The Memory Keeper's Daughter

Books | Fiction / Women

3.9

(818)

Kim Edwards

A #1 New York Times bestseller by Kim Edwards, The Memory Keeper’s Daughter is a brilliantly crafted novel of parallel lives, familial secrets, and the redemptive power of loveKim Edwards’s stunning novel begins on a winter night in 1964 in Lexington, Kentucky, when a blizzard forces Dr. David Henry to deliver his own twins. His son, born first, is perfectly healthy, but the doctor immediately recognizes that his daughter has Down syndrome. Rationalizing it as a need to protect Norah, his wife, he makes a split second decision that will alter all of their lives forever. He asks his nurse, Caroline, to take the baby away to an institution and never to reveal the secret. Instead, she disappears into another city to raise the child herself. So begins this beautifully told story that unfolds over a quarter of a century—in which these two families, ignorant of each other, are yet bound by the fateful decision made that winter night long ago.A family drama, The Memory Keeper’s Daughter explores every mother's silent fear: What would happen if you lost your child and she grew up without you? It is also an astonishing tale of love and how the mysterious ties that hold a family together help us survive the heartache that occurs when long-buried secrets are finally uncovered.

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More Details:

Author

Kim Edwards

Pages

448

Publisher

Penguin

Published Date

2006-05-30

ISBN

0143037145 9780143037149

Ratings

Google: 3.5

Community ReviewsSee all

"⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️"

Jacquelynne AB

"This book was a tragic poem. Beautifully written and makes you think long after you have read it"

Jayeeta Ray

"This one tugged at my heart strings. A story of self-conflict and 'what-if'. "

Emily Richard

"I thought this book was terrible. I had a few problems with this book, from the characters to the detail. The characters were poorly developed and many of them added no value to the story by their presence. There was no growth in any of the characters. Nora was spine-less, lush after the first two chapters to the last page. Their son was a boring as a character could possibly be. David was selfish and made no effort to solve his family problems, which just leads the reader to unending frustration with his character. There was also insanely, unnecessary detail through out the whole book. I am all about a flash back, but the ones that David had through out the book were pointless and too long. By the time the flash back was over, I had forgotten where I was before the flashback. Finally, there was no lead up to events. SPOILER TO FOLLOW...the death in the book. There was no lead up, nothing followed, it was strange. All the sudden boom, boom, boom...dead. 1 line, that was it. One of your main characters dies and all you have to say is one line. Everybody I talked to said this book was great. They couldn't put it down. It was a page turner. It was sad. The only sad part about it was when the baby was given away. I don't recommend this, it was a waste of time and still frustrates me."

Marissa Dodgen

"It's would say no. It's a very detailed book. It was good, though."

Abby Lake

"I loved this book the author really focused on adding tiny details and knows how to immerse the reader in every chapter. Such a great book that hits your emotions so intensely throughout the whole book highly recommend. "