The Thursday night book club read ” Looking for Jane” by Canadian first time author Heather Marshall. The book is based on the real Jane Collective, an underground network of courageous individuals who provided safe abortions in the late 60’s, 70’s and 80’s in Canada. Marshall says it is really a book about motherhood.-” a story that has a solid foundation in the historical facts surrounding underground abortion networks, the post war era maternity homes system and forced adoption mandate in Canada. The story is told through the eyes of three fictional women whose experiences come from 2017,1971 and 1980.
This book puts a very personal and sometimes very emotional face on the relationships between mothers and daughters, motherhood itself and the struggle for “the right to choose.” It brings the advocacy of so many women in events such as the 1970 Abortion Caravan, the clinic raids and the support for Dr. Morgentaler to life. The book group found it well-written, informative and emotional. The discussion was thoughtful. Given the situation in the USA today it is also very topical. This is a piece of Canadiana worth remembering. As usually happens in our group the discussion broadened into other0 issues of the day!
