A Country Doctor

In a small Maine town in the 19th Century, a young woman fights her way through a stormy night to her childhood home with her own child in her arms. A few hours later she dies, leaving her little girl in her own mother's care and with strict instructions that her husband's family must not get custody. Instead she names the little town's doctor to be her daughter's guardian, if the grandmother does not live to raise the child to womanhood. The little girl, Anna "Nan" Prince, grows up with one goal in mind: she wants to become a doctor, too. Not only in imitation of the lonely man who comes to love her as his own child, but because she believes this is both what nature has fitted her to do and what God intends as her life's mission. Nan's unusual choice of vocation naturally meets tests, none of which she finds it difficult to overcome until - as a medical school graduate, a woman in her 20s - she finally decides to visit her father's family. Faced with the life she might have had, that of a wealthy man's heir in a town where she finds both loving relatives and new friends, she finds herself considering what her new-found family very much wants her to do: give up her dream, and become the wife and mother her society expects every woman to become. This is amazingly modern story. It moves at a leisurely pace, but no scene is wasted. Jewett goes out of her way to make sure the reader understands that neither she nor her heroine contests the wisdom of the era, that most women certainly do belong "at home" and will be happiest there. I would assume she meant this to help that reader better accept her presentation of Nan Prince as a normal, lovable, sane and feminine female who just happens to be gifted for the practice of medicine. I found both Nan and her story thoroughly enjoyable. So much has changed since Jewett wrote and published this book - but so much has not, too! --Reviewed by Nina M. Osier, author of GRANITE ISLAND

This little book gives us insight into the New England culture of the late 1800's and what it was like to grow up as a girl in a small town. Having lived in recent years in the very town of the authoress, I found it authentic in the characterization of the community she described. She portrayed the simplicity of New England living and their penchant for using words sparingly. The inspiration came from tidbits of philosophy for the development of the strength of character to overcome the expectation for one's role in life in a way that was not confrontational, but realistically the right thing to do. This little book reminds us that character and manners can make life much more pleasureable.

What an enjoyable book! As a 19th century novel,it's slow paced enough to reflect upon the value of one's life and work.The young heroine's plan to study medicine is unaccepted by many people, but Nan is determined. She is lucky to have the backing of her guardian, himself a doctor. His thoughts about and support of her decision are very progressive for the time, and heart-warming. Nan's choice is challenged when she meets an attractive young man. The mores of the time demand that she choose between marriage and a profession. The weight that a profession carried at that time made it more a vocation than simply a job. A person chose seriously, his/her future as her life-long identity and contribution to humanity. This novel was thought producing,and its perspective interesting - I recommend it.