The Pull of the Stars

The Pull of the Stars is a story about the effects of the 1918 Spanish Flu pandemic through the eyes of a Dublin maternity ward nurse and was written by Irish Canadian author Emma Donoghue before the Covid-19 pandemic hit. Talk about prescient writing! 

Once again, Donoghue's writing is strong and descriptive, and I enjoyed the depth to the historical elements she includes which allows readers to see similarities between how the Spanish Flu and Covid-19 have been handled. But it was her descriptions of the stark realities of what life was like for women in the early 20th century that hit me the hardest. Their lack of rights and the abuse, poverty and social condemnation of poorer women in particular was, at times, emotional for me. I will definitely be recommending this book to my history loving mom who is a retired Labour and Delivery nurse.

This is a slow burn kind of read with a very narrow, almost insular feel. It follows maternity nurse Julia, her uneducated volunteer Birdie, and Dr. Kathleen Lynn over three days as they work tirelessly in a perilously understaffed hospital's special maternity ward for women who have contracted the virus. Although this is a work of fiction, I enjoyed how Donoghue included real-life historical figure Doctor Lynn who was a fascinating woman who was ahead of her time yet restricted due to her gender and the stranglehold the Catholic church had on Ireland.

It is evident that Donoghue spent copious amounts of time researching the Spanish Flu, its effects in Dublin as well as various medical procedures, complications, and birthing practices of the time. She is unflinching as she details how a variety of women from different walks of life endure the birthing process. As a mom of three I didn't feel these scenes were over the top, but they could be a bit much for the squeamish. Unfortunately, I thought the plot itself felt thin (and I'm never a fan of no quotation marks for dialogue). With so much focus on historical facts it almost had a historical documentary feel to it, with page time devoted more to medical procedures than on developing the characters and their relationships, particularly the romance which was sweet but rushed. 

Gothic in tone with a haunting feel, this is a timely read that will give readers much to think about, especially given our current state as Covid-19 continues to pummel the world. Sadly, we haven't come as far as we'd like to think. It is these similarities, Donoghue's honest descriptions of birth and the limitations put upon women that kept me turning the pages.

My Rating: 3.5 stars

Author: Emma Donoghue

Genre: Historical Fiction, Canadian

Type and Source: Hardcover from public library

Pages: 304

Publisher: Picador

First Published: July 23, 2020

Opening Lines: Still hours of dark to go when I 

left the house that morning.

Book Description from GoodReads: Dublin, 1918: three days in a maternity ward at the height of the Great Flu. A small world of work, risk, death and unlooked-for love, by the bestselling author of The Wonder and ROOM.

In an Ireland doubly ravaged by war and disease, Nurse Julia Power works at an understaffed hospital in the city center, where expectant mothers who have come down with the terrible new Flu are quarantined together. Into Julia’s regimented world step two outsiders—Doctor Kathleen Lynn, on the run from the police, and a young volunteer helper, Bridie Sweeney.

In the darkness and intensity of this tiny ward, over three days, these women change each other’s lives in unexpected ways. They lose patients to this baffling pandemic, but they also shepherd new life into a fearful world. With tireless tenderness and humanity, carers and mothers alike somehow do their impossible work.

In The Pull of the Stars, Emma Donoghue once again finds the light in the darkness in this new classic of hope and survival against all odds.