The Frozen River byAriel Lawhon

Based on an actual event, The Frozen River, takes place in Hallowell, Maine, a small village on the Kennebec River in the winter of 1789. The body of Josh Burgess is pulled from the nearly frozen river and Martha Ballard, the town's midwife, is called to exam it and give a cause of death. She notices that there are ligature marks around his neck, leading her to believe that he was hanged. However, no rope was found near or on the body. For a small town, Hallowell had it fair share of scandals and villainous men who thought they could have their way with any woman they desired. Burgess was named by the parson's wife, Rebecca Foster,  as one of two men who raped her. The other, a judge on the local court council was Joseph North. She is pregnant as a result of that rape. 

Martha's findings were disputed by Dr. Page, a new physician from Harvard, whose opinion carried more weight than hers and the judge, one of the rapists, wh dismisses the charge of murder. Martha is a strong woman and she will not be quieted. Her position as midwife for the town's women is being usurped by Page, who is stealing her patients and who has delivered a number of still births because of his practice of treating the women with laudanum.

As the novel unfolds, a trial at a higher court ensues with the same result in the failure to convict North of rape and holds Rebecca for the crime of fornication. The number of characters who come in and out of the book were confusing at time, especially since Martha and Ephraim had so many children who also had many suitors. Lawhorn weaves the story convincingly as she leaves breadcrumbs for the reader to discover exactly what has happened. At times the reader may feel that s/he is reading a chapter out of Call the Midwife, or a mystery. 

There are two themes that came across so strongly - the power of a woman and a devoted love between husband and wife.  Martha is a force to be reckoned with. She knows right from wrong and isn't afraid to fight for the right. Through flashbacks to the beginnings of her marriage to Ephraim, she is seen as a woman who learns to read and write and to become a gifted and caring midwife. She is an advocate for justice and for her family as their involvement in the crime emerges. She fights for women who have been taken advantage of and who in the Puritanical culture face shame. 

Through the flashbacks and the relationship of Martha and Ephraim, it is hard to think of another couple in literature who are so devoted to each other. Their love is evidenced in the way they care for each other, challenging the other to be their best. Ephraim expresses extreme disappointment in a decision that Martha makes about providing medication, and it causes her to be remorseful. 
 

The Frozen River is a multilayered novel that will provide readers a wonderful way to spend some hours.  

The Berry Pickers by Amanda Peters

 The Berry Pickers was an interesting novel in that the reader knew from the second chapter on what the solution to the central problem was. Narrated by the two main characters, Joe and Norma, it is the story of a family torn apart by the disappearance of the young Ruthie as her family is picking blueberries. 

The family would leave their home in Nova Scotia and travel to Maine to pick blueberries. In 1962, 4 year old Ruthie disappeared as she and brother Joe were eating a sandwich on a rock. Joe had taken his eyes off her as he fed scraps of bread to birds. The family was devastated and they spent the rest of the summer looking for her as they continued to work the fields. Joe felt the guilt the most for being the last person to see her. Ruthie's disappearance affects his entire life. 

In the alternate chapters, Norma recounts her life. She lives with her parents, Frank and Lenore who have adopted her with very little documentation as to where they found her. Norma senses that their is something not quite right in her ancestry since she has much darker skin than her parents. She also cannot come to terms about why she dreams about a Ruthie.  

Both stories inform their lives fro the next 50 years. Central to the theme of the novel is how families deal with tragedy, loss, and  reconciliation. Reading the prologue to the novel gives the reader insight into the narrative that follows. The suspense that the reader enjoys is how Peters will come to the likely conclusion. The strength of the book is in the character development of Joe, Norma/Ruthie and her Aunt June, Mae (Joe and Ruthie's sister, and Norma's parents. 

A very good read that sparked a lot of discussion at the Gables Book Club.

Finding Freedom by Erin French

A little over a year ago a friend had mentioned this book that she was aware of The Lost Kitchen in Maine through another friend. I had put it on my TBR List and was glad when our book club chose it for our January selection. 

Finding Freedom is a memoir penned by Erin French with emotion, humor, and an uplifting message. She meticulously details her life from childhood, through puberty, a wake-up call to adulthood, and her success as an entrepreneur.  French grew up as the child of an abusive father who owned a diner and required that she spent her waking hours there from the time she was a tween. He enjoyed his beer and while he was with friends, imbibing, she was tending to the cleaning of the diner and prepping for the next day. He opposed her leaving to go to college, but she worked hard, saved her money, and was accepted. However, after 2 years she found herself single and pregnant and was forced to drop out. 

 She returned to her hometown, Freedom to raise her son. She had the support of her mother and nominal support of her father, only because the child was male. She becomes involved in a disastrous relationship, as abusive as her father from which she retreats to wine and pills.  He seems supportive enough as she follows her dream to open a restaurant and follow the passion she has for cooking, but resents her for calling him out for his alcoholism. French's honesty throughout this book is startling. She pulls no punches as she describes her descent into a situation that requires a stay in a rehab facility. 

With the support of her mother, who gets her own chapter in the book, and numerous other women of the area, she rights herself and in 2014 opened The Lost Kitchen. It has been a success and she is to be congratulated for becoming a successful chef and restaurateur.  The book leaves the reader uplifted with the knowledge that lives can be reawakened even from the deepest depths. This was an emotional read, but one that can be endured knowing the outcome.