(A)n outstanding work of historical ethnography.... The book offerswonderful insight into how women created and understood the great changes of the20th century. It is unique in its scope and its intimate knowledge of rurallife." -- Russian Review
"(A) major contribution to thefield.... an important book that should be of considerable interest to medicalhistorians and historians of peasants, the family, and of women." -- AmericanHistorical Review
Village Mothers describes the reception ofmodern medical ideas and practices by three generations of Russian and Tatar villagewomen in the 20th century. Using the village mothers' own words, David L. Ranselshows how the women mediated the inherited beliefs of their families andcommunities, the claims of the state to control reproduction, and their personaldesires for a better life.