Often laugh-out-loud funny and irreverent, occassionally disturbing and deeply sorrowful, LADY'S HANDS, LION'S HEART is the saga of Ms. Leonard's fated journey as a young midwife. Her story intertwines three threads: her dedication to the mothers and babies she was groomed to attend; the growing renaissance, despite formidable opposition, of the profession of midwifery in New Hampshire and then in the United States; and finally, a powerful, tragic love story.

"Carol Leonard's memoir of becoming a midwife in the mid-1970s overflows with her gifts as a storyteller as well as intuitive midwife. Inspiring, often hilarious, always touching and full of beans, she takes us through her apprenticeship, the politics of the U.S. midwifery movement and her own personal story of love, loss and deep dedication to women's health. She's my kind of midwife!"
~Ina May Gaskin, author of SPIRITUAL MIDWIFERY