Ariel Lawhon describes well the stages of the River from its initial freezing in November, to when the river was frozen solid, to its initial thaw, and its final melting, which allowed the water wheel to turn. These phases of the river mark the passage of time in this thoroughly engaging story.
I liked it, but……I agree with other comments about the vernacular not fitting the time. I also had issue with the fact that this book was inspired by history, rather than being based on it, which the author clearly admits. Martha’s diaries really didn’t contain much information , and her character was highly fictionalized, as opposed to historical fiction that provides facts with fictionalized dialogue or other characters to fill in the blanks. I found it a good read for the mystery , but light on the historical aspect. And I found her husband and their relationship too good to be true. 
I own that one (The Midwife’s Tale). It is buried in a TBR pile somewhere in my house. Will Have to dig it out and read it.
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Enjoy when you read it. I am sure it is quite good.
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I loved this book! I actually read parts of a Midwife’s Tale many years ago. It was very dry, and I never finished it, but I was aware that Martha Ballard was a real person, and that journals from that time by women was very rare indeed. I was therefore fascinated with the idea of this book. I especially liked the depiction of the struggles women had during that period, not totally dissimilar to the present. The author’s descriptions of the town, society, and nature were eye opening. And as others have mentioned. I loved that Martha was written as such a strong and smart character. Her relationship with animals was compassionate, more so that might be realistic for the period. I highly recommend this book, but would warn anyone with delicate sensibilities that there are some graphic descriptions of birth and violence.
I enjoyed the book and think she tells a good story. I’m glad that she included author notes that explained how she crafted the novel. I don’t know much about Maine and I like to learn about new places. I think that the author could have expanded a bit more about the river that was central to the story in so many ways. I also thought that cleanliness and sanitation would have been much more difficult during this time period than is presented in the book. There always seemed to be fresh water, hot fires and clean clothes and bedding.
I recognized the cover and realized that I have in my TBR stack! I immersed pulled it out to read soon.
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Thank you for the information above the PBS film. I immensely put it on my Prime watchlist.
The Frozen River was a five-star read for me. Martha was a woman ahead of her time, in her medical skills, her literacy, and her opinions. I think because of her required testimony in some cases, she developed an important ability to speak truth to power. I also loved the relationship she had with her husband Ephraim.
This will be one of my favorite books. Martha Ballard is such a strong woman and to have kept a diary documenting her life delivering babies, her day to day life, the court system of the day and her family life gives a picture of the hardship of that time. Her relationship with her husband was loving and he seemed to admire her abilities. Just the fact that she could read and write wasn’t rhe norm for the time.
I truly enjoyed this novel. This was my first time reading this author. I would recommend this book to others and look forward to reading it with my book club in the future.
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I was upset by what the author did to this lovely person. Martha Ballard was a real person who was a midwife who delivered over 800 babies. She kept a diary of her life, yet Ariel Lawhon fabricated her life and strayed pretty far from reality. Even for shock value!!. Probably to get movie rites. The good thing is she revealed how women had little say in a court of law and that many rapes went unprosecuted in the late 1700’s in Massuchusetts.
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So interesting to read the comments about this book. Literature, like any art, is highly subjective, but I am always curious when there are so many great reviews of a book that I was ultimately not that crazy about. With this one, I see many people admiring and lauding the very fact that made it disappointing for me! That is the fact that this book was mostly fiction, influenced by a scant diary left by a real person, which was admittedly hard to even decipher. So interesting! Different view points are what makes a book discussion interesting, and I’ve enjoyed reading the different ones here.
I enjoyed it very much
This was a winner for me. Strong historical fiction with fully developed characters. I enjoyed learning about Martha Ballard. My book club had a great discussion about women, medicine and the difficulties of life at that time.