Looking for Jane
A Novel
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4.4 • 112 Ratings
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- $13.99
Publisher Description
This “clever and satisfying” (Associated Press) #1 international bestseller for fans of Kristin Hannah and Jennifer Chiaverini follows three women who are bound together by a long-lost letter, a mother’s love, and a secret network of women fighting for the right to choose—inspired by true stories.
2017: When Angela Creighton discovers a mysterious letter containing a life-shattering confession, she is determined to find the intended recipient. Her search takes her back to the 1970s when a group of daring women operated an illegal underground abortion network in Toronto known only by its whispered code name: Jane.
1971: As a teenager, Dr. Evelyn Taylor was sent to a home for “fallen” women where she was forced to give up her baby for adoption—a trauma she has never recovered from. Despite the constant threat of arrest, she joins the Jane Network as an abortion provider, determined to give other women the choice she never had.
1980: After discovering a shocking secret about her family, twenty-year-old Nancy Mitchell begins to question everything she has ever known. When she unexpectedly becomes pregnant, she feels like she has no one to turn to for help. Grappling with her decision, she locates “Jane” and finds a place of her own alongside Dr. Taylor within the network’s ranks, but she can never escape the lies that haunt her.
Looking for Jane is “a searing, important, beautifully written novel about the choices we all make and where they lead us—as well as a wise and timely reminder of the difficult road women had to walk not so long ago” (Kristin Harmel, New York Times bestselling author).
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Marshall's sweeping debut follows series of Canadian women in their struggles for reproductive autonomy. In a Toronto antique store in 2017, Angela Creighton, who's suffered a second miscarriage, discovers an undelivered letter addressed to Nancy Mitchell. It was written by Nancy's mother, Frances, who confesses as she's dying that in 1961 Nancy had been adopted from St. Agnes's Home for Unwed Mothers. As an adoptee connected with her own birth mother, Angela decides to track Nancy down and pass along the information. Marshall then moves back to 1979, when Nancy, a college student, helps her cousin obtain an illegal abortion. Only after her cousin nearly dies does Nancy learn about the underground abortion access network called Jane. Two years later, Nancy requires Jane's services for herself, and she believes so strongly in Jane's mission that she volunteers as an organizer until abortion is legalized in 1988, work she keeps secret—along with her own termination—from her new husband. Marshall vividly brings to life the dangers involved with operating Jane and the cruelty of the nuns running St. Agnes's, where Evelyn was forced to give up her baby. It's a page-turner that unfortunately falters with an unnecessary, gimmicky twist involving two of the women. Still, readers will be moved by the courage and thoughtfulness with which these characters face their dilemmas.
Customer Reviews
Wow!
A wonderful descriptive novel dealing with political and social issues that women had to and still have to fight for and against in the past to this day. I hope one day I and women like me are free to make our own decisions about our bodies without interference from the government and churches.
A crucial read for woman
Outstanding! The best book I’ve read this year. It’s particularly relevant during our current political environment.
Riveting
All women (and men) should read this book and learn the terrifying things that happen to women who for whatever reason do not want to be pregnant. It should always be the woman’s choice. It is HER body.