| On a snowy night Norah Henry goes into labor. Unable to make it to the hospital, her husband Dr. David Henry takes her to his own local medical clinic where Norah's doctor and a nurse, Caroline, are to meet them. Unforeseen events force David Henry to deliver his own child. A baby boy is born first and then a second child is delivered. Dr. Henry realizes at once that this second baby, a girl, has Down's Syndrome. As Norah lay unconscious, David quietly hands the baby girl over to the nurse and instructs her to take the baby to a home outside the city and leave her.
Caroline Gill is devastated by Dr. Henry's instructions. Upon arriving at the home, she is unable to leave her precious bundle feeling it is no place for a child. She slips away into the snowy night sure that Dr. Henry will come to his senses and want the baby back. Days later Caroline reads the announcement in the newspaper for baby girl Phoebe Henry's funeral service. Caroline leaves the city and her previous life behind to raise this child on her own. Norah Henry grieves the loss of her twin baby girl while trying to be a mother to her son Paul. David Henry lives in his own world of guilt not knowing if his decision was right or wrong and how can he ever tell his family what he has done. | ||
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Plot & Themes Tone of book? - depressed Time/era of story - 1960's-1970's Internal struggle/realization? Yes Is this an adult or child's book? - Adult or Young Adult Book Pregnancy/Child rearing Yes Major part of story: Coping with loss of loved one(s) Yes Loss of... Main Character Gender - Male Profession/status: Age: - 20's-30's Ethnicity/Nationality Main Adversary Identity: - Female Age: - 20's-30's Profession/status: How sensitive is this character? Sense of humor - Mostly serious with occasional humor Intelligence - Smarter than most other characters Setting How much descriptions of surroundings? - 8 () City? Yes City: - dirty, grimy (like New York) - wealthy Small town? Yes Writing Style Sex in book? Yes What kind of sex: - vague references only Amount of dialog - roughly even amounts of descript and dialog |
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