for. The job of taking her there is entrusted to the nurse, Caroline, who takes one look at the place and decides to care for Phoebe herself.
Meanwhile David Henry makes his big mistake and informs his wife that their daughter was stillborn, setting in motion a chain of events that has repercussions for years to come.
Even though there are reasons in David's past that might explain his response to the birth, it is hard to feel great empathy for him after this event. However, his fascination for photography has interesting symbolism which is explained towards the end of the book.
Caroline and Phoebe made the more enjoyable reading for me, as they struggled to make a life away from Phoebe's home town.
Nora, the bereaved wife, was the least interesting and a rather frustrating character.
The other person in this situation was the brother, Paul, who always felt distant from his distracted parents and who compensated by putting his whole being into his music.
A fascinating book, with plenty of food for thought, though it could have done with being 100 pages shorter.
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
In 1964, due to severe weather conditions, a young orthopedic surgeon is forced to attend his wife Nora, when she suddenly goes into labor. He delivers fraternal twins, a boy and girl. The doctor realizes, however, that the girl was born with Downs Syndrome. So, with a moment's decision, he sets the course for the rest of his life.
Wanting to spare his wife of having to care for a special needs child, because of an experience he had while growing up, the doctor decides to institutionalize the child. He tells his nurse to take care of this for him, and then he tells his wife that the little girl died. This one lie would color and shape this family for years to come and not in a good way. His nurse, Caroline, on the other hand, finds that she is unable to leave the child in an institution, and her own personal decision would also shape her life in ways she never dreamed.
For a debut novel, this book begins with an interesting premise. Unfortunately, it fails somewhat in the execution. Rather than being sympathetic, the doctor, his wife, and the surviving twin boy ended up being not particularly likeable. This failure to draw the reader in is one of the weaknesses of the book. The parts that were most interesting were those involving Caroline and the twin girl, Phoebe. Moreover, the novel was surprisingly predictable. Still, this writer shows promise, and the book is a good first effort at a novel. Overall, the book was more enjoyable than not, good but not great.
Wanting to spare his wife of having to care for a special needs child, because of an experience he had while growing up, the doctor decides to institutionalize the child. He tells his nurse to take care of this for him, and then he tells his wife that the little girl died. This one lie would color and shape this family for years to come and not in a good way. His nurse, Caroline, on the other hand, finds that she is unable to leave the child in an institution, and her own personal decision would also shape her life in ways she never dreamed.
For a debut novel, this book begins with an interesting premise. Unfortunately, it fails somewhat in the execution. Rather than being sympathetic, the doctor, his wife, and the surviving twin boy ended up being not particularly likeable. This failure to draw the reader in is one of the weaknesses of the book. The parts that were most interesting were those involving Caroline and the twin girl, Phoebe. Moreover, the novel was surprisingly predictable. Still, this writer shows promise, and the book is a good first effort at a novel. Overall, the book was more enjoyable than not, good but not great.
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1.0 out of 5 stars
Drawn out
I couldn't even finish this book as it got so boring. If you want to engross yourself in a book, then this is not the one for you.
Published 19 days ago by Niamh
5.0 out of 5 stars
EXCELLENT READ
The story line has been covered by lots of other critics so I will not bore you with reiterating it again. Read more
Published 24 days ago by bibliophile
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Memory Keeper's Daughter
This book touched me so much I was unable to read another book for about 3 weeks. It's well written and a beautiful story.
Published 1 month ago by Olga Prins
3.0 out of 5 stars
EMOTIONS EXPLORED AT LENGTH
1964. Lexington. Norah gives birth to Paul. Unexpectedly there is a twin - Phoebe who has Down's syndrome. Haunted by memories of his sick sister who died young, husband Dr. Read more
Published 1 month ago by Mr. D. L. Rees
1.0 out of 5 stars
They cut down trees to produce this?
I've managed to get to page 120, solely because this is my book group's latest choice. It's so bad that I put it down just minutes ago to check the Amazon reviews to see if my... Read more
Published 1 month ago by B. Walker
4.0 out of 5 stars
would this story happen now?
Such a sad begining ,but the eventual outcome teaches a lesson .Times have changed and the way society views people with learning difficulties . Read more
Published 2 months ago by Cath Mitchell
3.0 out of 5 stars
Good overall read
The beginning was good but as you got near to the end the story fizzled out a little and needed more of an exciting ending , I thought.
Published 3 months ago by kazwax
4.0 out of 5 stars
Book
A very enjoyable read which arrived on time and was easy to read. I don't have much else to say about it.
Published 3 months ago by pen
5.0 out of 5 stars
Loved it
The story was quite different and very well written. The characters were very real and I didn't want it ti end
Published 5 months ago by Trudi A EdgarTrudi Edgar
5.0 out of 5 stars
good read
I had previously read this book a long time ago then saw it on kindle so had to get it. It is a lovely book one that keeps you turning the pages. Read more
Published 5 months ago by Pamela Moore
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