A review by jaynecm
The Pull of the Stars by Emma Donoghue

4.0

Set in Dublin during the 1918 flu epidemic, the story is told over three days in the quarantined maternity ward by Nurse Power who is unexpectedly left in charge of the ward. With cases skyrocketing and staff and resources dwindling, Nurse Power must do what she can to care for her patients.
If you do not care for detailed medical descriptions of all kinds - births, autopsies, flu, deaths - it would be best to avoid this book as the author conceals nothing. The workings of the ward are laid bare for the reader to absorb in all its horror but also all its compassion. 
A riveting, heart breaking story, told in a no nonsense manner which makes it all the more heartrending. 
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