Reviewed by Chun Yin Wah
Sometimes great books take you into a world beyond your imagination, or even place you face-to-face with your fears. Plot twists like those on particular pages may never happen to you in reality, but an outstanding novel makes you wonder – what would I do in the same situation?
The Memory Keeper’s Daughter by Kim Edwards (2005, Penguin, 513 pages) qualifies as such a book. One winter night in 1964, a doctor named David Henry delivers his own twins. The boy, Paul, emerges first, followed by a girl, Phoebe, born with Down’s syndrome.
David had a sister who’d died young of heart failure, and his mother had never recovered from the grief. David makes a snap decision to give up Phoebe. He believes that having such a daughter would destroy Norah, his wife.
So David hands the girl to Caroline Gill, his 31-year-old nurse, and asks her to place Phoebe in an institution for Down’s syndrome children. At the time, he thinks the decision serves the best interests of everyone -- his wife, son and family.
But Caroline has fallen in love with David and considers him the man she’d always awaited. David knows nothing of her feelings.
Obeying David’s instructions, the nurse takes Phoebe to an institution. Once inside, she changes her mind, carries the baby home and leaves town the next day.
For years, Caroline stays in touch with David by sending postcards with short sentences to say how Phoebe is doing. She moves often, never giving him an address.
David’s decision to give up Phoebe haunts him, making him unhappy with his life and family. As a hobby, he chooses photography, somehow hoping to use a camera to find his daughter.
Norah constantly laments that part of her is missing because she took no final look and said no parting words to the daughter she believes died at birth. The couple drifts apart. Norah has a few affairs, but guilt-ridden David can’t protest. Paul, the son, considers his father distant and unfeeling.
Once David dies, Caroline reappears with surprising information for Norah. The author’s powerful phrasing conveys gut-wrenching emotions. How can any reader avoid shedding tears?
The Memory Keeper’s Daughter is a sad story, but beautifully written.
Approval Rating: 84 per cent.
For more information: www.penguin.com
(February 7, 2008)
ARCHIVES
|
