In the late 60s and early 70s, before Roe vs. Wade gave women the right to do what they want with their bodies, there was a group of women (and some men) in Chicago helping others to get safe abortions, which was illegal back then. They were called The Jane Collective. Based on this group, All You Have to Do is Call is about how women dealt with their life choices in the beginning of the women’s liberation movement era.
Although this story is based on a true facts, Ms. Maher created her own characters; all of them as diverse as society can be, to talk about this controversial topic as abortion rights is. Throughout the pages of this book we meet Veronica, Patty, Margaret, Siobhan and a few others, and their points of views about it (the book is narrated by Veronica, Patty and Margaret).
Veronica is a free spirit. Always involved in social movements, she can be a bit idealistic sometimes but she’s true to herself and what she believes. That’s why she’s actively immersed in The Jane Collective, to help women to get what they need. Patty, Veronica’s longtime friend, is the typical traditional wife/mother and more conservative than Veronica. Margaret works at the University of Chicago and gets involved with Gabe, Siobhan’s ex husband. Siobhan, also active in the Janes, as the collective was usually called, is Veronica’s newest friend. She’s a recently divorced artist; the book opens with Siobhan and Veronica going to the clinic to get the former an abortion.
What I liked about this book is the way the author tells us a true story that goes way beyond the historical and maybe clinical/structural aspects of The Jane Collective. With these characters, Ms. Maher gives us the chance to empathize with any of the women we see in this story. Also, we see real women who got real issues: they’re mothers, professionals, girlfriends, wives. Ones more conservative and old school than others, all of them have a true sense of feminism, not being men haters in the process.
Another thing that has to be mentioned is the fact that the author brings all points of view about a very polarizing topic as is abortion. Ms. Maher doesn’t tip the balance one way or the other. Nor does she’s lecturing us on the subject. She simply brings us the pros and cons of the situation, as well as presents what it meant for women to have the option to choose about their bodies.
Although a bit slow in the first half of the book, this story is very well written with touching moments and other difficult ones. All You Have to Do is Call is a fantastic reading all women need, no matter what you think about the topic developed here. With an excellent research work focused on humanizing the Jane Collective more than the cultural, political and social impact on the 1960-1970’s society, Ms. Maher creates an engaging, thought-provoking story about a key moment in history that changed women’s lives.
ARC given by Berkley Publishing Group/Penguin Random House via Netgalley. Thanks for your trust.
About the Book
Release Date: September 19, 2023
ASIN: B0BQLLCW8V
Published By: Berkley
Series: None
Genre: Women’s Historical Fiction
eBook, 364 pages
“[A] powerful, thought-provoking novel… not only important and timely, but deeply humanizing.” —Good Morning America
A dramatic and inspiring novel based on the true story of the Jane Collective and the brave women who fought for our right to choose, from the USA Today bestselling author of The Paris Bookseller.
Chicago, early 1970s: Who does a woman call when she needs help? Jane.
The best-known secret in the city, Jane is an underground women’s health organization composed entirely of women helping women, empowering them to live lives free from the expectations of society by offering reproductive counseling and safe, illegal abortions. Veronica, Jane’s founder, prides herself on the services she has provided to thousands of women, yet the price of others’ freedom is that she leads a double life. When she’s not at Jane, Veronica plays the role of a conventional housewife—which becomes even more difficult during her own high-risk pregnancy.
Two more women in Veronica’s neighborhood are grappling with similar disconnects. Margaret, a young professor at the University of Chicago, secretly volunteers at Jane as she falls in love with a man whose attitude toward his ex-wife increasingly disturbs her. Patty, who’s long been content as a devoted wife and mother, has begun to sense that something essential is missing from her life. When her runaway younger sister Eliza shows up unexpectedly, Patty is forced to come to terms with what it really means to love and support a sister.
In this historic moment when the personal was nothing if not political, when television, movies, and commercials told women they’d “come a long way, baby,” Veronica, Margaret, and Patty must make choices that will change the course of their lives forever.
About the Author
I live outside of Boston, MA, with my daughter and labradoodle (whose adventures I sometimes post on Instagram, along with many other writing themed posts).
I am the author of THE KENNEDY DEBUTANTE and THE GIRL IN WHITE GLOVES. I am working on a novel called THE PARIS BOOKSELLER, about Sylvia Beach’s bookstore Shakespeare & Company, which was *the* Paris bookshop and meeting spot for the American Lost Generation. Beach was also the first to publish James Joyce’s ULYSSES, after it and been banned in New York in 1921 – it’s a great story!
I’m also the author of THIS IS NOT A WRITING MANUAL, under the name Kerri Majors – it’s an advice-y memoir for young people who might want to be writers, or live a creative life and it’s full of commiseration and practical tips.
What seems like another lifetime ago, I was a professor of writing, and the founder of the award-winning literary journal YARN. I also have an MFA from Columbia University.
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