A friend lent me this, at the time I dipped in and out of it, but didn't read it through, but we're going to see the friend in a week so I thought I should either read it or not read it, but definitely return it.

It's a collection of 10 essays, loosely tied together on the theme of miscarriage, but surprisingly wide ranging in their style and subjects

Part I of the book is 'ethnographies' - anthropological essays, of developing world tribes who blamed ghosts / bad spirits / witches etc. Northern India with the 'hot' and 'cold' bad/good food distinctions, Jamaca with rape by spirit ghosts (duppies), set on by obeah, Papua New Guinea with the ceremonial yams and wala, nature spirits, Tanzinia, with the gourd that pregnant women have to carry, Cameroon, where sex with a man who was not the father leads to pregnancy loss, or not having given the right gifts to the right people at marriage, goat sacrifice...

Part II I found much more interesting, or at least easier to engage with:

A mostly-biological essay on how likely you are to miscarry at certain points of pregnancy, and the known possible causes, with some interesting musings about how the perceived incidence of miscarriage has increased now we have very early and accurate pregnancy tests, and scans and images of foetuses looking very human.

An essay comparing the grieving after miscarriage, and use of themes of nature and loss of innocence, to the grieving after the Great War, which didn't get very far with its thesis but was a close description of response to baby loss in modern America. Notable for very trite but heartfelt poems. Interesting descriptions of how modern medicine is sold as having miracle cures for most things, but actually is mostly powerless in all of this.

An essay on South African experiences of miscarriage, which was trying to look for racial differences but was a study of about 100 people from about 5 races, so didn't really have a lot of power. A useful map of how people were treated compared to how people would like to be treated, with a list of what they got compared to what said they needed, on topics like what would physically happen, when to try again etc.

An essay on baby loss in Ireland in the 1950s. This was notable for the blend of sadness and stoicism, the absence of medical care, the loneliness of children buried outside the churchyard and with no wakes. Hidden women's lives, passing away from the world even as we speak. Very personal memories, never really shared or talked about.

An essay that really felt entirely out of place in the rest of the book - about women suspected of infanticide, claiming miscarriage - but was probably the most fascinating one of all of them. The horrific situations these poor and desperate women were in were heartbreaking, an entirely hidden part of history I knew nothing about, but all documented in the court proceedings of the time. There was so much shame and punishment around illegitimate children, any woman concealing the death of a bastard child was presumed to have murdered it unless it could be proved it was born alive. It was a really odd and unfortunate essay to end on, but fascinating none the less.

I don't read a lot of non fiction, but when I finally read this it was an interesting and surprisingly quick read. ( )