I am giving this book a 3 or a 3.5 star review.
This book is about the influenza of 1918 in Ireland. The setting is at a “motherhouse;” mothers who are inflicted with the “gripe” go here. The story is told from the nurse’s perspective and takes place for about 3 days in that ward. *There should be a trigger warning for anyone who lost a baby for this book as there is a lot of complicated deliveries. *
To start, I hated the fact that this book has no quotation marks. Additionally, I felt like I never left the hospital. It was a very emotional book and it would have been nice to take a break from all of it by leaving the hospital. It was just too much medical drama for me, I think. The descriptions of the childbirth were just pages and pages long. I also did not feel a connection to any of the characters. In such an emotional book, I would have loved to really know the characters a bit more. I also found the ending rushed. I felt like the ending needed more to it but the rest of the book could have been trimmed a little. I also felt the tone was bleak, but at times it was also hopeful.
The one thing that was interesting was the pandemic and learning about it. I enjoyed making comparisons to today’s pandemic.
Overall, it was a good book. I enjoyed reading about it.