The Midwife's Apprentice

By: Karen Cushman

Narrated by: Charlotte Coleman

On a frosty morning sometime in the fourteenth century, in a village somewhere in England, a gift known only as Brat was sleeping in a dung heap.

"You, girl. Are you alive or dead?"

When she opened her eyes, she saw an important-looking woman with a sharp glance and a sharp nose and a wimple starched into sharp pleats. This woman was Jane the Midwife, and she needed a helper...

The Midwife's Apprentice by the author of Catherine, Called Birdy

Thus begins the funny, wise, compassionate story of the homeless waif who became the midwife's apprentice -- a person with a name and a place in the world.

This Newbery Honor-winning story, complete with an epilogue read by the author, and an extensive author interview, conducted by a young "fan," will usher young listeners into the middle of the fourteenth century.

This version is abridged.

This is an abridged version of the text but is not marked as such. I was using as a read aloud for my middle school literature class and it skipped whole paragraphs! Frustrating!