The Memory Keeper's Daughter

My close friend gave birth to a Down's Syndrome boy in the late 1960's, and she and her husband raised and educated their son to become a productive member of society. The book The Memory Keeper's Daughter which deals this topic is a mesmerizing story about the lives of two families and the devastating secret that shapes them both.

It's 1964, and Dr. David Henry delivers his wife's baby at his clinic because they were unable to get to the hospital due to a snow storm. After their son Paul is born, his wife Norah gives birth to a baby girl who shows signs of Down's Syndrome. David hands his daughter over to his nurse Caroline with the address of a home to which he wants her taken. Then he tells his wife that their daughter died as she was born.

Caroline takes the baby to the institution but cannot bear to leave her there. She makes the decision to keep and raise the baby as her own. The author explores the mysteries of grief and love, and the power of truth to shatter and to heal.

Reading this book made me realize how much joy and love that Shawn (my friend's son) has brought to their lives.

Valerie O.