Eleven Hours

"Lore Tannenbaum has brought an elaborate birth plan to the hospital, several pages long, single-spaced and with lots of bullet points. Franckline, the nurse who will guide her through delivery, knows better: “as if much of anything about a birth can be planned,” she thinks to herself. Pamela Erens’ slim novel centers on the 11 intense hours of one woman’s labor. Along the way, she unwinds the complicated back stories that have brought these two women together. This is childbirth at its grittiest and most intimate."