This is a well researched and scholarly treatment of a particular aspect of history - women in medicine - that is not commonly studied on its own. Tannenbaum draws some interesting conclusions, such as the way in which women sitting at sickbeds and attending births were reinforcing community standards as well as providing comfort to the sick and to laboring mothers. She describes the power midwives held - not only did they have knowledge and skills to facilitate delivering babies, but they had the legal obligation to demand that an unmarried woman name the father of her child. The were often called upon to examine the bodies of women accused of witchcraft and report their findings to the court. They weighed in on whether a child born less than nine months after a wedding was premature, or full term indicating that the parents were guilty of fornication