Oh, Baby!

Judy Baer's latest Steeple Hill Cafe story frequently refers to Proverbs 13:12 "Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but when dreams come true it brings life and joy." The plot and subplots carry out the theme of "hope deferred." Molly, the heroine, dreams of seeing a doula (professional birthing coach) center at Bradshaw Hospital. Dr. Clay Reynolds, an influential obstetrician there does not respect her profession and in fact, feels it is dangerous to have too many nonmedical people in the delivery room. Molly's brother and best friend Lissy have been "unlucky in love" and are tired of waiting to find the right person. Tony, another friend is worried about his sister, who is depressed because she and her husband are having infertility issues. Even the hero's young son, Noah, keeps being told 'no' every time he asks for a dog. By the end of the book, hope has been deferred long enough and everyone's dreams come true, including Noah's, although not necessarily in the way the dreamers would have foreseen. Molly learns to trust God's timing rather than her own. As usual, Judy Baer gives us a colorful, well developed cast of characters, both human and animal. Molly's family is delightfully offbeat and Geranium the diva pig was very funny. My favorite character was Dr. Clay Reynolds, who as a doctor is strong, commanding and totally focused on caring for his patients. But when Molly gets to know him outside of work, she discovers another side of him. Clay is also still grieving the double loss of his wife and his faith and overcome with loneliness. He even refers to it as his 'default emotion.' While he opposes her profession, he can't help but be drawn to Molly, who is filled with life and surrounded by friends and family. Whenever they meet outside of work their relationship takes a step forward. Unfortunately, at work it takes two steps back. This is a great book if you like a story that makes you laugh and yet leaves you with a little bit to think about.

Judy is one of my favorite authors and this book is true to her great writting form. Her pets are hilarious and the plot was good. Worth the read!

Molly Cassidy, a doula by profession, is a woman that most women want with them when they are going through the pregnancy and delivery process. And it is not just the women, but some of the husbands also believe that she is God-send. Doulas are birthing coaches, professionals who help pregnant women in whichever way possible. However, there is one man who despises having Molly or any other unprofessional personal in the delivery room: Dr. Clay Reynolds, the obstetrician at Bradshaw Medical Centre. Even though Dr. Reynolds has just moved back from California, he already has a strong practice at Bradshaw and most of Molly's clients have him as their doctor. Being the grandson of the man who started the hospital, Dr. Reynolds has a lot of clout in the decisions that the hospital board makes. This makes Molly's dream of having a doula centre at Bradshaw as unlikely as the sky turning green! Maybe with a little help from God, Molly can convince him that her profession is not so bad. I really enjoyed this book. Before reading Oh Baby! I was not even aware that there were professionals known as doula whose sole purpose was to make the pregnant woman as comfortable as possible. The friction between Molly and Dr. Reynolds seems real and spicy. The readers do not exactly know why he is so against Molly and her profession, adding a bit of mystery to the novel and keeping the readers' interest. With quirky characters and pets (a pot-bellied pig known as Germanium), Judy Baer continues her trademark writing as she delivers yet another entertaining and poignant novel. Armchair Interviews says: This book is highly recommended!

In the Twin Cities, doula birthing coach Molly Cassidy is in high demand by pregnant women and their mates. Most will say it is because of her caring personality that makes her a popular health provider. Obstetrician Dr. Clay Reynolds has just moved to town three months ago from California and already has a strong practice at the Bradshaw medical Center. However, when he hears all the females and many of the men swear by Molly, he is outraged. He does not believe a non-medically trained person should be offering assistance to women. Clay admits to himself he is attracted to Molly, who shares his feelings. However, their dispute over the role of a doula coaching pregnant women threatens to end their relationship before it begins. This is an engaging contemporary romance that focuses on two people adamantly disagreeing over the merits of a doula birth coach. The story line is fun to follow, but perhaps a bit too long as the prime debate loses some of its argumentative freshness to redundancy. Still with two fully developed caring people falling in love while arguing health care advice provided by a non-professional makes for an interesting look at what is acceptable health care at a time when costs are skyrocketing and American's infant mortality rate is worse than that of Cuba. Harriet Klausner