Two Years With a Midwife in Mali - Monique and the Mango Rains

What should have been a thrilling insight into the life of a 3rd world country and a fresh faced Peace Corp volunteer fell flat. The first chapter that described the 1st birth witnessed by Kris at the hands of the midwife Monique held so much promise. The rest of the narrative was with out emotion. The descriptions of the situations just read as if the author was writing a school paper and holding back. It did not make Monique a stronger character to sacrifice the story of Kris and John. I had a hard time reading it through. I usually read a book straight through and set aside a few hours to do it. This book took me a month to read for our book club. It just did not have a thread of excitement to hold my attention. Sorry- I wanted so much more of what must have been a thrilling experience. I still have no idea why her black village elders would want to meet their white "grandchildren"- it did not seem that she had a relationship of depth with anyone but Monique?

An interesting and very personal account of a young American in a southern Mali village. I expected more information on birthing practices of the Malian people, and less anecdotal and 'fish-out-of-water' narrative. Unlike many other books on birthing traditions of other cultures, Holloway fails to offer anything positive or beautiful about native Malian traditions. Her love and admiration for Monique Dembele is honest and heart-felt, but this is definitely written from a WESTERN perspective, with 'poverty' overshadowing the power and beauty of the people. The portrait is quite depressing. The genital mutilation chapter is well done and poignant; no doubt the most disturbing but necessary story told in the book. I felt this story shared a typical problem among peace corps workers in Mali... that they are there to teach, rather than learn. Despite the help the Malians need, and the problems they face, Holloway never saw life from their eyes...the writing suffers from that anthropological bias.

The book “Monique and the Mango Rains” by Kris Holloway is a great read. This book is wrote more like a journal is about a Peace Corps volunteer, Kris, who heads to Mali to work alongside a midwife, Monique. These two women become best friends and end up saving many women and babies by aiding with their birth. Throughout their relationship Kris learns that Monique is in an arraigned marriage with someone who does not appreciate her. Yet, aside from how Monique’s husband and in-laws see her, she still helps save others lives. This book goes into detail about how Kris and Monique’s friendship blossomed and how they went around the community to help mother’s give birth. Many of these mothers were without running water, electricity, proper clothing, or food to eat. Within this book culture, healthcare, relationships, and problems are all discussed. I would rate this book a 10/10. This book really opened my eyes to how things are done in other countries. This book shows how selfless this woman was to help when she did not have much to give other than love and a helping hand. Working as a maternity nurse I take for granted the technology, medication, and equipment I have at my fingertips.

[...]
Monique is a very skillful midwife. She is one of the many people in the Mali Tribe. She and Kris Holloway meets when Kris goes to Mali for two years as a midwife. She assists Monique. It is amazing how careful and how much ability Kris owned to deliver babies. She worked with a dearth of medical technology. She had none of what we see on a hospital maternity floor. Surprisingly her lack didn't make her stop caring for the pregnant women who walked from faraway or close by for any little bit of help she could give. Through Monique's character I learned it is possible to make do with the little available to me. I don't have to give up.

While Kris Holloway lived and worked with Monique she gained a friend. They laughed together. They puzzled over an expectant mother's symptoms, and they danced and also talked about disturbing social issues which seemed unlikely to change. For example Monique doesn't receive wages in her hand for her work. Her wages are given to a man. Then, he gives her what is concluded by him as a fair amount. There isn't any governmental officials to weigh his decision. Making money fairly is most important to any woman in any culture. Monique is no different. The odd part is she never complains, never broods and never stops working. Her mind is always one step ahead. How can I save the next baby, how can I keep the mother-to-be strong and how to keep new infants fed and healthy.

Monique never grew tired of her work. She never did sloppy work. Monique is a perfect role model of what any woman can become in the worse of circumstances. I especially remember one mother. When she had a contraction, she didn't have the strength to push the baby. In Mali women never get bedrest before giving birth. They just keep doing hard, heavy labor. Monique tells how rest for this woman's body would have prevented the extremely awful birth this lady experienced.

Kris Holloway also writes about the cutting of women's genitals in Mali. It is horrible to think this very painful practice might still be done to women as a kind of passage ritual. In the end Kris Holloway left me wanting to know more about Africa and Mali. I have learned each culture is different. All cultures have a bad and/or good side. Also, diverse cultures can join with one another and share a friendship. The color of skin, the language, the way people worship doesn't have to be a reason to separate ourselves from one another. Kris Holloway and Monique maintained their friendship long after Kris left to return to the states. They shared letters and a visit. Their bond of friendship was tight. Their generosity toward one another huge.This is a great story of truth on many levels, and true story not to be missed.

Monique and the Mango Rains is a captivating story of a young Peace Corps volunteer and a midwife in Mali, Africa. The story is told in the first person narrative and recounts Holloway’s experience through rich dialogue and descriptive metaphors. Although the story focuses a great deal on midwifery, and infant and maternal morbidity and mortality, multiple themes and issues are reflected.

Friendship is highlighted in the close bond and relationship of Holloway and Monique Dembele. These two women supported each other, for example when the narrator had a severe bout of gardiasis and when Monique was overwhelmed with her marital problems. It also touches on women’s issues and unfair wages, for instance Monique’s salary was being partially kept by the clerk and her father-in-law. She received almost nothing to support her family because she was a woman. Monique’s husband and father-in-law dictated everything she did. Marriages for the most part are arranged and there are no protection against domestic violence.

Death is also commonly discussed in this book. There’s death of babies, sick people, death as a result of drought and also when there are too much rain. The death of older people are celebrated with dancing and eating. Death of a young person brings sadness. Religion is a main focus also as the people in Mali depend on forces out of their control for basic necessities.

This story is ultimately about friendship and bridging cultural differences and barriers. I detect a honest self-awareness of the narrator. I would rate this book a 4.5/5.

When I finished reading Monique and the Mango Rains I was amazed and yet saddened overall. The book shows a very finely detailed snapshot of traditional Malian culture and the oppression that women still face. It was shocking initially to see the lack of education that the women had, but they were guided through life and motherhood with the help of Monique. She seemed to play a larger role in the survival of the tribe then many of the men or possibly even the chief would like to say. It was frustrating to see that even though she was good at her job, her in-laws continued to take advantage of her income.
Also the chapter with the discussion of performing the female circumcisions was incredibly heart breaking. Knowing that these young girls all thought that this was normal, but not fully understand what was being done to their body without their say was disheartening. The irony of the ending of the book was both shocking and angering, knowing that the only person who could have saved Monique was herself. Overall, I give the book a 9.5/10. It was a better read than what I expected and I even had coworkers waiting for me to finish so they could read it. The book was well written for the majority of it, and portrays the impoverished culture well without focusing on it too much. It shows how the community came together, but how ancient cultural traditions still play a role in their society. Also the bond that is formed with Monique and Fatumata shows how different culture upbringings can not separate true friendships. I would definitely recommend this to anyone looking for a good read!

Monique and the Mango Rains is the compelling story of a rare friendship between a young Peace Corps volunteer and a midwife who became a legend . . .

Monique Dembele saved lives and dispensed hope in a place where childbirth is a life-and-death matter. This book tells of her unquenchable passion to better the lives of women and children in the face of poverty, unhappy marriages, and endless backbreaking work. Monique's buoyant humor and willingness to defy tradition were uniquely hers. In the course of this deeply personal narrative, as readers immerse themselves in the rhythms of West African village life, they come to know Monique as friend, mother, and inspired woman.

From witnessing her first village birth to the night of Monique's own tragic death, Kris Holloway draws on her first-person experiences in Mali, her graduate studies in maternal and child health, medical and clinic records, letters and journals, as well as conversations with Monique, her family, friends and colleagues, to give readers a unique view--and a friend in West Africa.

I really enjoy reading about other countries and other cultures. Kris Holloway's book was a book that fed this hunger for knowledge. Following in Kris' footsteps this book takes you through her two years she spent in the Peace Corps working with Monique, a midwife in Mali.

The friendship that you witness develop between Kris Halloway and Monique is worth reading the book alone. Yet, there is so much more information to this book them the friendship. This is an accurate account of what life in West Africa was like for this incredible woman.

Day to day Monique wakes early and works all day in the birthing house where she helps women with pregnancies, before the birth, during, and after. Working for unheard of wages that are collected by her husband... this book is one that ripped at my heart. Kris Holloway brings a voice to this remarkable women and brings her story that otherwise would be unknown... to us, the lucky readers. What a privilege to share a part of Monique's life.

From Kris's words about Africa, to Monique's time in America... you will want to experience this book. And that is just what this book is... an experience not to be missed.

Recipe: West African Peanut Stew -- Tigadegena
(from Monique Dembele, Mali, West Africa, adapted for vegetarians)
Serves 6-8

* 2c. chopped onion
* 3 cloves garlic
* 1tbsp. vegetable oil
* 2 tsp. grated fresh ginger
* 4 c. vegetable stock
* 2 c. tomato juice
* ½ tsp. cayenne (or to taste)
* 1 -1 ½ c. smooth peanut butter
* 2 c. chopped cabbage
* 2 c. chopped sweet potato
* 1 c. chopped okra (if available)
* salt and pepper
* chopped scallions
* Rice or cous-cous (this sauce can be served over either)
* Heat oil in large pot/skillet and fry onions, garlic, and ginger until soft. Add veg. stock, tomato juice, and cayenne. When hot, add peanut butter and mix well. Allow to boil for 10-20 minutes to thicken, then add remaining vegetables. Cook 20 minutes or so until vegetables are soft. Add water if the sauce is too thick, peanut butter if too thin. Serve over rice or cous-cous. Top with scallions. Is even better the next day.
* Traditionally this is served communal-style. A large bowl filled with rice and sauce is placed on the ground. People gather around it and, after washing their hands in a small bowl of water, dig in (each person being careful to only nosh on the rice and sauce directly in front of him/her so as not to mix spit with the folks on either side). Another bowl of water is passed to rinse hands after eating.

* Blessing for after the meal:
Allah ka suma I kono. (May God cool the food in your belly.)
Amina (Amen)

Monique and the Mango Rains is the moving account of Kris Holloway's experiences as a Peace Corps volunteer in Mali, West Africa, assisting Monique Dembele, the area's local midwife and medical worker. In the crippling poverty of Mali, Monique and Kris work to help Mali's women and children in times of medical distress. From the birthing of babies to relationship counselling, fending off disease and infection to nutrition education, Monique labors ceaselessly and tirelessly. Her work builds a reputation far and wide that draws women from distant villages seeking her expert help. Kris, while adapting to her harsh environment, becomes more than just an assistant to Monique, experiencing with her the joy of her work and her relationships with the local women. She shares the anguish and disappointment of Monique's life outside the clinic and the close bond of her host family in Africa, becoming a friend to this inspiring woman. As Monique and Kris work to bring education and information to the women, they must broach sensitive topics like birth-control, AIDS, and abolishment of female circumcision. These topics, foreign to the local women, directly affect the survival of the community, and they work tirelessly to educate and inform the women while still dealing with the malnutrition, illness, and injury that besiege them every day.

The candid portrayal of life in the small village was very informative and interesting. I learned a great deal about the regions politics, the African society, and the general day to day existence of the small provincial village. The backbreaking work that the community must endure to prepare for the seasonal rains that fortify their village was explained in rich detail, making the story of the community's struggle for their survival come alive to the reader. Every hand is needed to plant and harvest the life giving crops that will sustain the villagers in the dry season. Monique's inexhaustible commitment to her patients and to her family was awe-inspiring. Her work to repair the birthing house, her bi-weekly weighing of babies, and her educational instruction to mothers for the care of their children was invaluable to the women of her community. Monique's story, though inspirational, was also fraught with sadness. The relationship between her and her husband, who she only calls le gars (the guy) is upsetting and one-sided. While Monique provides the money, care and stability, her husband takes and takes from her, never realizing the treasure that he is entrusted with. Monique works long and trying hours at the clinic, barely scraping by financially, with her young son tied to her back. Though at times the story was sad, there were real moments of joy and laughter throughout this book, from the triumphant birth of twins in an area where a double birth is almost unheard of, to Monique's musings on an airplane ride, I found myself smiling and laughing with Kris and Monique. Monique and Kris's friendship continued even after Kris's time in the peace corps ended, and straddled two different continents and many years.

This was a remarkable story of a remarkable woman. It encompassed the difficulties, differences and uniqueness of African culture that goes unnoticed by most Americans. I found Monique to be a fascinating woman who gave her heart and soul to the people who relied on her for their daily survival. This book was written in part to document the work that Kris did at Monique's side, but more than this, it was written as a homage to her great friend Monique. Monique truly touched Kris's life, and upon reading this book, I found she touched mine as well. Wonderful book, highly recommended.

Rating- 9/10

The story of Monique is an interesting one to say the least. Conflicts regarding African medicine, culture, opinions, and healthcare are discussed in this one of kind story. Taken from the perspective of a college aged US peace corps volunteer, issues arise between western views and generational outlooks as one woman struggles to maintain adequate healthcare in a desolate African community. The story opens the reader to the problems faced in the third world as mortality and morbidity can outweigh daily living. Struggles to maintain health living are challenged as disease and famine face these individuals. One issue seen with the piece is the timing as it can be seen as outdated, but still relevant. Is definetly a story worth reading for any individual deciding to enter the healthcare profession.

Kris Holloway spent two life-changing years in Mali, West Africa as a Peace Corps volunteer. Monique and the Mango Rains is her memoir of that time, of the people she met, and the country she grew to love.

Holloway, twenty-two years old, fresh out of college and hailing from Ohio, was assigned to the village of Nampossela in southeastern Mali. Her host, the person she would shadow for two years and with whom she would develop a remarkable friendship, was the village health care worker and midwife Monique Dembele.

This book educated me about so many aspects of Mali - the culture, it's political climate, the economy - never once losing my attention or becoming tedious. In fact, I was hooked from the first page. I attribute this to the author's love of the country and its people. Even though her focus in this book is Monique and the villagers, it is obvious that Holloway was an exceptional person in the ease with which she adapted to life in Nampossela. She picked up the language quickly, had relatively few complaints about the lack of ammenities and physical comforts, and was in general open to the experience, embracing the beauty and simplicity of this extraordinary existence.

Above all else, Monique and the Mango Rains is a tribute to its title character. Monique was regal and intelligent, wise beyond her 24 years, with an easy-going sense of humor. She was compassionate and kind, dedicated to her work, despite its frustrations and the toll it took on her own life. Overworked and underpaid, she worked at the dilapidated village clinic with her infant son strapped to her back. The resources available to health care were scarce and educating the villagers often meant contradicting a patrilineal cultural tradition in which women were not free to control their own destiny where health and reproductive issues were concerned.

Holloway's descriptions made Mali come alive. She painted a richly hued picture of the village of Nampossela. When she described the oily chunks of mudfish that accompanied one meal, I could see and smell them. My skin crawled when a seven-inch long, jet black scorpion fell from an item of clothing she was about to put on one morning. I felt emotionally invested in this story, drawn to keep reading but not wanting it to end. I ached for her when her Peace Corps assignment came to an end and it was time to say good-bye to Monique and the villagers. While Holloway recounted holding back tears on her last day in Nampossela, mine were flowing freely.

I am so glad that Kris Holloway decided to write this memoir of her two years in Mali, and that she did it so masterfully. It touched my heart, and changed the way I see the world ... and I can't stop thinking about Monique.

Book Review
Monique and the Mango Rains: Two Years with a Midwife in Mali. By Kris Holloway.
Monique and the Mango Rains is a story by Kris Holloway called Fatumata her given Malian name when she began her Peace Corp service in the village of Nampossela, Mali. The story is about Monique “the village’s midwife and sole health care worker” (p.5). Some facts about Monique, she apprenticed for two years as a midwife and then continued her studies for nine months in a health services program. Monique is the state sponsored health officer of the village assuming that position when the midwife she was studying under passed. The story goes on to describe how Monique, with he son strapped to her back at all times took care of the villages women. Her responsibilities included giving health demonstrations, birthing babies, administering vaccines, and giving prenatal consultations.
One important part of this book is the way in which positive changes in the lives of the Nampossela, Mali people are achieved. Another is the proof of the power of women’s relationships to recreate the world.
I would have to give this heartfelt memoir Monique and the Mango Rains an absolute 10 because it is a pleasure to read, is wonderfully written, free from ungainly scholastic language and has a down-to-earth style. The author’s openness and honesty of her accounts are refreshing, giving the reader a real sense of connection with the Nampossela, Mali villagers and their lives. This book is a must read for anyone!
AnnMarie in NY
Holloway, K. (2007). Monique and the mango rains. Long Grove, IL: Waveland Press, Inc.

This book assigned for my class and I enjoyed read the book Monique and the Mango Rains. I found the caring, compassionate personality of the main character of the Monique. She provided care for mothers and infants in a rural village of Nampossela in Mali, West Africa and with very limited resources. The author reveals the poor healthcare system and challenges the people live there faced. She sacrificed her time and knowledge for people who needed help. She educated the mothers and promoted health for infants and the community.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading the book Monique and the Mango Rains. While I was required to read this book for a college class, I was surprised at how much I enjoyed this book. The book is centered around two main characters: Monique, the village midwife in a small village in Mali, Africa and Kris Holloway, a young American Peace Corps volunteer. The book places a strong emphasis on the cultural life, customs and traditions of the village Nampossela, Mali and the lack of available healthcare. I found the main character, Monique to be very caring, educated, friendly and compassionate when providing care to the women and children of her village. The book does an excellent job of focusing on the challenges and struggles the people in the country of Mali face ranging from poverty, malnutrition, diseases, lack of available healthcare, scarcity of technology, and the patriarchal order of society. Despite these challenges, the community comes together to help each other and celebrate events such as births and deaths and other sorrows.
I give this book a 5/5 stars because it is a great book. The author’s writing is simple and does an excellent job of maintaining the attention of the reader. Personally, I found myself having a hard time putting the down the book because I was so intrigued by the events of each chapter. The author does an excellent job of creating a wide array of characters with different personalities and characteristics that contribute to the diversity of the book. Personally, I was fascinated by author’s depiction of the main character Monique, who was so compassionate and caring to her patients and other women with always a bright and cheery attitude despite personal problems at home. I think this book is relatable to an average reader because it involved a variety of issues such as poverty, marriage, childbearing, death, illness and cultural expectations. I think this book is an excellent way to become familiar with the life and healthcare situation in Africa. I would highly recommend this book as relaxed summer read that is engaging and entertaining to the reader.

As a social scientist working with, and on, indigenous people's issues I read a lot of contemporary ethnographies. Most that I read are largely out of date by the time they reach publication. This is simply because of the nature of the discipline: taking time to do the fieldwork, writing up the manuscript, finding a willing publisher, and the overall book production process all take time. As a result, in a world that changes by the day, more often then not when an ethnography is finally published the material within it is often dated. Social scientists have tried to work around this disciplinary "time drag" by focusing on particular cultural phenomena rather then looking at the culture itself as a whole. Monique and the Mango Rains is an example of one of these modern ethnographies, where the central focus of the book is on midwifery and childbirth in Mali, and the Minianka indigenous people and culture are more part of the contextual background then the actual focus of the book.

Focusing on Fatumata - the author Kris Holloway's Malian name - and her Peace Corps experience among the Minianka indigenous peoples in Mali's southeastern region near the Burkina Faso border, the book is a deeply personal narrative about the rhythms of West African life and death. The Minianka (also known as the Mamara, Miniyanka, Minya, Mianka, Minyanka, or Tupiire) are an indigenous group speaking a northern Senufo language used by about 700,000 people in southeastern Mali and northwestern Burkina Faso. Mali is one of the economically poorest countries in the world - the average Malian earns roughly the equivalent of $210 US dollars per year. Compounding this extreme level of poverty is the fact that very few people in Mali have electricity, running water, telephones, or access to modern healthcare. Most women are married by the age of eighteen and have an average of seven children - the risk of death during childbirth and pregnancy is among the top ten in the world. It is here, in the remote southeastern corner of Mali that the author was stationed for two years, and where she met and befriended the local village midwife, Monique Dembele.

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The relationship between Fatumata and Monique is what makes this book succeed as it offers a unique glimpse into the day-to-day lives of the Minianka indigenous people and their contemporary struggles. The rarity of this glimpse is that we are given access to a component of Minianka life not often shared with the outside world - the inner realm of womanhood, midwifery, and childbirth. "I couldn't believe that here, in this dilapidated box, Monique, with a sixth-grade education and nine months of medical training, was birthing babies. Lots of babies" (Holloway 2007: 8). However, as we learn, not only was Monique the midwife - and thus responsible for the future of her village - but she was also a doctor and respected elder. The larger role that Monique played in her village is revealed in the deeply personal narratives presented throughout the book. For example, several times throughout the book Monique confides in Fatumata about her struggles and frustrations: Monique told Fatumata, "He has had many attacks of malaria over the past few months. It has caused severe anemia, and now diarrhea. He is also malnourished. The mother didn't know what to do. She had not heard about malaria prevention and drugs. ... I can do nothing. I don't have IVs. I don't have serum. These women must bring me their children before they get so sick, then I have ways of helping them" (Holloway 2007: 30-31).

Broken into thirteen chapters, the book chronicles Fatumata's relationship with Monique during several important cultural events for the Minianka indigenous peoples: the building of a new birthing hut, governmental revolution in Mali, and the death and birth of several community members. Filling an important gap within the contemporary literature dealing with indigenous peoples in West Africa, Monique and the Mango Rains is the perfect book for undergraduate classes, applied researchers and activists, or simply the interested reader.

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Indigenous Peoples Issues & Resources
[...]

Monique and the Mango Rains is written by Kris Holloway, who lived in Nampossela, Mali, as a Peace Corps volunteer. Kris and Monique Dembele, a midwife in Nampossela and Kris’s host, develops a strong friendship while they both strive to improve the healthcare of women and children in Nampossela. This book describes the real life in Nampossela and healthcare in Nampossela: good and bad, happy and sad, success and struggle, life and death. Holloway’s warm writing style, readers can experience the live in Nampossela. After reading this book, readers get to know Monique, and will miss Monique. This book is a must-read not only for those who are interested in nursing/midwifery, anthropology, global healthcare or women’s studies; but also for everyone who appreciates strengths in the humanity.

This was a poignant account of the experiences of a midwife in Mali and the observations of the Peace Corp volunteer who followed her for two years beginning in July 1989. It provided an overview of the challenges experienced by women in this nation in managing their reproductive health and caring for their infants and the integral role played by Monique in navigating through and improving upon the childbirth experience for these women despite the limited resources available to her. It is also a story of the friendship and camaraderie that developed between these two women based on a mutual respect and a deeper understanding and appreciation of the differences in each other’s lives. Despite the tragic ending, it was a captivating read that leaves one hopeful about the tenacity and resilience of the human spirit to endure challenges and yet maintain a caring, human spirit that strives to make the world a better place one person at a time. A definite five stars for me and an essential read for those interested in women’s health issues that are in stark contrast to those present in the Western world.

I believe that a great many Americans, myself included, take a great many things for granted. This is one of those books that will remind you how much we have to be grateful for.

This was an exceptional story of a truly exceptional woman. Monique was a beautiful, life-filled, loving and selfless woman who gave everything she had to her village and the surrounding villages. Her work in health transformed every one's lives she touched, including that of the Peace Corps worker, Kris, who came to work with her for two years. This is a wonderful book that I highly recommend.

In Monique and the Mango Rains Kris Holloway weaves a bewitching vignette, recalling her experience as a twenty-two-year-old Peace-Corp volunteer in Nampossela Mali. The book revolves around a young Malian mid-wife, `Monique,' only two years older than the author, and the interactions between them as the two work together to birth-children and provide obstetric care in a poorly-stocked, and weakly structured birth clinic. The novel ultimately develops into a memoir of their blossoming relationship as the author battles to assist her beloved friend, and provide better care for her village. It is an extraordinary binary; a concoction of romantic dialogues and reflections of her enchantment with her environment while simultaneously a tactful analysis of important issues in women's reproductive health in Africa. I.E: maternal mortality, infant mortality, and excision. Holloway's gifted ability to swing gracefully between solemnity and light-heartedness throughout the text is often captured in the dialogue between herself and Monique. In one instance the author comments on a freshly fallen mango's deliciousness, cues Monique to launch into an ethereal explanation that "it is the mango rains we must thank" for their sweetness. Without skipping a beat, Holloway transitions into a heavy discussion regarding the death of Monique's first born child. The juxtaposition captures the mentality of Mali---life as an ebb and flow, death as a natural and accepted thing, and all of the beauty in-between. Holloway's writing is impressive throughout the novel; she expands on culture-specific topics, such as excision, without wagging a finger or casting a hyper-critical eye so typical of other interpretations of the subject. She approaches each issue delicately, drawing anecdotally to bring a personal understanding to the readers and deliver reason behind commonly misunderstood cultural practices. For example, Holloway explains the risks and dangers common to excision but then addresses the importance of the ritual as a "rite of passage" many Malian women opt for. She notes it is "right" for "her[Monique], not me, to introduce the dangers[of excision] to the village." Holloway remains factual and culturally sensitive throughout the whole book, but still manages to convey her experiences abruptly, when they were abrupt, and sweetly when things were sweet. I found myself, as a woman, identifying with many of her experiences, good and bad, throughout the novel; her fear of child-birth when confronted with it for the first time, and her confusion about marriage. My only question is why is this story considered so unique? Why is Monique a "legend?" Because this book was written? While Monique is framed as a special and unique character in Holloway's recollection, who's to say that Monique is any different from hundreds of the other mid-wives in the same heart wrenching situations across West-Africa?
Overall, Holloway successfully creates an accessible window into her experience; her pain-staking honesty, and emotional connection with Monique makes her memories relatable, and, more importantly, real. I found the book entertaining, sentimental, and at times, graphic in its detail regarding the processes and anxieties of being a Woman in an environment where giving birth is such a risk, but also such an expectation. I highly suggest Holloway's Monique and the Mango Rains to anyone interested in West-Africa, Women's issues, or just a wonderfully written story.

Review of Monique and the Mango Rains: Two Years with a Midwife in Mail

Kris Holloway's book, Monique and the Mango Rains: Two Years with a Midwife in Mali is a complimentary synthesis of a personal tale and an informal ethnography. Holloway's story effortlessly envelops the reader's imagination, and the subject matter enlightens with a stark and truthful reality of the content. The book tells of Holloway's two-year stay in Mali as a Peace Corps volunteer and of the intimate details of life in Mali, and the friendship she develops with her host and the local midwife, Monique Dembele. Monique and the Mango rains provides a bird's eye view of village life in Nampossela, Mali, and of two very different lives merging into a special friendship while striving to beat the odds of hardship facing the Nampossela women and children.
The introduction sets the scene and provides the audience with the necessary background information as a foundation for understanding the context of the work. Holloway briefly but adequately explains Mali's socio-economic conditions, culture, climate, and history, and then transitions to supplying statistics about women's reproductive health as she reveals the focal point of her book: the personal struggles of the local women and the development of her intimate friendship with Monique. In the first chapter the reader with the nitty-gritty; the reality of the conditions in which women give birth in the village instantly come alive as Monique assists a young mother with a difficult birth in the rudimentary shelter and with negligible resources. The young Ms. Holloway dives directly into the experience of the women of the village and the life of Monique Dembele, and descriptiveness brings the reader right there with her. Monique and the Mango Rains is anthropological in its ethnographic and participant-observation framework and both informative in the description of womanhood in this part of Africa and revelational in Kris's personal accounts of emotion and humanistic concerns that cross cultural borders. While her narrative imparts intricacies of Monique's life and Malian culture, the reader also intuitively feels the bond between Monique and the author grow, and grows with Ms. Holloway as a person becoming fully aware of the bonds of womanhood and humanity.
As the sole village midwife and health-worker in the area, Monique is forever inundated with the needs of other villagers and with the responsibility for improving their health. Kris Holloway accompanies her as she works endlessly and graciously to oblige the needs of pregnant and birthing mothers, and together they strive to help improve the conditions of the birthing center and health clinic, and to help infants survive the overbearing threats of malnutrition and disease. In following Monique and the author's journey of friendship and their quest to improve women and children's lives, the cultural fabric of Nampossela becomes a tangible part of the story. The reader learns of social norms and cultural taboos; traditions and customs; how the villagers subsist, love, grieve, celebrate and die. Holloway's book also provides an easily accessible look into subject matter that can often be technical and or have a dry academic tinge- infant/ mother mortality rates, poverty, disease, and disputed traditions and gender roles, and presents them in a sensitive yet uncensored and honest manner. Holloway's penmanship successfully expresses some harsh realities with forthrightness and openness, with genuine emotion, and with a touch of lightheartedness that may be mistaken for naivety.
One aspect of Monique and the Mango Rains that remained unfulfilling was the lack of detail or explanation of Ms. Holloway's real assignment and goals as a Peace Corps worker to improve effectiveness of the health care clinic; although they succeed in rebuilding the dilapidated birthing house, it is by means of their own initiative and not as a goal of the Peace Corps. Ms. Holloway works with Monique to improve primarily women and children's health, but it is not entirely clear what supplies or knowledge she came equipped with other than more education and a decent understanding of basic western medicine and nutrition. However, this does not tarnish the overall informative and meaningful content of the book or fluidity of Holloway's work and it graciously honors the life of Monique Dembele.
The book undoubtedly speaks to readers of varying experience with Africa, and those with or without women's health issues in the forefront of their thoughts. But as a reader who has lived in Africa and worked in health field, I was particularly affected by Kris Holloway's description of life in Nampossela and the inseparable themes of community, custom, emotion, and humanity. Monique's lust for life amidst lives filled with struggles and suffering has stirred cherished memories and revived some of my deflated emotions; the ability of the literature to do this indicates that Monique and the Mango Rains is a book worthwhile for readers of any background, as it is capable of modest enlightenment, intellectual and emotional stimulation, and certain to hold one's attention and one's heart for the entirety of the story.

An absolutely amazing read for all types of readers, this book will take the reader on a deep and awe-inspiring journey through the lives of two women who are committed to a small, struggling community in Mali. Powerful and transcendently real, Kris' narration carries the reader through the daily hardships and joys of an African midwife and Peace Corps volunteer. Together they take on the challenges of inadequate healthcare, death, survival and bureaucracy. Their friendship grows and deepens despite their differing cultures, their previous worldviews and their individual future prospects.

Kris' writing is beautifully descriptive and flowing. She allows the reader to meet and know Monique; and the women, children and men of this small Malian community. I developed strong feelings of compassion and empathy for each character and his survival, even for Monique's husband who was not so exemplary. It is not a light book, although it does have its humorous moments. Often, I was overcome with intense feelings of loss and awe. It put my little sanitary world of comfort and ease into perspective.

This book set in Mali, West Africa brings women's issues out in the open using a tender touch of compassion, mixed with stern facts that one cannot ignore. It explores family hierarchy and village politics. On top of this revealing a timeless friendship that crossed cultural barriers. It represents `a day in the life of a Peace Corps volunteer'... and so much more. An excellent read filled with love, compassion, frustration and triumph. I would recommend this book to anyone, especially Peace Corps volunteers even if one did not work with midwives. I read it in one day...I could not put it down!

This book will linger in your thoughts long after you've raced through the pages (you'll race through because you won't be able to help yourself - you just keep wanting to know WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?). This true tale of friendship between Monique, the village midwife, and Kris, the author and at the time, Peace Corp volunteer, will warm your heart even while demonstrating the great gulf between the two worlds - USA and Africa. The author has done a lovely job portraying the customs and culture of Mali and opening our eyes to the challenges of life without the advanced technology to which we here in the States are so accustomed. A great read.

I'm always looking for books written by Returned Peace Corps volunteers, having been in the Peace Corps myself. This book is a fantastic and moving memoir of Kris Holloway's two years in the Peace Corps in a small, impoverished village in Mali. The book recounts the close friendship of two women (Kris and her Malian counterpart, Monique) from very different worlds, a friendship that continued after Kris returned to the U.S. It also very respectfully portrays the day-to-day lives of African villagers...the good, the bad and the ugly. I read the book in one day, often with tears in my eyes. I would highly recommend it to anyone interested in Africa, or to anyone who would just like to read an entertaining (yes, it does have plenty of funny moments!) and moving story.

A beautfully written, honest, heartfelt, and moving description of a young Peace Corps. worker's relationship with a mid wife in Mali. The book reveals intimate aspects of the reality of women's lives in a small African village and also allows the reader to share the friendship that develops between the white Peace Corps. worker and the African midwife. Highly recommended.

Outstanding!! This book will emmerse and transport you to Mali Africa where you'll experience the conditions and culture of the sweet people that live there. Told indearingly by Kris Holloway the writer and peace corp volunteer who lived this wonderful journey with a friend made in afar away place... as one who is just beginning to explore the possibility of traveling to Africa as a missionary I found this book to be informative & enlightening...

It is clear how much the author loved, respected and admired Monique. This personal memoir is well written and gripping. I could not put it down. Besides giving us a very intimate view of one inspirtational woman's life, we also get a clear picture of what life is like in rural Mali.

I am a librarian in Connecticut and I just wanted to thank Kris for writing about her Peace Corps experience and Monique's life. This book will be forever etched in my memory. The book will connect with so many women, for many reasons- just seeing the similarities and hardships of life that women share whatever the culture may be. You will laugh, cry, and be deeply moved by Kris and Monique's friendship.

What a good, simple non-fiction story this is, well told, direct, and touching. The narrator is young and it is refreshing to see the world again through open and unclouded youthful vision. I am recommending this book to friends who have an interest in international viewpoints, and also to my teenage daughter who needs to understand that women in other parts of the world have quite a different life from her own. It would make an excellent selection for a womens' studies class.

This wonderful book brought me back to my own time as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Mauritania. I have shared it with my family. Ms. Halloway's prose has given my family some idea what my life was like --20 years after my return home. Her book has done more for that understanding than all of my pictures and letters home Thank you for this treat. I am trying to get all of the students at nursing school to read it.

Monique and the Mango Rains is a fascinating real story about a Peace Corps volunteer, Kris and her friend, Monique, a Malian (Africa), midwife. The is a beautiful story filled with wonderful detail that transported me to Mali (as close as I'll ever be) and provided stories around women, children and family. I couldn't wait to get to bed each night and devour another chapter filled with humor, saddness and love. Hope you enjoy it too.

I so enjoyed reading this book. My daughter was in Mali with the PC 10 yrs after Kris so I had a different perspective than the average reader. We so need to appreciate the health care we have in America, as flawed as it sometimes is. I would strongly recommend this book to anyone who is thinking of going into the health care field or anyone who is thinking of going into a third world country.

I so enjoyed reading this book. My daughter was in Mali with the PC 10 yrs after Kris so I had a different perspective than the average reader. We so need to appreciate the health care we have in America, as flawed as it sometimes is. I would strongly recommend this book to anyone who is thinking of going into the health care field or anyone who is thinking of going into a third world country.

My niece sent me "Monique and the Mango Rains" - what a marvelous book! What a glorious memorial to a great woman. The whole book moved not only me, but also my husband, who read it first. Monique was made so real to us. The other thing that so impressed me about this remarkable book is the way Kris has told the truth as it is, all the way through! A very brave decision and so well carried out.

Monique was hard to put down. I found myself becoming emotionally invested in the people in the book and the small village in Mali. Everyone should read this book and Kris Holloway should be praised for telling Monique's story so beautifully. I will not soon forget Monique and the stories told by Kris.

Kris Halloway's book tells the story of a strong, courageous young midwife in Mali. The book is a joy to read -- interesting, funny at times, and touching. It gives the reader a clear picture about the enormous struggles young women and mothers face in Africa. I thought it was terrific-- buy it!

Everyone who reads this book will wish that she or he could be spend time with Monique. An inspiring book about the difference one person can make in the lives of many others, directly or indirectly in hearing her story.

This is a delightful book, made more special by the fact that it is a true story. Kris is a skilled writer who captures the sense of life in Mali and the personality of her beloved Monique. I am glad she decided to tell her story: I will never forget it, or Monique...

A wonderful story of friendship and an interesting look at life in the Peace Corps and Mali in the 80's. The author's style is so easy to read; I felt like she was sitting next to me, telling me her story.