The Women Who Caught The Babies

The Women Who Caught The Babies

Picture book
"They caught the babies,
and catch them still,
welcome them into the world,
for living."
These days avant garde mothers to be opt for midwives rather
than doctors to aid them through labor and childbirth. We kinda
forget that hospital delivery is very recent in terms of the whole
stretch of human history. As Eloise Greenfield, author of The Women
Who Caught The Babies, reminds us that midwives have been doing their
very useful work "...probably as long as their have been human babies
on earth.
Told in a series of free form poems, The Women Who Caught The
Babies tells the story of black midwives through the history of
America beginning with those who were kidnapped from Africa through
the ones today who are summoned by cell phone. Daniel Minter's
paintings that accompany the text are truly enchanting. My favorite
is the picture of a Black man holding the first child in his family
born into freedom.
I think this book would be a very sweet gift for a family in
which a child awaits the birth of a sibling. Under whatever
circumstances a baby arrives we should be all about welcoming him or
her into the world for loving.
On a purrrsonal note, school and work are going just fine, especially
now that the dish machine is fixed. The weather is moderate which
makes bus commuting easier. Tobago continues to be a happy little
cat. I am really looking forward to 2 things:
1) Black History Month. There will be good celebrations on campus.
As you may have noticed I've reviewed a few relevant books to get in
the spirit.
2) The reopening of the Bangor Goodwill. They have been closed over a
month for renovations. I am eager to see what they'll look like. And
I hope they might have cat shirts, pajamas, leggings...any garments
and other merch that celebrates our fine felines. I got a cat shirt
at Orono
Thrift Shop today.
A great big shout out goes out to two very fine felines: Joey whose
beloved memory I treasure and Tobago who now warms my heart.
jules hathaway


Sent from my iPod