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My Name Is Mary Sutter

3.76 of 5 stars 3.76 · rating details · 9,160 ratings · 1,664 reviews

A New York Times bestseller and a moving Civil War novel about a young midwife who dreams of becoming a surgeon
Fans of Caleb’s Crossing by Geraldine Brooks, Cold Mountainby Charles Frazier, and Mrs. Lincoln's Dressmaker by Jennifer Chiaverini will love this New York Times bestselling tale of the Civil War. Mary Sutter is a brilliant young midwife who dreams of becoming a...more

Paperback, 364 pages

Published March 29th 2011 by Penguin Books (first published January 1st 2010)

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Apr 17, 2012 Lyndz rated it 3 of 5 stars

Recommended to Lyndz by: Ann

Shelves: reviewed

I am feeling a bit torn about how I feel about My Name is Mary Sutter. On the one hand I love a book with a strong-willed female protagonist – and this definitely had that. On the other hand, war books are hard for me to emotionally stomach – since I have a brother in the Army.

My Name is Marry Sutter is about an able-bodied young midwife who, during the American Civil war, is trying to fulfill a life-long ambition to become a doctor, more specifically a surgeon. She faces disappointment and sexi...more I am feeling a bit torn about how I feel about My Name is Mary Sutter. On the one hand I love a book with a strong-willed female protagonist – and this definitely had that. On the other hand, war books are hard for me to emotionally stomach – since I have a brother in the Army.

My Name is Marry Sutter is about an able-bodied young midwife who, during the American Civil war, is trying to fulfill a life-long ambition to become a doctor, more specifically a surgeon. She faces disappointment and sexism at every turn; this is the story of how she overcomes her obstacles. Unbeknownst to me until after I finished the book, this is on Oprah’s reading list club thingy that she does. So, just to head-off any questions about that; no I am not a fan, and no I did not read this because of her.

I thought the over-all prose was reminiscent of Jane Austin. Maybe someone who has read this, and a lot more Jane Austin than I have can confirm or deny my opinion on the prose. I am certainly no Austin connoisseur.

Our protagonist Mary was strong willed, perhaps a bit obstinate and bullheaded at times, but definitely likeable and even relatable on some level. I found myself cheering for her. The plot is fast paced, and that is definitely a good thing since some historical fictions tend to be long winded and drag on about the minor details. As historical fictions go, this one does not focus so much on the “historical” part as the “fiction”. – I don’t mean that as the facts were messed up or wrong, but you are definitely more focused on the story of Mary and her life than you are on the history that is going on at that time. If that makes any sense.

I have a particular penchant for books that evoke strong emotion, even if that emotion is anger or sadness. – Call me a sap but, I like them. Anyway, My Name is Mary Sutter was extremely emotional for me. I honestly almost put the book down about ¾ of the way through because it was truly THAT difficult for me to continue. I pulled myself together, put my big-girl pants on, and I did end up finishing it. However, in the end, I decided that the majority of the strong emotion that I was feeling towards the book was based on my personal ties to soldiers rather than the actual merits of the book. Detailed retellings of the poignant last moments in soldiers’ lives, and the kinds of injuries that soldiers face was simply hitting too close to home.

You are probably saying to yourself, ‘Ok, so it has a good protagonist, and stirred up strong emotion; what is the problem then? Why the lower rating?’ Let me 'splain. [pause] No, there is too much. Let me sum up. Firstly, I am not a huge fan of books that focus almost exclusively on interpersonal relationships between the characters, I need more meat than that. Secondly, it is one thing to read about a scenario that gets your insides churning because it is happening to the book’s characters, it is another thing to have your real life worst fears actualized in detail in front of your face in black and white.

I have to give this 3 & ½ stars. With the disclaimer that anyone who does not suffer from the same overly-protective-older-sister-to-a-soldier-neuroses that I have would probably enjoy this book a lot more than I did. Particularly if you are a fan of historical fiction or U.S. Civil War buff.

Oh, and sorry I don’t have many cutsie pictures for this review. I didn’t think an above-the-knee leg amputation .gif image was going to be conducive to my PG-13 rated review theme -not to mention hard to find.
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Oct 28, 2012 Ellie rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: ebooks, 2012, reviewed, favorites, contemporary, medical, historical

Set in Albany New York during the American Civil War in the 1860's, Mary Sutter is a renowned and respected midwife. However, her fascination with medicine doesn't end there and she dreams of maybe, someday becoming a surgeon, an almost impossible ambition for a woman of that era. Mary is repeatedly turned down for admission to numerous medical schools for simply being a woman. When Dorothea Dix persuades Abraham Lincoln to allow her to recruit a band of female nurses to serve alongside the army...more Set in Albany New York during the American Civil War in the 1860's, Mary Sutter is a renowned and respected midwife. However, her fascination with medicine doesn't end there and she dreams of maybe, someday becoming a surgeon, an almost impossible ambition for a woman of that era. Mary is repeatedly turned down for admission to numerous medical schools for simply being a woman. When Dorothea Dix persuades Abraham Lincoln to allow her to recruit a band of female nurses to serve alongside the army doctors, Mary travels to Washington D.C. to secure a position in an army hospital in the hope that this will help her establish a medical career.

I'm a big fan of historical fiction, and this novel is historical fiction at its best. This is a novel that will both move and anger you. It was a very compelling and enthralling story, particularly the fact that Mary Sutter was an unconventional heroine in some respects, but such a strong woman underneath it all. There were quite a few twists and turns in the novel and I found I was unable to put this book down for long, I kept turning the pages hoping Mary would eventually achieve her dream and I kept wondering which man Mary would choose (three men were in love with her during the course of the novel). The level of historical detail in this novel was amazing. It is clear that the medical and civil war aspects of the novel were extremely well-researched. I found the depth of research and work the author put into this novel was simply astounding.

All of Robin Oliveira's characters were vivid, well-developed and extremely likable. I really loved how the protagonist's character evolved throughout the novel. Mary does seem quite shy and awkward at the beginning of the novel but she's filled with a fierce determination to succeed. Mary overcomes her obstacles managing to achieve her dream of becoming a strong and confident doctor in a time that was not at all friendly to women in general. I found Mary's character to be extremely admirable and quite courageous.

I enjoyed this novel immensely and I absolutely loved the main character. My Name is Mary Sutter has become one of my favourite novels. I look forward to reading more from Robin Oliveira in the future.

Five stars!

Beware, the war and medical descriptions are quite graphic so if you are the slightest bit squeamish then this isn't the novel for you. (less)

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Apr 26, 2011 Cassy rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: physical-own, event-met-author, 2011, fiction-historical, region-america-canada

I was trying to rally some friends to go with me to an event by this author. No one was interested, which puzzled me. “You have to come! Civil War books are awesome!” One guy was particularly reluctant. “But we can read it together! Civil War books are the best!” He admitted that he have not read any Civil War novels and seemed uncomfortable. At which point, it occurred to me that I myself haven’t read many Civil War books.* But I forged ahead like a robot. “Civil War books are great!” He asked...more

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Jan 23, 2013 Joy H. rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: historical-fiction, civil-war, medical-content, selection-of-library-bk-group

Added 11/27/12
I wrote the following at my GR Book Group:
==================================
11/27/12-I've started reading My Name is Mary Sutter (2010) by Robin Oliveira. It's the December selection of our local Crandall Library's Monday Night Book Group.
I'm on p. 10 and it's drawn me in already.

NOTE: I finished reading this book sometime in January 2013.
It was a wonderful read!

"An enthralling historical novel about a young woman's struggle to become a doctor during the Civil War." FROM: http://ww ...more

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Jun 06, 2011 Virginia rated it 5 of 5 stars

One of the best books I've read this year. The characters are so compelling they pull you into their lives without you even noticing. This is so much more that the story of a yound woman during the cival war who wants to become a doctor. The historic background is written in a tone that sinks you into the time period without feeling like a history lesson. The perfect book to curl up on a blanket under a tree and get lost in. I can't wait to read it again.

This has been my favorite win from Goodre...more

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Jul 15, 2010 Nicole rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: historical-fiction

My name is Mary Sutter is a book centered in Upstate New York and Washington during the civil war.
I am prefacing this review with the statement that I have read little Historical fiction to which romance was not a major factor in the story. This book is not one of those.
The book is extremely well written and I enjoyed the author’s style greatly. I learned a lot from the book and I learned to love both Mary and the other players in the story.
I could have done without the viewpoint of the Presi...more

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Mar 07, 2013 Darlene Matule rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Everyone.

Recommended to Darlene by: Sylvia Corbett

If you want to be mesmerized by a unique woman who follows her dream in spite of almost unbelievable odds, read, MY NAME IS MARY SUTTER, a landmark Civil War novel.

While rich in history regarding battles and politics, it also gives the reader a no-holds-barred view of the realities of medicine in the 1860’s. And, then there is Mary Sutton herself. With grit and determination, she evolves from a young mid-wife who wants to go to medical school but is denied admission, to a nurse who is more scul...more If you want to be mesmerized by a unique woman who follows her dream in spite of almost unbelievable odds, read, MY NAME IS MARY SUTTER, a landmark Civil War novel.

While rich in history regarding battles and politics, it also gives the reader a no-holds-barred view of the realities of medicine in the 1860’s. And, then there is Mary Sutton herself. With grit and determination, she evolves from a young mid-wife who wants to go to medical school but is denied admission, to a nurse who is more scullery maid than professional care giver, and, finally, into a battle-line surgeon. As a reader, you feel her frustration, her pain, her thwarted personal dreams, her agony at not being to “do it all.”

A few examples regarding Civil War medicine:

Disease control: Doctors had no idea about germs or bacteria. They operated without washing their hands, cleaned wounds on multiple patients with the same cloth, dipped in the same water.

Amputations: Most doctors had neither witnessed nor attempted one before. In one scene, Mary Sutter reads the directions for amputation as the doctor is performing the operation.

Pain Killers: Whiskey was almost the only anesthetic. Ether and chloroform had just been discovered but were in short supply.
Mortality: For every Civil War soldier that died of an injury or gunshot wound, more than two died from dysentery, diarrhea or other infectious diseases.
Author Robin Oliveira does not include the scope of Civil War battles as does Bruce Catton, but her “first person” presence on the battlefields immediately after the battle, ministering to the fallen soldiers, brings a sense of the horror of war to life. I’m glad I read his five Civil War books first. It gave me a good background of logistics, sequence and the details of battles. But Mary Sutter made the suffering real.

And through it all we see Mary—as a woman—a daughter—a sister—a friend. With Mary, her love is in her heart, not on her sleeve.

My Name is Mary Sutter (less)

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Apr 20, 2011 Barbara Lynn rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

My Name is Mary Sutter takes place during the Civil War and the main character is Mary Sutter, a young lady who wants to become a surgeon more than anything. She has plenty of experience as a midwife delivering babies, and in fact is regarded as the best in Albany, New York. She has applied to medical schools and been turned down only because she is a woman.

She determined, she is stubborn, and she is focused on one thing and that is becoming a surgeon. She is ambitious and unrelenting as she pur...more My Name is Mary Sutter takes place during the Civil War and the main character is Mary Sutter, a young lady who wants to become a surgeon more than anything. She has plenty of experience as a midwife delivering babies, and in fact is regarded as the best in Albany, New York. She has applied to medical schools and been turned down only because she is a woman.

She determined, she is stubborn, and she is focused on one thing and that is becoming a surgeon. She is ambitious and unrelenting as she pursues her goal.

As the story moves along, her brother and her sister’s husband join the Union forces to fight in the civil war for a 3 month period. Most people think this war will not last more than 3 months and parades are set up for the soldiers as they march off to war. Most of those who join are privileged enough that 3 months without pay will not bother them.

Mary is running from some demons of her own runs to Washington DC to work in the hospitals. She manages to get turned down by Dorthea Dix who is hiring nurses. She does manage to talk a Doctor Stipp into letting her work with him in the “worst hospital” in the city.

As we follow Mary through the Civil War, we learn of the medical practices of the day: there was no hand washing done between patients, diseases spread from one patient to the next, those who had serious injuries eventually died. The medical practices seemed to kill more soldiers than the actual war itself. Add to that there was no penicillin at that time to fight infections.

During all of this Mary’s mother keeps writing her letters begging her to come home because her sister is pregnant and Mary’s mother needs her to help with the delivery. Mary’s mother begs and begs until Mary finally goes home and shows up while the sister is actually delivering the baby.

Despite everything Mary gives it her all but she never loses sight of her goal. Even when Dr. Stipp tells her to go home but she refuses.

What I liked about this book is that at the end I learned something that I had no idea to even think about, the reader really comes away with new knowledge of the medical practices at the time. I give it 5 stars for its vivid picture of something we know very little of and the story from start to finish is about Mary and her goal.

I loved this book from the get go!

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Aug 25, 2012 Cindy rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: historical-fiction, medical, favorites

Very exciting novel about a gifted young midwife who longs to become a surgeon. Her passion leads her to the battlefields of the civil war where we have a most gripping and graphic account of the first time she assists at an amputation. No one knew anything about amputating legs or arms except what they had gleaned from a government-issued manual. English doctors were experienced with treating such injuries from the Crimean War, but this was not the case with the U.S.army. They hadn't even thoug...more

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Mar 17, 2012 Anna rated it 4 of 5 stars

This was one of those cases where I liked the subject matter and author's attention to detail a bit more than the plot and characters. The book delves deeply into medical knowledge and practices during the Civil War (as experienced by the protagonist, a young woman who wants to be a surgeon). It was fascinating to me what doctors and nurses did and did not know about disease, infection, etc. at that time; I can't imagine what it must have been like to work in such awful conditions!

I appreciated...more

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Jul 15, 2012 Linda Bouley rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: historical-background, love-story, family-relationships, medical-issues, personal-journey, war-stories

This was a fabulous book. Mary Sutter is a woman from an upper class family in Albany who, like her mother and other female ancestors before her, is a skilled midwife. Her work, though fulfilling is drawing her to learn more and become a surgeon, but in the time leading up to the civil war that option is not open for women. Mary presses on with her goal, meeting with doctors and medical schools only to be denied over and over. She commiserates with her neighbor, Thomas, and begins to feel stirri...more This was a fabulous book. Mary Sutter is a woman from an upper class family in Albany who, like her mother and other female ancestors before her, is a skilled midwife. Her work, though fulfilling is drawing her to learn more and become a surgeon, but in the time leading up to the civil war that option is not open for women. Mary presses on with her goal, meeting with doctors and medical schools only to be denied over and over. She commiserates with her neighbor, Thomas, and begins to feel stirrings of love for him, but finds herself unable to reveal herself and inadequate to comfort him when his parents are killed in an accident. Her twin sister, Jenny, the prettier one who is only interested in marriage and family gravitates to Thomas and as the war comes closer they marry, breaking Mary's heart. Thomas goes off to war along with Mary's beloved younger brother, Christian. Frustrated, Mary seeks out Dr. James Blevens to ask if he'll apprentice her, but he's headed off to the war. At last she discovers an ad by Dorothea Dix to go to Washington as a nurse and she leaves without telling Jenny or her mother, Amelia. The conditions in Washington are horrific and Dix wont take her on because she's too young, so she finally lands a job with Dr. William Stipp in a makeshift hospital set up in a crumbling old hotel. The story is rich with medical inadequacies of the time, the political situation and her growing relationships with Stipp and Blevens. The are interesting sections about Lincoln and his relationships and dealings with his generals and staff and also his family. Mary meets Lincoln's secretary, John Hay, and through him eventually meets Lincoln whom she asks for supplies to go into the field. This book is mostly about character...Mary is strong-willed, aggressive and clear about what she wants. There are many smaller stories about the two doctors and her family, but the thrust is her drive to become a doctor. You are with her all through the trials and heartbreak of her journey. I love, love loved it.(less)

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Jun 08, 2011 Katherine rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: civil war buffs, medical history buffs, romance readers who want some depth to the story

I did not win this as a giveaway but another reader who did passed it on to me. I think it deserves a review from me as well.

A young mid-wife from Albany wishes to study medicine but Albany Med will not consider her. A young Albany surgeon, who apprenticed to a doctor in Manhattan City and married a waif from the Five Points while ministering to her family, refuses to accept her as a student. He prefers to volunteer to serve in the Army being raised by Abraham Lincoln to preserve the Union. The...more I did not win this as a giveaway but another reader who did passed it on to me. I think it deserves a review from me as well.

A young mid-wife from Albany wishes to study medicine but Albany Med will not consider her. A young Albany surgeon, who apprenticed to a doctor in Manhattan City and married a waif from the Five Points while ministering to her family, refuses to accept her as a student. He prefers to volunteer to serve in the Army being raised by Abraham Lincoln to preserve the Union. The doctor under whom he studied, widowed, has been in the Army serving in Texas and has now been recalled to Washington. A young man, the mid-wife's neighbor whose parents have died in a carriage collision and who seemed attracted to her, has now become engaged to her more fragile, attractive twin. He, too, is to volunteer to serve for the three months it will take to subdue the South. Her brother, the youngest of the family signs up as well.

Heart-broken, her dreams seemingly unattainable, Mary Sutter leaves a note for her widowed mother and her sister and steals off to Washington on an early morning train. She is to present herself to Dorothea Dix and volunteer to nurse the wounded soldiers returning from the first battles. Even here she is rejected but finally is accepted by a surgeon in a broken down hovel of a place--the decrepit Union Hotel--now a hospital--not as a nurse but as a charwoman.

In some ways a romance, but more of a story of heart-break, grief, suffering, guilt, remorse, forgiveness and survival, My Name is Mary Sutter is an engrossing tale set against the back drop of war and its victims, treated with medical procedures and knowledge not far removed from the Middle Ages.

The story moves from 19th C. Albany, not much changed when I studied there in the mid '60's, to Washington, a dismal swamp of a place the conditions of which caused more death from illnesses of poor hygiene than wounds, to New York City. The description of train travel along the Hudson River Valley is exactly the same Amtrak route now in existence.

I've been to many of the battle sites described as well and the story of Antietam and its cornfield and sunken road and Burnside Bridge is heart rending. The barn where Clara Barton actually ran a hospital and provided medical supplies is still there though here is serves as the place where Mary Sutter finally decides to go home to Albany.

In the end, the war is over, the survivors move on with their lives and to some extent there is healing but the scars remain.

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May 16, 2011 Irene rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: have-a-copy

For those who thought that Gone with the Wind epitomized a fictional authoritative chronicle before and during the Civil War, in this tumultuous period of our own current history, it is clear that My Name is Mary Sutter, has commendably garnered a pinnacle in what this voracious generation desires to know.

In a magnificent debut novel, Robin Oliveria offers an unsurpassed entre into one woman’s unrelenting quest to ascend from mere acceptable midwifery to a 19th century avant-garde physician and...more

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Jun 23, 2011 Kimberly Morghan rated it 5 of 5 stars

Wow - what an intense book!! It's amazing how far medicine and women have come since the time period this book was set in (the Civil War). I really sympathized with the main character in this book - a woman midwife who wants to become a doctor in a time when the field is for men only. Her deep desire to learn and the difficulty she is having finding someone willing to train her are compelling. The book drops you right into the action with the call to war, a difficult birth, and her plea for the...more

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May 26, 2011 Toni rated it 4 of 5 stars

I think that this may be my favorite Civil war novel after Gone with the Wind. Mary is an inspiring and wonderfully wrought heroine.It is impeccably researched and has a perfect balance of "history" and "story".amazing how far medicine has come,how barbaric and primitive it was during the civil war. Who knows how far it can still go. It reiterated for me how war can never be the answer but that is personal and has nothing to do with the book so don't let that dissuade you from reading it. It is...more

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Mar 04, 2011 Rebekah rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

So far it is fabulous..... Ok so I just finished the book and really liked it alot. Gives the reader a real understanding of what it was like to serve in the army during the civil war; and also what it was like to be a woman seeking a career in the medical field. Great story of love, heart break, ambition, strength,and courage. I am so grateful for the men and women who lived before us and for their hopes, dreams, and courage to pursure them. This book is a historical fiction. Wonderful!

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May 20, 2011 Kathy rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Breastfeeding. Midwifery. Cabbage leaves. Challenging births. Civil war history. A young woman who wants more than anything else to become a surgeon. Dorothea Dix. Abraham Lincoln. Twin sisters in love with the same man. Need I say more? I'm on about chapter 9. I'm listening to it on books on tape.

1/3/2011 I now have 3 CDs left for this book, I'm on Chapter 40-something. Even my husband got mighty interested when we were listening several CDs worth on a long car drive to and from North Carolina...more

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Oct 01, 2012 Sarah rated it 4 of 5 stars

A great book...I loved everything about it but I am not sure I can count it among the best books I have ever read, so I am not giving it five stars. This is about a strong-willed, hardworking, passionate midwife who is desparate to become a doctor. Along comes the Civil War, which gives her her opportunity. Through the war, she works both in Washington DC and in the field as a nurse. She also works closely with two different doctors; both of whom she develops strong, close relationships. Despite...more

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Sep 25, 2011 Karen40000 rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Everyone

Recommended to Karen40000 by: I found it online

I really loved this book. I prefer historical fiction and this book had it all, history, love, triumph, a strong heroine. There were times when I thought the booked dragged, but when all was said and done It was a great read. I would recommend to any one who likes the civil war and a good strong female character.This novel was very discriptive and I felt it was rich with historial detail of what really went on behind the lines during the civil war. I have read that it compares to Cold Mountain b...more

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Jul 10, 2010 Audrey rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I really enjoyed this book because it gave great insight into the role of women during the time of the Civil War.She fights for the right to live her dream of becoming a surgeon and devotes all she has to nursing those battle damaged bodies.She refuses to give up,pursues her goals and risks her life to that end-a true unsung heroine.

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Feb 24, 2011 Ddgarcia1861 rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Excellent historical novel. A novel about the civil war from a woman's point of view. Can be graphic when it comes to medical and war scenes but realistic and historically accurate.

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Jun 27, 2010 Marialyce rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This novel was truly wonderful. Mary Sutter, the strong heroine, is a woman to be both admired and pitied. She wants a life she can not have and when she does follow her dream it becomes the nightmare of the Civil War. Robin Olivera has done a remarkable job of writing that is able to capture your imagination. In fact many of the war scenes described are not for the faint of heart. Mary succeeds not only as a surgeon in the end, but also as a woman who finally finds the peace and the love of a g...more

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Nov 06, 2011 Pam rated it 2 of 5 stars

This Civil War story was good for its historical information and insight about what it could have been like in the trenches of that war (there are some graphic scenes). The story centered around a young woman's quest to become a surgeon during this time. While her perseverance in pursuing her dreams against all odds was admirable, I needed more from her character in order to connect with her. And because of that, I didn't connect very well with the love story either. It is possible that a fan of...more

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May 22, 2011 Amy rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: won-it

I can't wait to start reading this win! Thanks firstreads giveaways! I really enjoyed this book. I can't turn down a story of a midwife! Robin Oliveira did her home work on this book, the amount of true history included is amazing. The story follows Mary through a good part of her life. I love the fact that she so badly wanted to do more. I learned where a lot of our research started for disease control. I will pass this on to some of my friends who are anxiously waiting to read this one. Thanks...more

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May 31, 2013 Nathalie S rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Elisabeth Petty, Miri Shorten, Natalie Gurr

I loved this book even though some parts of it are not for the faint of heart---graphic description of childbirth and amputation during the Civil War--fortunately, it was not a movie. Mary Sutter is a gifted midwife who has learned the art from her mother. But Mary wants more--she wants to become a surgeon. However, due to the times, she has been refused by all the medical schools because she is a mere woman. Mary wants to apprentice with Dr. James Blevens but he refuses her, even though another...more I loved this book even though some parts of it are not for the faint of heart---graphic description of childbirth and amputation during the Civil War--fortunately, it was not a movie. Mary Sutter is a gifted midwife who has learned the art from her mother. But Mary wants more--she wants to become a surgeon. However, due to the times, she has been refused by all the medical schools because she is a mere woman. Mary wants to apprentice with Dr. James Blevens but he refuses her, even though another doctor (who is part of the story later) gave him that same chance (sigh). Meanwhile, a Miss Dicks, inspired by Florence Nightingale's nursing work during the Crimean War, tries to organize a corps of women nurses to help out in the hospital in advance of the coming wave of injured soldiers. She has some very strict (unintentionally humorous) rules as to who can be a nurse--you have to be at least 30 year and be "plain", wear black or brown dresses, have no sort of curls or either remotely "alluring" features on your dress or person for example. The fear here is that wounded soldiers might fall prey to lovelier nurses and chaos would ensue. I would think that these poor men with limbs half blown off, suffering of fevers, infections, diarrhea, gangrene and the like would have other things on their minds, but there you are. Mary is refused by Miss Dicks on account of her age, not being quite plain enough and the fact that she is a midwife--no babies on the battlefield. Mary is willing to do anything to help out in the caring of wounded soldiers and ultimately in the pursuit of her goal to be a surgeon. She is finally accepted, albeit extremely reluctantly by Doctor William Stripp, recently returned from the southern medical battlefields--but he engages her only as a drudge and cleaner. Mary, having equal measure of stubborness and courage, takes on the tasks of cleaning bedpans, washing floors and soiled linens, even unplugging earth toilets but eventually, she does assist Dr. Stripp in surgery (because the men fled in horror!). There is also romance, with no less than 3 men, even though Mary is quote-unquote plain (rather refreshing to have a strong, caring, intelligent woman, being loved for something other than looks). Mary has a twin sister, Jenny, who is opposite of her and a younger brother, Christian who is eager to join in the fight of the Civil War. There is much love, despair, tragedy, heartrending choices to be made but there is also redemption and hope. I listened to this book on cd and reader Kimberly Farr did an amazing job bringing to book to life.(less)

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Apr 22, 2013 Wendy Lynn Brion rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I'm giving this book four stars only because I thought it ended way too soon and rather abruptly, almost as though the author ran out of steam or ideas, I'm not sure which. Otherwise, the book is excellent!

Mary Sutter is a young midwife in Albany, New York, on the eve of the Civil War. She is considered by many people, including her mother, who is also a midwife, to be the best midwife in New York, if not in the United States. But Mary wants more...she wants to be a surgeon, which is pretty much...more I'm giving this book four stars only because I thought it ended way too soon and rather abruptly, almost as though the author ran out of steam or ideas, I'm not sure which. Otherwise, the book is excellent!

Mary Sutter is a young midwife in Albany, New York, on the eve of the Civil War. She is considered by many people, including her mother, who is also a midwife, to be the best midwife in New York, if not in the United States. But Mary wants more...she wants to be a surgeon, which is pretty much unheard of at this period in history.

Mary perseveres, however, even to the point of leaving her home in New York to travel to Washington where the need for any kind of health care workers is dire and her determination carries he through the worst of times, grief, horror and exhaustion.

There are various "cameos" in this book, including President Lincoln, Dorthea Dix, Clara Barton and others, but it's not the impression some books give of, "Oh, hey, look who's here!" but a natural progression of who someone like Mary might encounter...a woman looking to be a nurse most likely would have eventually encountered both Dix and Barton at some point. And at that time, the president was more accessible to the average man or woman than now.

Oliveira goes into some detail on medical conditions of the time and how doctors and other health care providers understood so little of what they were doing. She describes amputations and also a couple of difficult births. There are long scenes of the brutal aftermath of battles, of men lying in rows in the hot sun with no one to care for them except one or two brave souls doing as much as they can.

The book only takes you up to the battle of Antietam as far as the war is concerned. In a way that was a disappointment, I had hoped the book would follow through the entire war in some way. While the rest of the eastern theater of the was was touched on, there was an abruptness to the ending that didn't satisfy. Especially the epilogue, which seemed to have been an afterthought ending.

Overall, though, I would recommend this book. It is well written and gives the reader an idea of the life of a midwife, and of a woman wanting more than the role traditionally ascribed to her.

Additionally, there is very little strong language (I think I counted three or four words stronger than "damn") and no sex...which in this day and age is a rarity. :)(less)

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Mar 17, 2013 Amy rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I like books about the civil war. period. so i picked this one up in a tiny little bookshop in Vicksburg Mississippi, where there wasn't much else going on. The descriptions are great - of the cities, how they traveled, and the medicine - especially the medicine. Robin Oliveira did her research and from having babies to cutting off limps the descriptions are so precise you feel like a doctor by the time you finish the book. What struck me as odd once I finished was that there was not one black p...more

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Nov 29, 2012 Adelaide Mackenzie Fuss rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Dreary! Why does she really want to be a doctor? Because she had a start as a midwife? This question is never truly answered. The joy of medicine and the deep intrigue of the most amazing machine on the planet, the human body, is never examined. From the perspective of this novel, medicine is the worst occupation possible. This is the author's slant on it. Dark book. The soul of a physician is NOT examined. Mary Sutter is purely ambitious for no other reason other than she has skills and few rom...more

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May 16, 2012 Sue rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: historical-fiction, medicine

An interesting, but not riveting, story of a 19th century midwife who aspires to be a surgeon. In an era that severely frowned upon women as doctors, Mary is, nevertheless, granted the opportunity to become one by the exigencies and terror of war. Personally, I found a brief scene with Abraham Lincoln struggling alone with his conscience unnecessary to this story but a scene of childbirth-gone-bad not only necessary to it but absolutely gripping -- to the point that I noticed my own breathing ha...more

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May 05, 2012 Emily Walker rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This book is about a midwife in the 1860s who want to be a surgeon, but the field is entirely closed to women. The Civil War breaks out, and she ends up being a surgeon-in-training along under the instruction of two men who reluctantly teach her war surgery, all the while shocked and appalled but impressed that a woman would want to such wretched work as sawing off soldier's legs.

I never really connected with Mary's character, or really any character in the book. But the surgery scenes were gru...more

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About Robin Oliveira

Robin Oliveira grew up just outside Albany, New York in Loudonville. She holds a B.A. in Russian, and studied at the Pushkin Language Institute in Moscow, Russia. She is also a Registered Nurse, specializing in Critical Care and Bone Marrow Transplant. She received an M.F.A. in Writing from Vermont College of Fine Arts and is the fiction editor for the literary magazine upstreet and a former assis...more

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“In some ways I liked the struggle better, I think. It clarified what was important.” — 13 people liked it

“For all the things we say to our children for their own good, very little good ever comes of it.” — 3 people liked it

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