Call the Midwife

A Memoir of Birth, Joy, and Hard Times

By: Jennifer Worth

Narrated by: Nicola Barber

Length: 12 hrs and 1 min

Publisher's summary

Audie Award Nominee, Solo Narration - Female, 2013

At the age of 22, Jennifer Worth left her comfortable home to move into a convent and become a midwife in postwar London’s East End slums. The colorful characters she met while delivering babies all over London - from the plucky, warm-hearted nuns with whom she lived to the woman with 24 children who couldn't speak English to the prostitutes and dockers of the city’s seedier side - illuminate a fascinating time in history. Beautifully written and utterly moving, Call the Midwife will touch the hearts of anyone who is, and everyone who has, a mother.

©2002 Jennifer Worth (P)2012 HighBridge Company

Critic reviews

"A charming tale of deliveries and deliverance." ( Kirkus Reviews)

Beautiful

Beautiful, entertaining and insightful into a time of the beginnings of midwifery. Can't wait to continue with the rest of the series!

Easy listening in book form

Jennifer Worth is an incredible raconteur; she tells her stories of real people and real situations, and weaves them all together until the listener is completely engaged. I have listened to hundreds of Audible books, but this one, with a wonderfully intricate story, and the incredibly talented Nicola Barber narrating, kept me spellbound. I am utterly delighted that there are two more books in this series! Highly recommend!!

Beautifully narrated

As a nurse myself, I really enjoyed this book and listening to the stories of midwifery in the 1950s in London. However, in regards to this book in its audible form, it is superbly narrated. Nicola wonderfully narrates in various accents and voices to where it was that much more enjoyable. I tried reading this on my kindle, but found I enjoyed the audible format better! Very well done.

Wonderful novel

I was quickly transported to the time and place if this novel. I felt like I received and inside view of midwifery. The narrator did a magnificent job.

One of the best audiobooks I've read!

I loved this book!
Excellent story, fantastic narration. I couldn't stop reading it.
Very vivid descriptions of London in the 50s and surprisingly fascinating historical information about medical history.
I've seen the tv series and am impressed with how true to the stories the show is.
Highly recommend.

Interesting stories of a midwife in the 50s

The stories were compelling. Characters interesting. Narration was good too. Interesting look at life at the period right after wwii. Worth a listen

Call the Midwife

What made the experience of listening to Call the Midwife the most enjoyable?

I enjoyed hearing about London during the 50s and what the medical technology was at that time. I also enjoyed learning about the nuns.

How would you have changed the story to make it more enjoyable?

The book seemed more like a collection of stories rather than a cohesive memoir. I was expecting it to be a little bit more linear. It seemed that each chapter was a short story about her time as a midwife. It made the story seem a bit detached and choppy.

What about Nicola Barber’s performance did you like?

I enjoyed Nicola Barber's narration but sometimes she was difficult to hear. She had a soothing voice which was nice, but listening to it in the car made it difficult to hear everything she was saying.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

I enjoyed hearing all of the stories about the high-risk births. It was interesting to hear how they used to deliver babies. I also enjoyed the chapters that went in depth about a mother and her family (e.g. Mary, Conchita, etc.).

Any additional comments?

This book was informative and entertaining. I would recommend it to anyone interested in midwifery in the 1950s or anyone with an interest in London in the 1950s.

Great story but terrible narration.

The narrator was terribly directed and often used a soft whispery voice which was irritating and required frequent volume adjustment.

The book itself is excellent. The author recalls many vignettes from her training as a midwife. Some are humorous, some heartbreaking, some heartwarming, and some suspenseful. Not all are medical. Some involve people she knew. Subjects include love, poverty, prostitution, illegal abortion, race relations, and unethical adoption. It was fascinating to learn about London slums in the 1950s.

There are some explicit scenes when she writes of a story involving prostitution, so only mature teens and adults should read the book.

Special Experience

I tend to shy away from books with women readers (even though I am a 70 year old female) only because most don't seem to have the versatility as the best of the male readers. That was before I listened to this book read by Nicola Barber. That is not to take anything away from the author because even the best reader cannot salvage a poorly written book. I am pushing my husband to listen to a book about a midwife! There can be no higher recommendation.

Beautiful voice for a beautifully written book!

One of my favorite audio books ever! Love Nicola Baber's voice. Love this book full of love and passion.