THE GARDEN

After suffering several miscarriages, Irene Willard, now pregnant again in 1948, finds herself at a home/institution for expectant mothers who have had difficulties with pregnancy. Narrator Carlotta Brentan's slight, scratchy voice fits the fragile condition of the women. She provides lower pitched voices for the male characters when they do appear in this largely female-centered book. As the doctors on site seek to cure the women, though through questionable means, the women find a walled garden on the grounds that promises its own magical cures. Brentan's leisurely pacing is appropriate for a psychological exploration of these women's experience of pregnancy and the slow days spent at the home. S.E.G. © AudioFile 2024, Portland, Maine [Published: OCTOBER 2024]